Warsaw, 1946

Does Snowden revelation compromise the national security?

I was not very interested in their media coverage, but they left me under impression that they are completely unrelated to security, like spying on EU mission in Washington D.C. or mass surveillance for example.

Christmas, 180 km from Minsk, 07.01.2005 | Author Viktor Drachev

EU citizenship for sale: Malta’s parliament approved a controversial bill allowing people to buy Maltese citizenship, including a Maltese passport and access to the EU’s Schengen Area, for €650,000

I don't understand how someone can be in favor of this corrupt idea. You shouldn't give privilege to the wealthy, especially when such crucial rights are at stake.

Not only this is destroying democracy, but also separating people. There would be less incentive from the rich to accommodate the poor immigrants.

P.S. I know this kind of corruption is perpetrated worldwide under a thin veil of "investment", but this is brazen injustice.

Minority rights in Poland

Wikipedia has lots of conjectures and somehow misleading data.

This Helsinki Foundation report is comprehensive, although old.

Education of minorities report is more recent.

Minorities in poland enjoys: arson, evictions, swastika grafitti, or broken tombstones.

Here are Germans trying to sing on the street of the city with largest German population in the country.

What do you know about ... Georgia?

People there enjoy fences,

choreography, Khevsuruli dance for example,

wine.

Alexandra and Margherita peaks from Stanley Glacier, Uganda

What do you know about ... Kazakhstan?

The last discovered supergiant oil field is slowly comming online there.

Infamous for Sasha Cohen's character.

Origin of apple.

Capital city is called "capital", very simple.

Besides Bosnia one of least radical Muslim countries.

It has the president ruling for more than 20 years

Denmark is considered to be the happiest place on earth, yet again

Meanwhile in Denmark.

European robin as European symbol

Golden eagle range covers more area of China than EU and almost all of USA, while European robin's is almost exclusively European.

What do you know about ... Azerbaijan?

Pioneer of petrochemical industry. One hundred years ago largest oil field was in Azerbaijan. Home to the largest oil platform in the world. People there worship burning natural gas and bath in crude oil.

No one cares about the North of England

As non-UKian I find it amusing how current government ignores everything north of Leeds and Manchester.

I'm waiting for David Cameron to announce a plan to depopulate all of this area to make room for giant prison complex.

Prussia in Weimar Germany?

Prussian language was dead already and germanification of Prussia was extensive (but on the other hand it was German, or even British army which adapted drill commands; converting soldiers into mindless killing machines).

Romania considered a part of the Balkans ?

No, Voivodina, Slavonia and neither central Croatia. With Transylvania Bukovina and something else they belong to Central Europe.

Valahia can be part of Balkans, if you like.

Cheapest places to live in Europe?

Numbeo is helpful for the comparison of living cost. Chisinau, Nis, Donetsk (You don't want to live in Donetsk) are as cheap as Bangladesh.Examples of prices in Chisinau:

• restaurant meal for one - 3 €,
• monthly pass for public transport - 4.5 €,
• basic utilities - 92 €,
• internet 6 Mbps - 8.5 €,
• single bedroom apartment in city center - 188 €,

Obviously you would be living in impoverished version of Romania, but it is cheap.

Latvia?

Is this real life or

Malnourish fantasy

Caught in a landslide

But is no land in Latvia

Open your eyes

Look up at dark sky and see

I is in gulag

I no need sympathy

Politburo come

Latvian go

People die

Or gulag go

Anyway the wind blow

Make me only colder

No eat

No eat

Mama, just killed a man

I have end his struggle

Prolong mine by eat him

Mama life had just begun

But politburo come and take it all away

Mama... Oooooohhhh

Did mean not to make you cry

But salt make rock taste much better

Hungry on hungry on

As if nothing really matter

Too late politburo come

Burn house down to the ground

Rape wife and sister and my hound

Goodbye everybody

To gulag I go

Gotta leave all behind

And suffer more

Mama........ Ooohhhhhhh (anyway the wind blow)

I do wanna die

If it mean my struggle is over

I see little silhouetto of potato

Malnourish malnourish

Is just making you hallucinate

Breaking rock and eating

Very very hurting me

Politburo politburo politburo figaro

Magnificooooooo

I'm just a poor boy nobody feed me

He's just a poor boy who ate his family

End of his struggle using a gun!

