Bloggressive...

...is apparently the new word for when you get angry while you're blogging. I'm angry, well, I was already before I started on this post. I'm not angry with the French result as such; they are allowed to vote in any way they want, though I had hoped people would have voted on the issue at stake instead of expressing disatisfaction with the people in power due to high unemployment levels or what have you. But that's always going to happen to some extent.

No, I'm angry with the Swedish Left Party (aka the former communists). This is a party that's usually against the EU and the supranationality and transnationalism it entails. They want Sweden to remain sovereign and don't want to secede power to the EU and its member states. However, today the Left Party is saying that the French result means that Sweden can and should abandon its ratification process. To me, that, if anything, is saying that Sweden doesn't have its own say and to let France decide instead for us. Granted, the constitutional treaty may fall in the end but we're not there yet. Until that day we should let each member state have its say, irrespective of whether it's ratification (or rejection) through a parliamentary vote or a referendum. So the Left is contradicting itself by saying that today we accept supranationality (at least as a means, if not an end). "Listen to France when it suits us."

To make matters worse, the Left had threatened to leave the Government as a results of the French vote. The Left party is not actually a coalition partner and accordingly doesn't hold any ministerial posts, but in effect, together with the Greens, it functions as a partner to the minority Social Democratic government. They threaten not to agree to the budget which is scheduled for September unless Sweden opts out of ratification. Not sure whether they are serious or whether they are in the position to demand such actions, but the whole thing just pisses me off! It's perfectly understandable that France is in a crisis but Sweden??

The French didn't even reject the constitution for the reasons the Swedish Left Party would. Not even the French Left has the same opinions. Many voted no because they don't think the EU does enough on social issues (the European social model) and think they can amend the Treaty (in effect add) and have a new vote. I.e. they want Europe to do more (even common taxation in the future). The Swedish Left would cringe if they really understood this (which they don't seem to do) because they want to move power back to the nation state, not add to the European level. Oh well.

At least these nay-sayers voted on the basis of a conviction and had actually read the constitutional treaty. I heard one guy on the news who said "I haven't read it so I'm going to vote no." Sigh.

I will end with a thought that was voiced at the seminar I attended this morning on the topic: perhaps the positive thing that will come out of today's results is that the UK will vote yes to spite the French!

Non Constitution

The first results are in and it looks like France has voted non to the EU constitution. Sadly so, in my opinion. However, this does not need to be 'the end of the EU', as some people seem to think.

A few weeks back I attended a seminar on the EU organised by the Swedish government, where Magnus Rohback from the (Swedish) Prime Minister's Office presented his thoughts on the future of the EU in the light of the French referendum.

He identified the following points as the main issues right now:
1) The ratification of the Constitution
2) The 2007-13 budget negotiations
3) Further development and realisation of the internal market (the Services Directive, common rules for financial markets, state aid, consumer protection, etc.)
4) Common actions for sustainable growth, employment, environment, etc.
5) Enlargement
6) The implementation of the Hague Programme, i.e. asylum, migration, judicial cooperation, mainly combatting organised cross-border crime and terrorism)
7) The EU's international role (cooperation with Russia, Iraq, the Middle East, the WTO Doha round, the UN Millenium conference, etc.)

Mr Rohback mentioned that one of the reasons for the Constitution was that it was seen as a way to manage and make functionable, an enlarged Union (remember that behind the Constitution Treaty is three years of work). However, enlargement (+10) has taken place and so far it has not affected the EU negatively. On the contrary, it has made procedures more austere, disciplined and effective.

Even so, the political significance of a French rejection is huge:
- the legislative process will lose pace or even stop;
- it will become increasingly difficult to reach hard compromises;
- the process of further enlargement will be increasingly complicated (enlargement being one of the reasons for French refusal);
- there is risk that the Union become introverted, affecting its international role.

