france

Open Democracy: Is the EU too big to be democratic?

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Is the EU too big to be democratic?, Peter Baldwin

from open Democracy News Analysis – by Peter Baldwin

Back in the days ? let?s say 1932 just to pick a moment ? when European politics were really polarized, the spectrum ran from Moscow-faithful communists at one extreme all the way to monarchists and fascists. During the same time, the US political spectrum spanned all the way from Republicans to Democrats, which is to say from what Europeans would call center right liberals to center left liberals. Neither extreme questioned the premises of democracy, neither sought the embrace of the state in a socialist fashion, or even ? on the far left of American politics ? in more than a very moderate quasi-social democratic manner. The answer to Sombart?s classic query, why is there no socialism in America, also served largely as the answer to its necessary pendant: why is there no fascism in America? American politics in the twentieth century was a model of consensus compared to the ideological extremes found across the Atlantic.

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Euro roundup: “French minister convicted of racism

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French minister convicted of racism

from FT.com – World, Europe
France’s interior minister was facing calls for his resignation after he was convicted in a Paris criminal court of making racist remarks about immigrants of North African descent

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Euro roundup: The Franco-German axis takes some hits recently

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Frosty

by Open Europe blog team


The Franco-German axis, which for so long has defined the European Union, has taken some serious hits lately. Following the trauma of the eurozone crisis, the relationship between the two countries is heading towards a historic post-war low – to the point that Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy are no longer on speaking terms according to whispers in Brussels. This wasn’t helped by Sarkozy’s comments the other week that “95 percent” of the bailout package deal agreed corresponded to French demands.

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Euro roundup: France Cabinet approves burqa ban, Eurozone troubles etc.

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France Cabinet approves burqa ban

from Hurriyet Dailynews
The French Cabinet approved a draft law to ban the wearing of full-face veils in public spaces, opening the way for the text to go before parliament in July.

Visibility of Islam brings confrontation and interaction, says expert

from Hurriyet Dailynews
Recent debates concerning mosque minarets in European countries are a result of an increasing visibility of Muslim identity in Europe, according to a sociologist.

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Euro roundup: European financial stabilisation mechanism and more…

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Background: European financial stabilisation mechanism

by Grahnlaw

The Council of the European Union has issued COUNCIL REGULATION (EU) No 407/2010 of 11 May 2010 establishing a European financial stabilisation mechanism; published OJEU 12.5.2010 L 118/1.

Once upon a time, I explored the stages leading towards the Lisbon Treaty, writing a number of blog posts about what became Article 122 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU).
Now that the EU member states have felt the need to shore up the common currency, it is interesting to see in which terms the provision on financial assistance was discussed at the time. In this blog post we look at the legislative history of Article 122 TFEU.

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France’s e-cars, EP’s request for better trains…

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European parliament demands better trains

from FP Passport by Joshua Keating

France awaits clearer EU strategy on e-cars

from EurActiv.com by paul

France’s ambitious national strategy on electric cars is awaiting a clearer position from the European Union, EurActiv France reports.

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Volcanic ash even clogs Facebook stream!

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Iceland volcano

photo credit: Reuters

European airspace closed by volcanic ash

from Wikinews

Thursday, April 15, 2010

Hundreds of thousands of air travellers had their travel plans disrupted in Europe by volcanic ash from the Eyjafjallajökull eruption.

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Erdoğan interview at Le Figaro (In French)

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Armenian President Sargsyan and Turkish Prime ...
Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan (L) and Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan meet for a bilateral meeting during nuclear security summit in Washington April 12, 2010. REUTERS/Prime Minister’s Press Office/Handout/Kayhan Ozer

Erdogan au Figaro : « Le regard des Français sur la Turquie doit changer »

from ACTURCA

Le Figaro (France), 6 avril 2010, p. 1

Propos recueillis à Istanbul par Étienne Mougeotte et Laure Marchand

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Can the Israeli Foreign Ministry compete with PM Erdoğan? (!)

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PM Erdoğan did not make a scene with Sarkozy but did strike back at the Israeli Foreign Ministry’s recent statements with full vigor. This month’s show btw Israel and Turkey has just started:)

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Season of Turkey in France ends with no scandals- so far

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I was expecting a clash btw Sarkozy and Erdoğan but that did not happen so far… Well we still have some to observe a scene:)

Turkish PM visits France amid EU rift < | Expatica France

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“European Innovation Scoreboard 2009

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European Innovation Scoreboard 2009

Source: Pro Inno Europe
From Europa Press Release:

Most EU Member States until 2008 were steadily improving their innovation performance. The economic crisis may, however, be hampering this progress, according to the 2009 European Innovation Scoreboard (EIS) published today. Early indications show that the worst hit are Member States with lower levels of innovation performance, potentially reversing the convergence process witnessed over recent years. Meanwhile, the latest statistics show that the EU is having difficulty in catching up with the US in innovation performance, although it maintains a clear lead over the emerging economies of Brazil, Russia, India and China, despite rapid improvements in China.

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Roundup: “The decline of Europe’s social democratic parties” and more…

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MAIN FOCUS: EU may help Athens | 17/03/2010

from euro|topics

The financial ministers of the Eurozone countries have not as it turns out presented a concrete bailout plan for Greece, but merely agreed at the beginning of the week on “technical modalities” for the approval of such a plan. The Eurozone countries lack a strong leadership, say some commentators, while others see progress and call for still more cooperation.

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Looks like Sarkozy has a problem

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French voters deliver blow to Sarkozy

from FT.com – World, Europe
French voters deliver a rebuke to the government of Nicolas Sarkozy with opposition parties winning an unprecedented share of the vote in the first round of regional elections

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EP against ACTA measures

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EU Parliament votes 663-13 against ACTA’s enforcement measures

from Boing Boing by Cory Doctorow

The European Parliament resoundingly voted against the secret Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA), in a resounding 663 to 13 tally. The parliamentarians defied the EU executive and threatened to take the issue to the European Court of Justice if the EU doesn’t reject ACTA’s provisions on disconnection for infringement and other enforcement provisions.

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the European External Action Service- The EU’s new diplomatic service

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The EU’s new diplomatic service

from EurActiv.com by Giacomo

Introduced by the Lisbon Treaty, the European External Action Service is intended to give the Union a greater role in foreign policy. Yet its scope and competences are the subject of fierce debate among EU countries.

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