Politburo politburo will you let me go?

Latvia no we will not end struggle! (End struggle!)

Latvia no we will not end struggle! (End struggle!)

Latvia we will not end struggle! (End struggle!)

Will not end struggle!

End struggleeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!

No no no no no no no!

Politburo politburo

Politburo end struggle!

Fellow comrades are gonna make a meal

Of me

Of me

Of MEEEEEEEEEE!

So you think you can stop me

And put me in gulag?

So you think you can burn me

And rape my sister?

Politburo!

Can't do this to me politburo!

Just gotta get out!

Gotta end struggle and get out of here!

Nothing really matter

Latvia can't see

Nothing really matter

To me

Anyway the wind blow......

Prague, as viewed from Petřín tower

Prague 34 Gigapixel Panorama Photo.

The most barbaric spectacle that is considered acceptable in a Western society

That would be British stag do, but no animal was harm so it is OK.

What do you know about ... Belarus?

Dominion of Lukashenko . Beautiful choral singing, interesting military parade,and winter activities  are cultural contributions of the country. More like Soviet Russia than Russia itself, since a fox shot a hunter there.

Daily life in Belarus.

Maidens  rapidly transform after the marriage .

Tractors and potatoes .

Given the recent birth of Prince George in the UK

I don't think that people should be unequal before the law because of their heritage. I would queens/kings to be President for Life, without the right to abdicate in favor of their children. It would be more democratic obviously.

Belarusian Prime Minister Calls for Jobless Tax

http://en.ria.ru/world/20130713/182214938/Belarusian-Prime-Minister-Calls-for-Jobless-Tax.html

Next, homeless tax and childless tax.

SpaceX and others are bulding lauch vehicles ten times cheaper per kg and equally reliable, Europe keeps their bureaucrats-space-flight program going

Comparison of capacities is laughable. Only Proton-M is currently as big as Ariane 5.

Second, SpaceX PR is notoriously lying by claiming that improbably cheap flights are "possible" while receiving hundreds million dollars of subsidies which divided by number of launches give very different picture.

European governments should not kick up a fuss about American spying.

http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21580464-european-governments-should-not-kick-up-fuss-about-american-spying-they-have-too-much

This is so strange article. When did we pledged reverence and submission to US, exactly?

Journalists shouldn't be OK with mass surveillance and intelligence gathering by governments.

Do we actually want joint EU-US espionage 'working groups' meeting behind closed doors?

Yes, we want. The talks with EU would be necessarily more open and transparent than with national governments.

Americans are going to exploit few weak points national diplomacies could have (treat everyone special) and release there little information in exchange for compliancy.

Barack Obama isn't going to dispute in front of European Parliament (let's be real), but EU-US meeting, in style of UN Security Council, would be courtesy.

Has anybody ever trusted the Americans?

Yes, I would say that trust in the American government exceeded trust in German government in Germany and French government in France in 2009.

Confidence in Obama Lifts U.S. Image Around the World.

NSA reportedly bugged European Union offices in Washington DC, the UN, and abroad

I'm starting to believe that US intelligence is opportunistic. Nobody could confirm Kim Jong Il death before NK television send a message proving that there is no American intel there, while they are spying on EU.

Airbus A400M is inferior to An-70?

Antonov managed to build 2 in time they advertised 200. It needs up to 1 800 m of take off runaway. And it crashed.

EU-Belarus small cross border movement?

I don't see why not. It would benefit residents near Belarus-Lithuania border and not exactly the leadership.

Of course real game-changer would be border-crossing agreement with Poland. Look at the map

Edit: To be clear, the agreement exist, just Belarus declares lack of enough printers to create cards for citizens eligible for the 

Obama's Brandenburg Gate speech

Reagan speaking somewhere near also had screen, but it was only from the direction of East Germany. This is so bizarre. Reagan, "cowboy" known for confrontational rhetoric, visiting country known for left-wing terrorism, don't have to shield himself from quite large mixed crowd. Oh, and Reagan was obviously shot at previously.

Now Obama speaking in front selected VIPs and students have to use bullet-proof glass.

London-Tokyo train link

This not gonna happen.

This enterprise needs Channel Tunnel equivalent between Sakhalin and Hokkaido, when Channel Tunnel is at loss or marginally profitable despite its higher potential.

