The Latvian parliament has elected a controversial anti-gay rights activist as head of its human rights committee. Janis Smits, who is a member of Latvia's First Party, is a leading figure speaking out against the activities of gay rights groups. He has campaigned against the introduction of legislation to protect people from discrimination on the grounds of their sexual orientation. European gay rights activists have condemned the appointment.
Janis Smits, who is a member of Latvia's First Party, is a leading figure speaking out against the activities of gay rights groups.
He has campaigned against the introduction of legislation to protect people from discrimination on the grounds of their sexual orientation.
European gay rights activists have condemned the appointment.
So it's pretty standard behaviour from homphobes keep to the Fen Causeway
The Kremlin has dismissed as "sheer nonsense" claims it was involved in the poisoning by thallium of a former KGB colonel living in the UK. Alexander Litvinenko, 41, has been moved to intensive care at UCH hospital after a deterioration in his condition. The critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin fell ill on 1 November after a meeting at a London sushi bar. His condition remains serious but stable. Met Police anti-terrorist officers are leading the investigation. Friends of Mr Litvinenko have alleged he was poisoned because he was critical of the Russian government. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: "We cannot comment on the very fact of what happened to Litvinenko. "We don't consider it possible to comment on the statements accusing the Kremlin because it is nothing but sheer nonsense."
Alexander Litvinenko, 41, has been moved to intensive care at UCH hospital after a deterioration in his condition.
The critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin fell ill on 1 November after a meeting at a London sushi bar.
His condition remains serious but stable. Met Police anti-terrorist officers are leading the investigation.
Friends of Mr Litvinenko have alleged he was poisoned because he was critical of the Russian government.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: "We cannot comment on the very fact of what happened to Litvinenko.
"We don't consider it possible to comment on the statements accusing the Kremlin because it is nothing but sheer nonsense."
She reckons this is more likely to be a plot to discredit Putin using guilt by association. keep to the Fen Causeway
The trial of Silvio Berlusconi, the former Italian prime minister, on charges of corporate fraud at his broadcasting organisation Mediaset, is set to begin. Prosecutors say a US firm sold TV rights to two offshore companies controlled by Berlusconi, who allegedly re-sold them to Mediaset at an inflated price to avoid Italian taxes. Berlusconi had kept a low profile since April's general election defeat to Romano Prodi, but the case involving the broadcast company, controlled by his family, has returned him to the public's attention. If convicted of the most serious charge, tax fraud, he could face up to six years in jail. He denies any wrongdoing and has accused his critics of bringing the charges against him for political gain.
Prosecutors say a US firm sold TV rights to two offshore companies controlled by Berlusconi, who allegedly re-sold them to Mediaset at an inflated price to avoid Italian taxes.
Berlusconi had kept a low profile since April's general election defeat to Romano Prodi, but the case involving the broadcast company, controlled by his family, has returned him to the public's attention.
If convicted of the most serious charge, tax fraud, he could face up to six years in jail.
He denies any wrongdoing and has accused his critics of bringing the charges against him for political gain.
