Bach Under The Stars

Tuesday 30 April 2013

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


Tuesday 23 April 2013

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?

  • Jelly Belly,
  • peanut butter M&M's,
  • Twizzlers,
  • Atomic Fireballs (the candy),
  • Thursday 18 April 2013

    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.

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

    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.

    Tuesday 9 April 2013

    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.

    Monday 8 April 2013

    "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.

    Sunday 7 April 2013

    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.

      Friday 5 April 2013

      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.

      Tuesday 2 April 2013

      EU Failing to Tackle Hungary’s Constitutional Missteps

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

      Monday 1 April 2013

      Travelling Europe in August. Where should I visit?



      Berlin-Prague-Munich-Rome is great route. It gives many possibilities.
      PilsenInnsbruckTrento, and obsiously Florence all lay directly on this route.