But even with a French no, the process will go on (and should go on, I believe). The EU has gone through periods of sclerosis before, which doesn't necessarily need to be a bad thing. It is a time of consolidation, of catching up. The work (see points 2-7 above) will continue even if the bigger visions have been momentarily lost. Throughout the history of the EU there has been a constant pull between visions and the every-day work of implementing EU policy. In the 1970s and early 1980s there was a period of stagnation, which originated in a questioning of the identity and purpose of the EU, partly due to the accession of the UK to the Union. Today we may be in a similar downturn; however, it is NOT the end.

Oxford Wants My Money

The University of Oxford is trying to deal with the hot issue of its future at the moment, boiling down to whether it should stick to the present system or go independent (i.e. free itself from the government's reigns).

However, what caught my attention in the Economist article was that they are expecting me to pay for it!

"If Oxford declared independence, it would lose the £52m undergraduate subsidy at least. Could it fill the hole? Certainly. America's top universities charge around £20,000 per student per year. The difficult issue would not be money alone: it would be balancing numbers of not-so-brilliant rich people paying top whack with the cleverer poorer ones they were cross-subsidising. America's top universities manage it: high fees mean better teaching, which keeps competition hot and academic standards high, while luring enough donations to provide bursaries for the poor. It should be easier to extract money from alumni if Oxford were no longer state-funded."

Well, one day I might make enough money to be able to share it... So far I've chosen to hold onto it tight. When I was reimbursed for water problems while staying in college accommodation I was asked to donate the grand total sum of £250. I greedily rejected the "offer".

Swedish Lesson

I want to introduce you to How to learn Swedish in 1000 difficult lessons. Thought it would be a good way for you, my international friends (and other foreign visitors to my blog), to learn Swedish. Here's the author's intro:

"Francis Strand is a 44-year-old American magazine editor living in Stockholm. He is married to a Swedish man, which is legal in Sweden, more or less. The two met in Barcelona in July 1998 and were married in June 2000. Strand has 'a high opinion of Swedes'. Although he loves the country and people, his attempts to become fluent in Swedish have been less than successful."

I especially find the "more or less" comment intriguing...

Sick Time TV

I was down with flu-like symptoms this week and only managed to go to work today. Since watching telly is almost the only thing one can do to pass the time, I'm now fully up-to-date with the latest developments on everything from McLeod's Daughters to According to Jim, and the theme song from 7th Heaven is stuck in my head. Luckily I was able to avoid the likes of "The Bold and the Beautiful" (don't even deserve a direct link!).

And tonight I installed digital TV... but I promise just to watch high quality evening series!

Gossip

Nah, I don't have any juicy stories to tell you myself but I can point you to a good site that does. A little introduction:

"In so far as a city ever needed a gossip rag, Los Angeles is crying out for a Defamer. For a city that’s in many ways the cultural capital of the world, it’s woefully under-gossiped. Sure, the celebrity weeklies give the latest tittle-tattle on the reality TV romance of the week. But the real stars of Hollywood are the producers, the agents, the PR flacks, the studio execs, and the screenwriters. They’re usually behind the scenes. No longer—since May 2004, there’s Defamer, putting them front and center. "

Not necessarily agreeing with L.A. being the cultural capital of the world...but I sure enjoy all the inside info and especially the humour! Defamer won the 2005 bloggie award for best entertainment weblog!

Ikea Saves the Day...

...or marriage rather. At least according to the new book "Great Ikea! A Brand for all the People". Apparently Ikea is the place to go if you want to find romance or harmony.

The author, Elen Lewis, claims that Ikea lets the men be men and confirms their manhood. Likewise the already married man's "hunting instincts" are satisfied when he "hunts" furniture for his home and gets to spend money in front of wife and kids, which in turn arouses the woman. According to Lewis, Ikea is one of the few brands that can actually change your life.

The book doesn't enlighten us as to which instincts, except the "natural" housewife ones, women satisfy by going to Ikea.