French readers, critics and literary-prize jurors are now paying special heed to these so-called Francophone foreign writers. And one conclusion is that outside voices -- and there are many more than this year's prize-winners -- are offering something absent in homegrown French fiction. "It is not a coincidence," said Mr. Semprun, a Spanish-born Francophone novelist who is also a member of the Goncourt jury. "These writers are more open to the world, more universal, less navel-gazing than some French writers." Mr. Audouard said that all too often French novels deal with "my suffering, my pain, my couple, my room." For this he blamed the continuing influence of the Nouveau Roman, or the New Novel, which, from the 1950s through experimental writers like Alain Robbe-Grillet, Nathalie Sarraute and Claude Simon, emphasized style over narrative. "For many in France, style is still the most important factor," he added. Josyanne Savigneau, a literary critic at Le Monde, said that "compared to the 1960s, the French reading public wants to be told stories, but many French writers prefer to produce texts." For this reason, she noted, relatively few contemporary French writers are published in translation. "When you're following a story, it matters less how it is translated," she added. "But translation is complicated when the text is minimalist and poetic." Conversely, the strong narrative content of much American and British fiction may well account for its popularity in France. Novels by John Irving, Danielle Steel and Ian McEwan are among current best sellers here, while Mary Higgins Clark, Patricia Cornwell, Jim Harrison, William Boyd and Paul Auster also have huge followings. In fact, along with the flood of new French-language novels, 207 novels were published in translation this fall. Yet while American and British novelists fare well here, the number of living French writers who have had a major international impact of late is exactly one: Michel Houellebecq, whose books include, under their English titles, "The Elementary Particles," "Platform" and "The Possibility of an Island." For Ms. Savigneau, there is an explanation. "It's good to have someone who tells stories," she said. Olivier Cohen, director of the French publishing house Éditions Olivier, also acknowledged that there was a message in this year's literary prizes. "Perhaps it reflects the fact that French culture is less focused on Paris and France and more on the French language," he said. "Some Francophone writers bring what Roland Barthes called `the exoticism of the little difference.' And it must have made a difference with the public and the prize juries." But he added; "I think French literature is doing better and better. Fifteen years ago, it was in a bad state. But the past 10 years have brought great vitality." He mentioned Jean-Paul Dubois and Jean Echenoz among writers who reflect this new spirit.
"It is not a coincidence," said Mr. Semprun, a Spanish-born Francophone novelist who is also a member of the Goncourt jury. "These writers are more open to the world, more universal, less navel-gazing than some French writers."
Mr. Audouard said that all too often French novels deal with "my suffering, my pain, my couple, my room."
For this he blamed the continuing influence of the Nouveau Roman, or the New Novel, which, from the 1950s through experimental writers like Alain Robbe-Grillet, Nathalie Sarraute and Claude Simon, emphasized style over narrative.
"For many in France, style is still the most important factor," he added.
Josyanne Savigneau, a literary critic at Le Monde, said that "compared to the 1960s, the French reading public wants to be told stories, but many French writers prefer to produce texts." For this reason, she noted, relatively few contemporary French writers are published in translation. "When you're following a story, it matters less how it is translated," she added. "But translation is complicated when the text is minimalist and poetic."
Conversely, the strong narrative content of much American and British fiction may well account for its popularity in France. Novels by John Irving, Danielle Steel and Ian McEwan are among current best sellers here, while Mary Higgins Clark, Patricia Cornwell, Jim Harrison, William Boyd and Paul Auster also have huge followings. In fact, along with the flood of new French-language novels, 207 novels were published in translation this fall.
Yet while American and British novelists fare well here, the number of living French writers who have had a major international impact of late is exactly one: Michel Houellebecq, whose books include, under their English titles, "The Elementary Particles," "Platform" and "The Possibility of an Island." For Ms. Savigneau, there is an explanation. "It's good to have someone who tells stories," she said.
Olivier Cohen, director of the French publishing house Éditions Olivier, also acknowledged that there was a message in this year's literary prizes. "Perhaps it reflects the fact that French culture is less focused on Paris and France and more on the French language," he said. "Some Francophone writers bring what Roland Barthes called `the exoticism of the little difference.' And it must have made a difference with the public and the prize juries."
But he added; "I think French literature is doing better and better. Fifteen years ago, it was in a bad state. But the past 10 years have brought great vitality." He mentioned Jean-Paul Dubois and Jean Echenoz among writers who reflect this new spirit.
Hmmm... my French friends here in Tokyo avid trade amongst each other recent novels by French writers that they pick up on their latest trip back home or receive from friends and family by mail... my impression from listening to them talk about these books was that contemporary French literature/fiction writing is quite active and dynamic: I even though, What a pity that more of these are not being translated into English! Truth unfolds in time through a communal process.
When in doubt, criticize the French. You'll find plenty of French people to provide all the appropriate quotes. In the long run, we're all dead. John Maynard Keynes
This article rings hollow when you realize that Auster's book are very much in the style of 1960's French "texts" though they do have a storyline.
