Europen Union Enlargement!

[emad]

Yestardy i saw on the TV screen the Europens festivals for their union enlargement .

i am very happy to see people happy like that in the 10 countries joined the Union .

cheers
emad

[bernard]

Emad,

I'm now an european citizen and Europe counts around 475 millions people.

But many problems in perpesctive?!

[Diane]

The problems in perspective that various Euopean states have dealt with for centuries, millenia even, can't be made worse by joining hands across various borders, can they? (No worse than, for example, the DisUnited States of America when it comes to how PTs are treated there...)
The other place I'd like to tow Canada, shorter trip actually than to Australia, would be over to Europe. There was actually a movment here, albeit shortlived, that proposed that Canada join the Euopean Union. I kind of liked that idea at the time, a few years ago. :)
Cheers,
Diane

[nari]

Diane, I don't think Europe would like you to tow Canada over to them - its great size would cause an Ice Age in Europe and the economy would truly go up the creek.... :wink:

The Union sounds good in principle, and it remains to be seen how it affects marginal economies like Latvia and Estonia.

It doesn't surprise me that Norway remains out of it; and in a way I admire their independence.

Nari

[emad]

Hi Nari :

Are u sure Norway is out , all what i know ice land is out .

cheers
emad

[Anonymous]

I read an environmental article recently with good things to say about the EU. It involved yet another rule that could have been put in place in the US to decrease polution, but Bush stopped it for his friends in industry. The EU, instead of being bullied, decided to put the rule into effect anyway AND not allow imports of products that did not follow the rule when being made! This is forcing some good change to happen in US (to Bush's disappointment) as well so that we can continue to export to europe.

Yet another example when we had a chance to do the right thing for ourselves and chose not to pollute. Luckily the EU was there to force us not to.

Cory

[BB]

Sorry,
I always forget to log in!
It was me....BB

[bernard]

Cory,

Don't be sorry! It is the Rubbish Cube. :wink: It is permitted and since you put your signature... :lol:

[nari]

emad -

Norway chose not to enter the EU some years ago; it still holds strong, this time. When I was there in '97, the English in the group were endorsing Norway's stance; they reckoned the UK would be far worse off under the EU.
You need to ask a Briton whether that has proved true..



Nari

[emad]

Hi Nari:

thanks

cheers
emad

[bernard]

Nari,

But Norway has its own problems? They have two official languages, one for the town and another for the country! :wink:

[nari]

Bernard,

That is true; but rural and city Norwegians can understand each other.
It is rather like Argentina and Chile - they each speak their variant of Spanish, but they can understand each other, as well as the Spanish of Spain. In Tierra del Fuego, there are differences again, because they are fairly isolated from the mainland, although the island is split between the 2 countries. I pulled out my Latin American phrasebook to ask a question I had asked without trouble in mainland Argentina, and the man scratched his head and was not sure what I was talking about. I ended up talking in English and he was happier with that!

I have difficulty understanding the Scottish brogue - yet it is English!

You may find some Australian accents hard to follow, particularly in the rural areas of the North, where it is broad, vowels are lengthened and distorted, and consonants 'swallowed'. Also in Australia, there are different words for the same thing from state to state. Each state tends to call the same fish by a different name; which means fishermen who travel around the country can get quite confused and have to learn four or five different names for the one fish!

Nari