European cartoons

Winnie-the Pooh is remarkable, Count Duckula wasn't mentioned, Mole (Krtek) is must know, but honestly there are too many to mention.

Karel De Gucht

This is peculiar individual for me, because I cannot agree with anything he said, AFAIK. He is also sole reason I cannot consciously label myself as "liberal", not to suggest I endorse any of his ideas.

I'm waiting for him to declare that Austria should invade Liechtenstein, or something of this sort, which would end his career.

Strahov library in Prague

The library from The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.

European History Interactive Map

http://www.worldology.com/Europe/europe_history_lg.htm

India Bans Captive Dolphin Shows as ‘Morally Unacceptable’ - Says they're highly intelligent & should be seen as ‘non-human persons’ with their own specific rights

I remember when few years ago India outlawed manual cleaning of latrines, which resulted in nothing. Everything besides decisions of Supreme Court of India can be easily ignored, in particular announces of the government. Government holds there very little power and is worthy of making fun of, because of edicts like this.

Disappearing European borders

FT article

Sedan weighting 28 tonnes

Detailed population density map of Africa

http://www.clas.ufl.edu/users/atatem/index_files/Data.htm

Rabies in Europe in 2012

Cases of rabies in bat population in green, version.

Source

What are some short films that everyone should see?

She & Her Cat/Their Standing Points - 5 min

Want more? Voices of a Distant Star - 25 min.

Technique: Watercolor Pencil

http://www.wikihow.com/Use-Watercolor-Pencils

Suicide No. 1 cause of death for younger people in South Korea

Not really surprising by itself. Among young adults suicide is:

• #1 cause of death in North Korea,
• #1 cause of death in Japan,
• #2 cause of death in China, after traffic deaths,
• #2 cause of death in Singapore, after traffic deaths,
• #2 cause of death in Australia, after traffic deaths,
• #3 cause of death in Vietnam, after traffic deaths and HIV,

It's also #1 in Norway or in Chile, while #6 in Djibouti and #11 in DRC.

You want to live in countries where suicide is No. 1 cause of death for younger people.

Edit: It's from Global Burden of Disease Study 2010. Suicide among young adults is:

• #2 cause of death in Canada, after traffic deaths,
• #3 cause of death in USA, after traffic deaths and homicide.

What are some great poorly known sci-fi movies of this millennium?

Assuming anime isn't well-known to you - Time of Eve Eve no Jikan.

Paul was big hit, while I discounted it as ridiculous it has proven to be pretty decent.

Nuclear weapons for UK

UK would consider whatever they like, but it is one nuclear states convinced that nuclear deterrence doesn't work.

During Falkland War the British brought nuclear arms, but it was more a liability (they were afraid that the bombs could be captured) than a threat.

Everything is a moot, because:

• US have still nuclear Turkey, Germany, Belgium, The Netherlands and Italy,
• US are most expected to send nuclear missiles against Russia anyway.

Rebuilding Europe’s Competitiveness

http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_RebuildingEuropesCompetitiveness_Report_2013.pdf

PLA is not a national army

People's Liberation Army is armed structure of the Party, it really is obvious.

You can read more about Mao's idea of an army. It was insanely inefficient, but I'm not well-versed on the subject. While all communist countries had armies acting as ready to mobilise workforce in PRC it was pushed to the extreme without much of combat abilities.

PLA was revolutionary militia, reserve workers, and regular army on the various extent in different periods.

America, our great protector, is looking the other way

Back in 2001, the US accounted for 63 per cent of Nato defence spending. Today, the figure is 75 per cent

Yeah, because US decided to spend trillion dollar (my own guess) on operation. This coincide with missions in Afghanistan and Iraq.

While military buildup after World War II can be called self-perpetuating trap and enormous waste of resource, increasing military spending just because US doing so is lunacy.

Europe is the greying

I don't think that European population is going to decrease, but average age around 45 is inevitably. Currently median age in Japan and Germany is as high as that. It's separate challenge and Japan is a good example. European countries are getting old and at fast rate; technology for elder people to remain productive isn't there. Especially this is a problem in Ukraine, having median age 40 and not much income per capita.

By increasing immigration a state can postpone transition to geriatric ward. Alternative

 

 wouldn't be as popular.