Mary Higgins Clark and Danielle Steele? Really. That's what the French are clamoring for? And how many literary prizes have they won?
More than 440 police officers are to be shifted to immigration duties as part of a drive against illegal migrants billed yesterday as an announcement of 800 "new immigration officers" by the Home Office. The home secretary, John Reid, promised in July to double the number of immigration enforcement officers as part of a plan to rescue his department's immigration and nationality directorate, which was declared "not fit for purpose" after the foreign prisoners scandal. The Home Office said yesterday the extra 800 staff would boost the number of immigration officers working on enforcement by 25% and would be mainly used in "intelligence-led units" in a drive against the employers of illegal migrants. But Lib Dem and Conservative politicians complained that the headline figure of 800 new immigration officers was misleading as it included taking 400 police constables and 40 sergeants off the beat to be seconded to deal with the crisis in the immigration service. But a Home Office spokeswoman said they would be acting as immigration officers after being formally seconded to the immigration service. The police would be vital in bringing their "sophisticated intelligence skills" into the drive against illegal migration. The Serious and Organised Crime Agency (Soca) will also be involved in the drive to target the criminal gangs behind the trade in illegal migrants.
The home secretary, John Reid, promised in July to double the number of immigration enforcement officers as part of a plan to rescue his department's immigration and nationality directorate, which was declared "not fit for purpose" after the foreign prisoners scandal.
The Home Office said yesterday the extra 800 staff would boost the number of immigration officers working on enforcement by 25% and would be mainly used in "intelligence-led units" in a drive against the employers of illegal migrants.
But Lib Dem and Conservative politicians complained that the headline figure of 800 new immigration officers was misleading as it included taking 400 police constables and 40 sergeants off the beat to be seconded to deal with the crisis in the immigration service.
But a Home Office spokeswoman said they would be acting as immigration officers after being formally seconded to the immigration service. The police would be vital in bringing their "sophisticated intelligence skills" into the drive against illegal migration. The Serious and Organised Crime Agency (Soca) will also be involved in the drive to target the criminal gangs behind the trade in illegal migrants.
This is the "second" Poland, a diaspora of 800,000 Poles estimated by officials here to have left the country since it joined the European Union in May 2004. The exodus is believed to be one of the largest migrations by Europeans since the 1950s, when a wave of Irish crossed the Atlantic to escape poverty. But in Poland, this huge movement of people has created a labor shortage so severe that the government may not be able to spend the money that is due to begin arriving in January from the European Union for projects like improving roads and the water supply. "We have a fantastic opportunity to improve our infrastructure because we are due to receive billions of euros starting in 2007," said Bartlomiej Sosna, a construction analyst at the consultant group PMR in Krakow. "But how?" The Polish Transport Ministry has already allocated some of those funds in its dedication of $38 billion to a road construction program slated to run from 2007 to 2013. But, Mr. Sosna said, "We do not have enough workers to build the roads." And that, he says, could cost the country more than just improved roads. "If we don't take up the E.U. funds over a certain period of time, we will have to return them to Brussels," Mr. Sosna said, referring to the site of the union's headquarters. "Do you know what this means? There will be a delay in the modernization of our country." Going by statistics, it seems odd that Poland is grappling with such a problem. The economy is doing well and is expected to grow by 5 percent this year, while the official unemployment rate is 15.2 percent, one of the highest in the European Union. But as hard as employers advertise, they cannot find enough workers in the construction, engineering and medical fields.
But in Poland, this huge movement of people has created a labor shortage so severe that the government may not be able to spend the money that is due to begin arriving in January from the European Union for projects like improving roads and the water supply.
"We have a fantastic opportunity to improve our infrastructure because we are due to receive billions of euros starting in 2007," said Bartlomiej Sosna, a construction analyst at the consultant group PMR in Krakow. "But how?"
The Polish Transport Ministry has already allocated some of those funds in its dedication of $38 billion to a road construction program slated to run from 2007 to 2013. But, Mr. Sosna said, "We do not have enough workers to build the roads."