7 reasons why Ikea saves married bliss:
1. Non-assembled furniture. When the man succeeds at assembling shelves and tables, his manhood is confirmed.
2. The hunting instinct. Treat your marriage to a trip to Ikea so the husband can "hunt and gather" for the home. Will bring happiness.
3. The feeling of creating a home together creates harmony in the marriage.
4. Sex. Women are turned on when the assembling goes smoothly. What happens when there are screws missing (which is often) is not clear. Nor how men react to handy woman.
5. The beds. It is estimated that at least every ten babies in Europe were made in a bed from Ikea.
6. The food. Many couples allegedly choose Ikea's meatballs as their first choice for a romantic Valentine's Day dinner. What??!!
7. Wedding. A Canadian couple chose to get married at Ikea.

Elephant On the Loose in Stockholm

The newspaper Dagens Nyheter tells the story (translated):

"An elephant is on the loose in Stockholm. The news came from our tippers, who had heard on the police radio that two patrolling cars were on their way to Enskedefältet to attend to an elephant that had escaped from a circus.

There is no time to lose. We have to get a picture of the escaped elephant before it is caught.

Quickly heading to the photographer's car. On our way towards Årsta we hear the news on the radio. 'We're breaking for traffic information. We have an elephant warning, yes, you heard it correctly, elephant warning by Huddinge Road.'

We start looking into the bushes and on the golf course, but no elephant.

The informer said that it could be in a residential area. The photographer curses the fact that the camera is in the trunk of the car and wonder if it's okay to stop on the highway.

I wonder if we dare leave the car if we see the elephant. And we discuss whether it is an African or an Indian elephant. The African is bigger, but what about agressiveness? Even a small Indian one can probably be as terrifying if it's stressed. It was safari mood in the Spring sun in Enskede.

But it was a story which was too good to be true. A simple check with the circus shows it is false alarm.

Later the police tells us that somebody called in about the escaped elephant after having seen an elephant when it was being exercised. According to the circus the elephant Lubli is so good that she is allowed to walk around freely.

Always check a good story, that is the conclusion. But some adrenalinfilled elephant hunt on a regular, boring no news Thursday was still not wrong."

For pictures, click here.

Oxford No 1

Ha! We might not beat them in the Boat Race every year or very often at all in fact(though we did this year) but we're now No 1 in the Guardian's annual education guide! The newspaper's university league table, which assesses teaching quality, staff-student ratios and graduate job prospects, has placed Oxford at the top, ahead of Cambridge, Imperial College, SOAS and LSE (full list).

More good news for me, having read European studies, is that Oxford ranked No 1 also in politics!

So maybe that dream job is just around the corner?! Employers should be flocking to hire me!

New Feature

I've added a new permanent section in the right column - where I try to enlighten my readers by suggesting reading materials, both fact and fiction! I welcome comments, reviews, reading tips, etc.!

A Voice from Victorian Past

The latest edition of Oxford Today, the University of Oxford tri-annual alumni magazine had a little notice about a time capsule that was found while doing renovation work on the Sheldonian Theatre. For those of you who don't know the University, or the city of Oxford for that matter, the Sheldonian is the venue for matriculation (Oxford lingo for being officially and ceremonially registered as a student) and graduation as well as various concerts and lectures. The article tells us:

Builders "discovered a metal time capsule left by a worker in 1901 when the [painted] ceiling was last dismantled for repairs. Inside the capsule was a hand-written note from builder Frank Morrill, together with a pair of Victorian workman's trousers and some tools, including a bradawl. Mr Morrill gives instructions to whoever finds the 'valuable treasure' to hand them over to a museum, before signing off, 'Yours in ashes?'. Mr Jeffrey Hackney, Chairman of the Curators of the Sheldonian, said the trousers will be offered to a local museum in line with Mr Morrill's wishes."

I wonder what the 21st century builder would leave behind?

Vote Oui

"If we say no to the Constitution to say no to the Europe we don't like, then we end up with the Europe we don't like."

Daniel Cohn-Bendit, MEP (and leader for the 1968 revolt in Paris)

What Has Europe Ever Done for Us?

"It's not an uncommon question and one that is not unreasonable. Europe's contribution to your daily life is not always obvious, but decisions taken on a European level have fundamentally improved thousands of small and big things ranging from cheaper phone calls to European wide health coverage."