MapCrunch

MapCrunch - Random Google Street View

European Defence is overemphasized

European Defence is overemphasized.

European Defense Trends 2012: Budgets, Regulatory Frameworks, and the Industrial Base

Elections in De Facto States

Report Card 11: Child well-being in rich countries

http://www.unicef-irc.org/publications/pdf/rc11_eng.pdf

http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=44613&Cr=children&Cr1=#.UWXG5pkW0yZ

Child Deprivation Index

Can someone explain to me why it is important for say, The Netherlands, to be a sovereign nation?

Belief that only supreme authority is capable of sustaining industrial economy?

Belief that only supreme authority is capable of sharing resources between members of a kinship group?

Edit: Both interpretations are useful, but limiting sovereignty to Netherlands only is obviously arbitrary.

Hungarians are members of the glorious Mongoloid race, don't you know?

Hungarians are members of the glorious Mongoloid race, don't you know?

Edit: Turanism for people who wants to learn more about it.

Extremist turanists have even emphasized “ties of ancestry” with the Tibetan, Japanese, and Korean peoples or the ancient Sumerians.

The more radical Turanists stressed the superiority of Eastern culture and race (Mongoloid) to those of the West (Caucasian) and emphasized the racial aspects of the ideology.

U.S. product that you love, but can't get or is difficult to get in Europe?

http://www.bathandbodyworks.com/home/index.jsp,

Jelly Belly,

peanut butter M&M's,

Twizzlers,

Atomic Fireballs (the candy),

http://us.microplane.com/microplanekitchentools.aspx

Changes in the constitution in Hungary?

As a political scientist who has studied Hungarian constitutional changes closely, I can assure anyone that, while Viktor Orban is hardly a "dictator" (an anachronistic term in the contemporary European context), the system of checks and balances between the legislative, executive and judicial branches of government has been seriously compromised in Hungary.

The new Hungarian constitution removes extremely important state powers from the hands of the elected officials, and transfers those powers to political bodies which are placed out of reach of the democratically elected parliament - which is as serious a breach of democratic standards as can happen in a nominally parliamentary democracy of contemporary Europe.

For example - a new political body has been created with the purpose of appointing judges to the Constitutional Court - the highest court in Hungary and the only institution that can act as a control mechanism against the government that is virtually all-powerful by holding a two-thirds parliamentary majority, which is enough to scrap the entire Constitution and replace it with a new one (as has happened under Orban).

The head of that body is appointed for a nine-year term, and can be replaced only by a two-thirds majority in parliament. This means that, even if the voters sack the Orban government in next year's elections, the political body that appoints Constitutional Court justices will continue in its present form - because its term is nine years, while parliament's is four - and the democratically elected parliament will be powerless to do anything about Orban's appointees for the next five years if they do not obtain a two-thirds majority (which happens extremely rarely).

This is of course only one example. There have been many other massive constitutional changes that have seriously eroded the system of checks and balances, weakening the judiciary branch and giving inordinate amount of power to the executive branch.

Basically, the UK equivalent of the Hungarian political situation of 2010-2013 would be this. The Tories win two-thirds majority in parliament. This allows them to abolish all documents that form the British informal constitution (Bill of Rights, Act of Union, etc), just as Orban's party has abolished the old constitution, and then writing a completely new Constitution for the UK, completely tailor-made to Tory ideology, utterly ignoring all opposition parties.

Then, if there were a UK Constitutional Court that could be the only institution with the legal authority to contest this new all-powerful government and its tailor-made constitution, the government would tweak the Constitution further to strip the court of its powers, and create a body that would appoint new judges to the court who would be sympathetic to the government.

If anyone is interested, I remember an essay by a Princeton University professor of Constitutional Law and an expert on Hungary - so, hardly what Tibor Fischer would call "a former Hungarian communist who was as Marxist as Al Capone - exploring in detail the serious eroding of democratic standards instigated by the Orban government. Google "Hungary Princeton Constitution" or a similar combination of terms. Then you will likely get a more sober and unbiased, not to mention scholarly, version of this story, unlike this truly superficial and biased article.

LadyinSatin

People say the European Union is unique in mankind's history. But is it?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supranational_union

Here is good article how EU is supposedly integrate its citizens beyond other (just) intergovernmental organisations. ASEAN isn't a custom union.