And that, he says, could cost the country more than just improved roads.
"If we don't take up the E.U. funds over a certain period of time, we will have to return them to Brussels," Mr. Sosna said, referring to the site of the union's headquarters. "Do you know what this means? There will be a delay in the modernization of our country."
Going by statistics, it seems odd that Poland is grappling with such a problem. The economy is doing well and is expected to grow by 5 percent this year, while the official unemployment rate is 15.2 percent, one of the highest in the European Union. But as hard as employers advertise, they cannot find enough workers in the construction, engineering and medical fields.
But as hard as employers advertise, they cannot find enough workers in the construction, engineering and medical fields.
Pay more? You know, market forces in action? In the long run, we're all dead. John Maynard Keynes
Despite the recent economic boom and growing demand for skilled labour, Poland's unemployment rate poses a main challenge for the country. Yet, the mobility of Polish citizens, living and working particularly in the UK, is not reflected in the country's unemployment statistics scaling down. The current unemployment rate at a level of 15,2% (September 2006), also takes into account Poles who already work abroad but still enjoy unemployed status back in the home country. Polish president Lech Kaczynski pointed at the problem during the meeting with UK Prime Minister Tony Blair on 7 November. While expressing gratitude for the opening-up of the UK job market for Poles following the 2004 enlargement, he expressed concern that those Poles artificially raise the country's unemployment rate. He said: "These people are registered as unemployed in Poland, so they are living a fiction and raising unemployment figures in Poland while they are doing very nicely in the UK and their unemployment benefits should rightly be sent to London. This is something we would like to do without." This 'statistical effect' is followed by financial benefits to which Poles working abroad are officially entitled, due to their unemployed status in Poland.
Polish president Lech Kaczynski pointed at the problem during the meeting with UK Prime Minister Tony Blair on 7 November. While expressing gratitude for the opening-up of the UK job market for Poles following the 2004 enlargement, he expressed concern that those Poles artificially raise the country's unemployment rate.
He said: "These people are registered as unemployed in Poland, so they are living a fiction and raising unemployment figures in Poland while they are doing very nicely in the UK and their unemployment benefits should rightly be sent to London. This is something we would like to do without."
This 'statistical effect' is followed by financial benefits to which Poles working abroad are officially entitled, due to their unemployed status in Poland.
Le Monde: Growth and expatriations help employment in Poland
Pourtant, avec ses 2,3 millions demandeurs d'emploi, la Pologne fait toujours figure de plus mauvais élève de l'UE. L'amélioration laisse persister de graves problèmes. Celui, par exemple, du chômage des jeunes : près d'un tiers des 15-24 ans est encore à la recherche d'un emploi. Celui aussi d'une inadéquation entre offre et demande : la Pologne commence à manquer de main-d'oeuvre, notamment dans le bâtiment et les travaux publics. Enfin, celui des disparités régionales. <...> Nevertheless, with its 2.3 million job seekers, Poland is still the slow student of the EU class. Despite improvement, some serious problems persist. For example, youth unemployment: nearly a third of 15-24 year olds is still looking for work. There is also insufficient supply for the demand: Poland is starting to lack workers, notably in construction and public works.... <...