Tell a friend!

The EU Welcomes Bulgaria and Romania

Well, not yet, but the European Parliament gives green light to these two remaining candidates from the Central and Eastern European (original) batch. The Parliament doesn't have the formal right to grant membership but is able to push for postponement by a year if a country fails to implement all measures deemed necessary to allow accession, through the so-called safeguard clause. Both countries still have a few outstanding reforms to take care of but seem to be on schedule to join the EU in 2007 as planned.

Meanwhile, several other countries may become EU members in the future...

"Who wants a sweet with the wrapper still on?"

The above refers to a saying in Africa, which contributes to African socities' distrust of condoms. A recent article in the New York Times tells the sad story of many people, especially women, in this part of the world. Titled "When marriage kills" it deals with the fact that marriage is probably the No 1 "carrier" of HIV and Aids.

"Sex kills all the time, particularly here in Africa. But prudishness can be just as lethal. President Bush is focusing his program against AIDS in Africa on sexual abstinence and marital fidelity, relegating condoms to a distant third. It's the kind of well-meaning policy that bubbles up out of a White House prayer meeting but that will mean a lot of unnecessary deaths on the ground in Africa. The stark reality is that what kills young women here is often not promiscuity, but marriage. Indeed, just about the deadliest thing a woman in southern Africa can do is get married."

If you're located in or visiting Sweden, do pay a visit to the excellent exhibition on HIV/Aids at the Museum of World Culture in Göteborg.

April Fool's Day

I discovered this great site for April Fool's Day hoaxes where the No 3 is a Swedish classic: Instant Colour TV.

"In 1962 there was only one tv channel in Sweden, and it broadcast in black and white. The station's technical expert, Kjell Stensson, appeared on the news to announce that thanks to a newly developed technology, all viewers could now quickly and easily convert their existing sets to display color reception. All they had to do was pull a nylon stocking over their tv screen, and they would begin to see their favorite shows in color. Stensson then proceeded to demonstrate the process. Reportedly, hundreds of thousands of people, out of the population of seven million, were taken in. Actual color tv transmission only commenced in Sweden on April 1, 1970."

Don't forget the comments! For example,

"It's all true. I should know. It was the very first time my dad got the nylons off my mother. Nine months later, I was born."

or

"the Norwegians had a similar one in the sixties: It was told in the news on the only TV channel that if you turned of all powerconsuming devices in the house, except for the television set you would get color. The funny part was that if you were staning in your window you could see the "darkness" spreading while people turned of all lightsources to verify the claim."

Who's that with Jeremy

Thanks to a friend I discovered this cute site about a little boy's encounters with celebrities - he sure has some influential and famous friends!

Food Tasting

Today after work I attended a food tasting at a market survey institute. I signed up ages ago after a friend of mine told me about it but haven't been able to actually taste anything until now. I thought I'd find myself among hords of students trying to make that extra buck (yes, it is paid) but it was actually a mix of ages. Tonight's menu consisted of caramel and chocolate toppings and sour cream. Not at the same time though. I was actually a bit disappointed that the point of the study wasn't to come up with new recipes with as few ingredients as possible, but to say the least, I enjoyed it. Between tasting you were encouraged to sip some water or nibble on some crackers, just like wine tasting at Oxford. It was not the kind of social gathering I had hoped for though (there goes my thinking that this could be a way to meet guys) as you're seated in a little booth by yourself with just the tasting items and a computer as company. Depending on how quickly you "eat" and answer questions about taste, texture, etc. you're free to leave whenever you want to. On my way out I saw the remnants of a wine tasting so expect to hear more about future tastings!

Margot Wallström

For those of you who don't know (of) her, she's the Swedish EU Commissioner. Previously the Commissioner for the Environment, she's now Vice President of the Commission and responsible for Institutional Relations and Communication Strategy . Recently she too has joined the blogger community, visit her blog.

Affiliated

Okay, my first action of the re-launch of Anna, Fair and True, is giving credits to the two bloggers who inspired me to explore blogdom myself. See links on the right.