Here is short summary of existing economic blocks.

With tensions rising in North Korea what do you think a European response would be if conflict broke out?

What kind of conflict? That is, how how did Korean War was conducted during last months of the conflict?

Was it several battles around 38th north without any of sides progressing? Essentially trench warfare, but with less casualties than in World War I?

Historically reignited conflicts are much less bloody in first months than previous engagement during the last.

Given that, South Korea is more than likely prevail using its own armed forces leaving hundreds of own troops and civilian dead, much more dead North Koreans, new DMZ in the similar place and North Korea even more miserable.

European countries would fold much of economic cooperation with the South and evacuate the expats.

People and Power: The 2014 Sochi Olympics

http://www.hrw.org/people-and-power-2014-sochi-olympics

Independent immigration policy in Switzerland?

Independent immigration policy in Switzerland? You have to be joking. Besides the fact that Switzerland and Norway participation in EU's border agencies and the four freedoms of EEA, Swiss-German border is more relaxed than you imagine.

Do you support a Basic Income?

No, I do not. I could support taxes from natural resource, but until new taxes are implemented to the point when public surplus is serious issue I'm reluctant to agree on any major spending program.

The EU Commission today affirmed that Croatia will be ready to join the European Union on 1 July 2013, becoming the 28th Member State

Not really, Croatia is obliged to join Schengen Area as much as Eurozone. Elections for European Parliament are going to be 14 April and after that the Commissioner is going to be appointed.

"Civilization state"?

Sounds like distinction without difference.

Besides Chinese are europeanised. They wear suits, read novels and even sometimes use drawers. More importantly for international relation, Chinese use borders.

When tensions are high mistakes can happen

That does not lead to a war in real world. Soviet Union shot down an airliner from Korea to USA with 269 people onboard (including American Congressman) killing everybody, but the USA didn't start a war because of it.

I was happy that a war haven't happened

Another time North Korea shot down American plane. Restrain on only one side is enough to stop a war.

Iraq War's 10th Anniversary

Malaria was eliminated in Iraq, which coincides with improvement in services for Kurds.

Free election in Iraq was an inspiration for Lebanese Cedar Revolution and maybe by extension for Arab Spring.

Please use common denominator cautiously

Please use common denominator cautiously.

I hear you, but you are creating unstable dynamic of thought styles. Conflicting your controlling (patronising) statement with judgemental placards of the protesters isn't way forward.

Afghanistan

It's interesting how much situation in 2013 Kabul is better than in 1996 Kabul.

Latvia wants the euro

Lat is pegged to the € and people still take credit in € if it is available; these credits are cheaper precisely, because € is more stable

Hungarian government threatens legal action over German TV cartoon that criticizes Hungary

2013: Hungarian's ayatollah Ferenc Kumin issued a fatwa stating that the the cartoon, entitled “Red Card for Hungary”, was “anti Hungarian”.

European health report 2012

http://www.euro.who.int/en/what-we-do/data-and-evidence/european-health-report-2012

Cyprus's choice: Iceland or Greece?

Imagine that Iceland was richer than UK 40 years ago and difference only have grown since then. In 2008 it was 150% of the income in United Arab Emirates. Without banking sector Icelanders are still filthy rich, especially that they could retain enormous wealth from British and Dutch deposits.

Essentially only contracted foreigners lost jobs in Iceland.

Switch to Cyrillic?

Sumerian cuneiform script, that's the way I like it.

Planck Power Spectrum Animation

Cyprus MPs reject EU-IMF bailout tax on bank depositors

Can somebody explain to me, how people send their money to tax haven( be it Cyprus, Jersey, Liechtenstein, or Curacao) knowing that there are already 100 000 € per citizen there? They should realize that the local authorities will never be able to "truly guarantee" their deposits' safety.

HDI 2013

The Rise of the South: Human Progress in a Diverse World

EU Failing to Tackle Hungary’s Constitutional Missteps

http://www.hrw.org/news/2013/03/15/eu-failing-tackle-hungary-s-constitutional-missteps

Travelling Europe in August. Where should I visit?

Berlin-Prague-Munich-Rome is great route. It gives many possibilities.

Pilsen, Innsbruck, Trento, and obsiously Florence all lay directly on this route.

Tibesti Mountains