> PROBLÈME NUMÉRO UN Principal écueil du marché du travail polonais, le chômage de longue durée concerne environ 70 % des demandeurs d'emploi. Il touche une population souvent rurale et peu éduquée qui n'est ni prête ni en mesure de quitter son logement, ou bien le jardinet qui lui sert à cultiver de quoi nourrir sa famille, pour espérer chercher du travail ailleurs. THE NUMBER ONE PROBLEM Main stumbling block for the Polish labor market: long-term unemployment affects about 70% of job-seekers. The population it hits is often rural and not very educated, and is neither willing nor able to leave their homes or their small gardens which provide food for their families, in the hopes of finding jobs elsewhere. "Le chômage demeure le problème social numéro un en Pologne, observe Stanislawa Golinowska, économiste spécialiste du marché du travail. Le pays souffre encore de la restructuration de son économie, notamment celle qui (...) a affecté les secteurs militaire, minier et de l'acier." Pour lutter contre le chômage, le gouvernement a créé un Fonds du travail. Une enveloppe annuelle de 6 milliards de zlotys permet de financer trois cents agences régionales et locales pour l'emploi. "Unemployment remains the number one social problem in Poland," remarks Stanislawa Golinowska, an economist specializing in the labor market. The country still suffers from the restructuring of its economy, especially of the military, mining and steel sectors." The government has created a Work Fund to fight unemployment. An annual budget of 6 billion zlotys enables the financing of three-hundred regional and local employment agencies. L'aide européenne est aussi substantielle. "Pour la période 2007-2013, notre programme opérationnel "Capital humain", cofinancé à 85 % par le Fonds social européen, devrait recevoir au moins 9,5 milliards d'euros", note Beata Plonka, du ministère du travail polonais. European aid is also substantial. "For the 2007-2013 period, our operational program 'Human Capital', which is 85% co-financed by the European Social Fund, should receive at least 9.5 billion euros," notes Beata Plonka, from the Polish ministry of labor.
<...>
Principal écueil du marché du travail polonais, le chômage de longue durée concerne environ 70 % des demandeurs d'emploi. Il touche une population souvent rurale et peu éduquée qui n'est ni prête ni en mesure de quitter son logement, ou bien le jardinet qui lui sert à cultiver de quoi nourrir sa famille, pour espérer chercher du travail ailleurs.
Main stumbling block for the Polish labor market: long-term unemployment affects about 70% of job-seekers. The population it hits is often rural and not very educated, and is neither willing nor able to leave their homes or their small gardens which provide food for their families, in the hopes of finding jobs elsewhere.
With so much money slushing around, it seems to me there must be some other reasons for the inability of Polish employers to lure back Polish workers from other countries.
The New York Times article mentions a dearth of workers with the right skills. This might explain why the German and Polish governments are putting together a plan to get unemployed German port workers employed in Poland.
Also, there seem to be some other "labor costs" -- i.e. other than wages and salaries -- that make hiring Polish workers "on the official labor market" too expensive to raise salaries enough to lure ex-pat Polish workers back from abroad. The statement that the work permit system for foreigners in Poland is a "fiasco" suggests that perhaps the requirements for employing Polish workers is a similar headache:
"Polish labor costs are too high," she said. "Employers here say it is now not worth their while to hire on the official labor market. Some resort to the black economy to employ Ukrainians, or Poles for that matter."
Finally, the article mentions one factor that the market may not be able to solve:
And there is one kind of job that is particularly hard to fill in Poland: domestic help for the emerging middle class. Many Polish women will go abroad to be maids rather than serve other Poles. "Maybe it has something to do with the past, under Communism," [migration expert and sociologist at the Center for International Relations in Warsaw Krystyna] Iglicka said, "when there were no servants, we were all deemed equal, and the working class was supposed to be the leading class."
"Maybe it has something to do with the past, under Communism," [migration expert and sociologist at the Center for International Relations in Warsaw Krystyna] Iglicka said, "when there were no servants, we were all deemed equal, and the working class was supposed to be the leading class."
May be it has something to do with the fact that in some regions of Poland up to 25% of population considered themselves "schlekhta", or (often petty) nobility. Honor would definitely prevent anyone claiming to be descendant of noble predecessors (and thus a proper "Pan" or "Pani") from being seen as providing domestic services to other Poles.
