From the desk of Elaib Harvey on Sun, 2006-03-12 16:43
After the latest figures out of Austria [pdf] which has the EU popularity down to 32% now we have new figures out of Finland. A poll carried out by the Finnish think tank EVA, chaired by the owner of Nokia, Jorma Ollila, has found a massive hike in euroscepticism up north.
33% in favour of EU Membership (42% one year ago)
31% against (23% in 2005)
44% against the euro, against 39% in favour.
From the desk of Luc Van Braekel on Sun, 2006-03-12 00:41
Since 7 December 2005, local authorities and holders of registered trademarks in the European Union can apply for a .eu domain name. And since 7 February, company names can be applied for. This sunrise period, reserved for protected names, ends on 6 April. EURid is the operator of the new .eu domain, while PriceWaterhouseCoopers validates the claims during the sunrise period. From 7 April on, the landrush period begins, when everyone with an address in the EU can request a domain on a first come, first served basis.
From the desk of Chresten Anderson on Sat, 2006-03-11 10:15
At the European Council later this month (March 23 and 24) the EU leaders will discuss Europe’s social model. They want to take steps towards further integration of the dysfunctional European welfare states. Brussels is infatuated with the Scandinavian model [this one], and in particular with Denmark’s.
From the desk of Paul Belien on Thu, 2006-03-09 15:30
Czech President Vaclav Klaus again warns against Europeanism. In a speech yesterday in Luxemburg Mr Klaus called for changes in the European Union. “The EU needs a change, it needs to be transformed. It does not suffice to make a cosmetic change,” he said. “Europe does not need unification, but a liberal order.”
From the desk of Paul Belien on Thu, 2006-03-09 15:05
Two weeks ago, a terrorist managed to escape arrest in Brussels, despite being
under surveillance by 32 agents of the Belgian state security, the Sûreté de l’Etat (SdE). Belgium is an inherently corrupt state. The prototype of what the European Union as a federal state is likely to become. I have argued for some time (The Spectator, 13 July 2002) that it is no coincidence that Belgium has become a safe haven for international terrorists. Artificial states like Belgium (The Salisbury Review, December 2003) tend to be corrupt (The Wall Street Journal, 12 September 1996) because no-one identifies with the state. Hence, it is no surprise that no-one in the Belgian government refuses to accept responsibility for the escape of Fehriye Erdal.
From the desk of Edwin Jacobs on Wed, 2006-03-08 19:17
The German website euroislam.info has been shut down because it published the Muhammad cartoons. The first page can still be found in Google’s cache. The owner of the website apparently received an e-mail (original in German) from his Internet service provider Neue Medien Münnich, stating that the website was shut down immediately and without giving a period of notice.
From the desk of Paul Belien on Wed, 2006-03-08 15:59
Yesterday’s municipal elections in the Netherlands were won by the Left. The Labour Party (PvdA) gained more than 500 town hall seats, an increase of 50 per cent compared with 2002, while the far-left Socialist Party (SP) doubled its number of seats. The Christian-Democrat CDA of Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende and his government coalition partner, the free-market Liberal VVD, suffered heavy losses. Yesterday’s result does not bode well for the Right in next year’s general elections. If the result in 2007 is the same as yesterday’s the PvdA will gain 49 of the 150 parliamentary seats, while the CDA – currently the largest party – will lose 13 of its 44 seats. A government of Labour, the SP and the extreme-left Groen Links (Green Left) Party could replace the current center-right government, leaving the Netherlands with a radical-left coalition similar to that of Norway today.
From the desk of George Handlery on Wed, 2006-03-08 12:49
Some writings are more revealing than their authors realize in that they expose what was not intended for communication. During the last weekend of February The Neue Zürcher Zeitung, the Swiss paper I read – it is rated among the ten best dailies of the world – brought an interesting piece by Wolfgang Benedek: Free Societies Are Becoming ‘Security Communities.’ Fighting terrorism while preserving civil rights is turning out to be a quandary for free societies. The essay reverses the order, as it concerns the rights of the suspect whilst responding to terrorism. Time might justify the author’s priorities, namely if terrorism proves to be a passing episode marked by the resort to terrorism on the part of those who have become weak and irrelevant by taking the wrong path of development. If, however, terrorism remains a major theme of our time, then it makes sense to reverse the priorities.
From the desk of Chresten Anderson on Wed, 2006-03-08 10:59
Europe is falling behind. In his state of the Union address US President George Bush pledged to devote more attention to research and development. While Bush’s cure (doubling federal spending on research to $50 billion) is wrong, his assessment of the problem is correct. Investing and research should be made more attractive if we are to secure progress and growth in the future, and in Europe we are desperately falling behind.
From the desk of Paul Belien on Tue, 2006-03-07 23:09
After the Titanic hit the iceberg it took a while before the captain, officers, crew and passengers realized that they were doomed. The first to realize that the vessel was going down were the passengers below deck. The same is true for Europe today. While the indigenous lower classes have – in a panic, but rationally – begun to vote in ever growing numbers for so-called populist, “islamophobe” politicians, the European establishment politicians and mainstream media are discussing how to revive the European Constitution which the voters in France and the Netherlands rejected last year.