?? I may be mistaken, but I thought public works projects above a certain size had to be open to bidders EU-wide. "Ideas or the lack of them can cause disease." - Kurt Vonnegut
Some of Europe's leading energy companies were on Monday warned that they faced hard-hitting action to reduce their dominance over electricity and gas markets. José Manuel Barroso, European Commission president, wants rules on the division of energy groups as part of efforts to ensure that the union's stifled power markets become more competitive. "We intend to propose new measures on ownership unbundling" in a drive to boost the EU's competitiveness and energy security, he told a Brussels conference. Behind this is concern that when energy-generating companies also own transmission infrastructure, rivals struggle to enter the networks and users lack choice. Neelie Kroes, EU competition commissioner, wants to force the full break-up of integrated companies, a move that could hit influential groups such as Eon and RWE of Germany. But her colleague Andris Piebalgs, the EU energy commissioner who will draft the legislation, is considering other options, including suggesting Scotland's model as a pan-European template. (...) Mr Piebalgs has asked his officials to look carefully at Scotland, whose model came into force in 2005 as an offshoot of Britain's aggressive energy liberalisation programme. There, the two dominant generation companies continue to own power stations and transmission infrastructure. But crucially they lease transmission assets to National Grid, an independent group that also operates Britain's gas pipelines. This situation means neither Scottish Power nor Scottish and Southern Energy can control access to bar rivals.
José Manuel Barroso, European Commission president, wants rules on the division of energy groups as part of efforts to ensure that the union's stifled power markets become more competitive. "We intend to propose new measures on ownership unbundling" in a drive to boost the EU's competitiveness and energy security, he told a Brussels conference.
Behind this is concern that when energy-generating companies also own transmission infrastructure, rivals struggle to enter the networks and users lack choice.
Neelie Kroes, EU competition commissioner, wants to force the full break-up of integrated companies, a move that could hit influential groups such as Eon and RWE of Germany. But her colleague Andris Piebalgs, the EU energy commissioner who will draft the legislation, is considering other options, including suggesting Scotland's model as a pan-European template.
(...)
Mr Piebalgs has asked his officials to look carefully at Scotland, whose model came into force in 2005 as an offshoot of Britain's aggressive energy liberalisation programme. There, the two dominant generation companies continue to own power stations and transmission infrastructure.
But crucially they lease transmission assets to National Grid, an independent group that also operates Britain's gas pipelines. This situation means neither Scottish Power nor Scottish and Southern Energy can control access to bar rivals.
Call this reverse paranoia, but I found it strange that there was not a single mention of EDF or GDF in that articles (and others on the same topic in the paper). If they are not criticised, it must mean they have liberalised beyond the dreams of the liberalisers (because otherwise they'd be criticized for their gallic intereference).
Or there is some kind of jockeying under way before the German presidency starts in January.
I find it funny though that Scottish Power's model, which is essentially the same as that of EDF, can be seen as a good example. In the long run, we're all dead. John Maynard Keynes
PARIS -- Sandrine Folet and Lucas Titouh have two children, a stylish Paris apartment and a 15-year-old partnership. They have no intention of getting married. "We don't feel the need to get married," said Folet, 36, who has known Titouh, 40, since she was a teenager. "I don't know many people in our age group who are married." In France, the country that evokes more images of romance than perhaps any other, marriage has increasingly fallen out of favor. Growing numbers of couples are choosing to raise children, buy homes and build family lives without religious or civil approval of their partnerships. In the past generation, the French marriage rate has plunged more than 30 percent, even as population and birthrates have been rising. "Marriage doesn't have the same importance as it used to," said France Prioux, who directs research on changing social trends for France's National Institute of Demographic Studies. "It will never become as frequent as it once was." Marriage is in decline across much of northern Europe, from Scandinavia to France, a pattern some sociologists describe as a "soft revolution" in European society -- a generational shift away from Old World traditions and institutions toward a greater emphasis on personal independence. But French couples are abandoning the formality of marriage faster than most of their European neighbors and far more rapidly than their American counterparts: French marriage rates are 45 percent below U.S. figures. In 2004, the most recent year for which figures are available, the marriage rate in France was 4.3 per 1,000 people, compared with 5.1 in the United Kingdom and 7.8 in the United States. The only European countries with rates lower than France's were Belgium, at 4.1, and Slovenia, with 3.3. The trend in France is driven by a convergence of social transitions in both the demographic and cultural landscapes, including this generation's nearly universal estrangement from religion, especially the Catholic Church; massive migration to urban areas, where young adults are more independent from their families; and a society that has become not only tolerant but supportive of personal choice in lifestyles.
They have no intention of getting married.
"We don't feel the need to get married," said Folet, 36, who has known Titouh, 40, since she was a teenager. "I don't know many people in our age group who are married."
In France, the country that evokes more images of romance than perhaps any other, marriage has increasingly fallen out of favor. Growing numbers of couples are choosing to raise children, buy homes and build family lives without religious or civil approval of their partnerships. In the past generation, the French marriage rate has plunged more than 30 percent, even as population and birthrates have been rising.
"Marriage doesn't have the same importance as it used to," said France Prioux, who directs research on changing social trends for France's National Institute of Demographic Studies. "It will never become as frequent as it once was."
Marriage is in decline across much of northern Europe, from Scandinavia to France, a pattern some sociologists describe as a "soft revolution" in European society -- a generational shift away from Old World traditions and institutions toward a greater emphasis on personal independence.
But French couples are abandoning the formality of marriage faster than most of their European neighbors and far more rapidly than their American counterparts: French marriage rates are 45 percent below U.S. figures. In 2004, the most recent year for which figures are available, the marriage rate in France was 4.3 per 1,000 people, compared with 5.1 in the United Kingdom and 7.8 in the United States. The only European countries with rates lower than France's were Belgium, at 4.1, and Slovenia, with 3.3.
The trend in France is driven by a convergence of social transitions in both the demographic and cultural landscapes, including this generation's nearly universal estrangement from religion, especially the Catholic Church; massive migration to urban areas, where young adults are more independent from their families; and a society that has become not only tolerant but supportive of personal choice in lifestyles.
All the weddings we've been to in recent years took place in the presence of the children of the newlyweds. In the long run, we're all dead. John Maynard Keynes
TÖMEG=crowd (on-lookers, thousands), "Támogató mag"=supporting core (those cheering on, 100-200), "Nagyon aggr..."=very agressive attacking groups (rioters, 50-100). Red is policemen. You see the symbol of thise trapped in the building, and you see that a supporting force tried to get there circling the building -- but the water cannon's water ran out...
The report says
This case developed into an ugly controversy. On one hand, after the initial barely self-aware hospital interview, Révész switched into politician mode, and sought to get the most out of his case -- including wearing his bandages when it was no longer necessary, leading to accusations of faking from the government side. Meanwhile, selective leaks of police tapes implied that police in fact tried to hold back the crowd and called Fidesz leaders to get their protesters out of the way, leading to paranoid government-side claims that Fidesz wanted trouble on their crowd so that police and government can be demonised.
However, now a foreigner sent an amateur video to the attorney of Révész, which confirms the version witnesses told to Révész (who himself suffers from amnesia): it reportedly shows Révész approaching the policemen and protesting while showing his Member of Parliament card (which ensures immunity by law), but the policemen surround him and then beat him up, stopping only when a photographer approached.
I know I now afew, cemetery... *Traitor*, n. A benighted individual who perceives an illusory distinction between serving his nation and abetting the criminals who govern it.
European Cities Do Away with Traffic Signs Are streets without traffic signs conceivable? Seven cities and regions in Europe are giving it a try -- with good results. [European] traffic planners are dreaming of streets free of rules and directives. They want drivers and pedestrians to interact in a free and humane way, as brethren -- by means of friendly gestures, nods of the head and eye contact, without the harassment of prohibitions, restrictions and warning signs. A project implemented by the European Union is currently seeing seven cities and regions clear-cutting their forest of traffic signs. Ejby, in Denmark, is participating in the experiment, as are Ipswich in England and the Belgian town of Ostende. The utopia has already become a reality in Makkinga, in the Dutch province of Western Frisia. A sign by the entrance to the small town (population 1,000) reads "Verkeersbordvrij" -- "free of traffic signs." Cars bumble unhurriedly over precision-trimmed granite cobblestones. Stop signs and direction signs are nowhere to be seen. There are neither parking meters nor stopping restrictions. There aren't even any lines painted on the streets.
Are streets without traffic signs conceivable? Seven cities and regions in Europe are giving it a try -- with good results.
[European] traffic planners are dreaming of streets free of rules and directives. They want drivers and pedestrians to interact in a free and humane way, as brethren -- by means of friendly gestures, nods of the head and eye contact, without the harassment of prohibitions, restrictions and warning signs.
A project implemented by the European Union is currently seeing seven cities and regions clear-cutting their forest of traffic signs. Ejby, in Denmark, is participating in the experiment, as are Ipswich in England and the Belgian town of Ostende.
The utopia has already become a reality in Makkinga, in the Dutch province of Western Frisia. A sign by the entrance to the small town (population 1,000) reads "Verkeersbordvrij" -- "free of traffic signs." Cars bumble unhurriedly over precision-trimmed granite cobblestones. Stop signs and direction signs are nowhere to be seen. There are neither parking meters nor stopping restrictions. There aren't even any lines painted on the streets.
SOFIA: In a Cold War-style drama in one of the last places in Europe to tackle its Communist-era legacy, the sudden death of the man in charge of a key Bulgarian secret police archive that was about to be declassified has created a political uproar. The man, Bozhidar Doychev, 61, had served since 1991 as director of the National Intelligence Service archive, which is believed to contain information about the 1981 shooting of Pope John Paul II and the assassination of the Bulgarian dissident Georgi Markov, as well as records on current officials who may have worked for the secret police. Doychev was found dead at his desk on Wednesday, shot in the head with his own pistol. But news of the death did not filter out until Thursday, when a London-based Internet news service broke the story. Only on Friday did Bulgarian officials confirm the report, calling his death a probable suicide. Opposition legislators and commentators immediately contested the official explanation of Doychev's death and alleged that the failure to report it suggested a cover-up. They based their accusations on the fact that the Parliament is preparing to vote on declassifying all of the Communist-era state security files, including the archive of the foreign intelligence directorate overseen by Doychev. Atanas Atanasov, the former director of the National Security Service and now an opposition legislator, said Monday that Doychev's death so close to the vote had raised "immediate deep suspicion" of foul play. He said that he connected the death to the forthcoming opening of the files, adding, "Clearly someone is worried that it will become clear that some of them are missing." Many people believe that Doychev's death was somehow related to destruction of files on behalf of people who want their participation in the former security services to remain hidden. Bulgaria is the last country of the former Soviet bloc to have reached no consensus on how to deal with its Communist past, specifically the historical record contained in the archive.
The man, Bozhidar Doychev, 61, had served since 1991 as director of the National Intelligence Service archive, which is believed to contain information about the 1981 shooting of Pope John Paul II and the assassination of the Bulgarian dissident Georgi Markov, as well as records on current officials who may have worked for the secret police.
Doychev was found dead at his desk on Wednesday, shot in the head with his own pistol. But news of the death did not filter out until Thursday, when a London-based Internet news service broke the story. Only on Friday did Bulgarian officials confirm the report, calling his death a probable suicide.
Opposition legislators and commentators immediately contested the official explanation of Doychev's death and alleged that the failure to report it suggested a cover-up. They based their accusations on the fact that the Parliament is preparing to vote on declassifying all of the Communist-era state security files, including the archive of the foreign intelligence directorate overseen by Doychev.
Atanas Atanasov, the former director of the National Security Service and now an opposition legislator, said Monday that Doychev's death so close to the vote had raised "immediate deep suspicion" of foul play.
He said that he connected the death to the forthcoming opening of the files, adding, "Clearly someone is worried that it will become clear that some of them are missing."
Many people believe that Doychev's death was somehow related to destruction of files on behalf of people who want their participation in the former security services to remain hidden.
Bulgaria is the last country of the former Soviet bloc to have reached no consensus on how to deal with its Communist past, specifically the historical record contained in the archive.
