BruceVC

Why you insist on spreading this sort of misinformation is beyond me. It's either irony or malice at play that you blame it on ignorance and "the population being morons", seeing how, as evidenced by the Ukraine thread, you either don't know how the EU siphons sovereignty off member states and towards the Union structures or are, rather dishonestly, downplaying it. But I'm the FSB shill. Again, member states are obligated to: relinquish control over monetary policy once switching to the Euro (handled at the Union level by ECB) acknowledge rulings and domestic ruling overturns by the ECJ and ECHR obey regulations and directives issued by the European Commission (secondary legislation, I'm sure you know what this is) fall in line with the common trading policy or face severe penalties If that all sounds familiar, it's because you already read and glossed over it in the other thread. The structures and organisms responsible for the above are eminently undemocratic and suffer from transparency and accountability deficits. The argument that the EU doesn't micromanage countries is deceitful because what it does is hand out high level objectives for countries to legislate towards, and then sets deadlines for said legislation, leaving only the wording and execution up to member states, while monitoring both and penalizing any deviation from the directives issued. It's not that people believe that some sort of EU nationality is in danger of supplanting whatever their passport currently reads—it's that they correctly surmise that the democratic process is being rendered increasingly irrelevant by the slow but sure transfer of power from their elected representatives to a supra-national organization they have no reason to trust and whose interests, motivations and inner workings are, at best, opaque. Euro is not EU's currency, although original idea of Euro was that it would become such, but currently it hasn't and it more like Independent monetary union, with close tides with EU. Even though all EU's member states are members of EMU, only those countries that have been participated in European Exchange Rate Mechanism II, which is voluntary, for at least two years can adopt Euro as their currency. States outside of EU also can adopt Euro as their currency if they fulfill certain criteria. Currently there are several countries and territories outside EU that use Euro as their currency. ECHR is Council of Europe's court that is institute that is independent from EU and nearly all European countries are it's members. Decisions of national courts can't be appealed to ECJ. ECJ works as institute that determines how EU law should be interpret, but final decision is on national courts. ECJ also works as arbiter between EU's institutions. European Commission don't have power to issue regulations or directives, it only has power to make proposals for legislation, that Council of the European Union and European Parliament has to accept, if proposal is accepted it is Commission job to see that all member states obey it. EU is first and foremost trade union, so it should not come as surprise to any country that joins it that there is trade agreements that they have to obey if they want to be part of the union. Interesting post Elerond, thanks for sharing What do you do for living, you know a lot about the structures of the EU

Okay let me delete some items

So do I, especially wasabi with Sushi.

Plzzzzzzz,,,,I want the Inquisitor

Why you insist on spreading this sort of misinformation is beyond me. It's either irony or malice at play that you blame it on ignorance and "the population being morons", seeing how, as evidenced by the Ukraine thread, you either don't know how the EU siphons sovereignty off member states and towards the Union structures or are, rather dishonestly, downplaying it. But I'm the FSB shill. Again, member states are obligated to: relinquish control over monetary policy once switching to the Euro (handled at the Union level by ECB) acknowledge rulings and domestic ruling overturns by the ECJ and ECHR obey regulations and directives issued by the European Commission (secondary legislation, I'm sure you know what this is) fall in line with the common trading policy or face severe penalties If that all sounds familiar, it's because you already read and glossed over it in the other thread. The structures and organisms responsible for the above are eminently undemocratic and suffer from transparency and accountability deficits. The argument that the EU doesn't micromanage countries is deceitful because what it does is hand out high level objectives for countries to legislate towards, and then sets deadlines for said legislation, leaving only the wording and execution up to member states, while monitoring both and penalizing any deviation from the directives issued. It's not that people believe that some sort of EU nationality is in danger of supplanting whatever their passport currently reads—it's that they correctly surmise that the democratic process is being rendered increasingly irrelevant by the slow but sure transfer of power from their elected representatives to a supra-national organization they have no reason to trust and whose interests, motivations and inner workings are, at best, opaque. 2133 lets not bring up the Ukraine thread please, that thread devolved into one of the worst states that a discussion can end up at. And yes we were all guilty, I'm not blaming you. What I don't understand is that countries like the UK and Poland are part of the EU but don't use the Euro internally, they have kept there currency. So how would that impact your point where you said "relinquish control over monetary policy once switching to the Euro (handled at the Union level by ECB'" Surly the negative consequence of what you are saying wouldn't apply to countries that didn't switch to the Euro, or would it?

Reading all the comments from people who live in the EU has made me realize something, or rather has made me think of the biggest challenge facing the continued longevity of the EU When I asked questions what people didn't like about EU there are several common themes that are relevant like immigration and a distant central government that people don't relate to But what about the issue of identity? I don't think the EU countries share a true common identity and that's understandable. For example the French are the French and have there own history. They may have great fondness for the Norwegians but do they really share an identity? The EU is an attempt to force a common framework between countries that for thousands of years have been proudly independent through there history, culture and language. No wonder there is this rise of nationalism with "far right " parties gaining votes through slogans like " we represent the true identity of country x" Its actually been relatively easy for "far right" parties to gain support not just because the EU parliament sits in Brussels but the fact that end of the day I think most people prefer being part of there own country and culture rather than being part of some nebulous " EU common brotherhood". You then add economic and social issues to the EU mix and you have serious disillusionment with the EU structures I am not suggesting the EU countries don't like each other or xenophobia is systemic. I am saying you can't force countries to form a union with the objective of economic prosperity without looking at the important issue of cultural identity and how that will be effect the perception of the success of the union as time goes on Look at the USA, each state is almost like a separate country. But the USA works because despite some of the differences between the states almost all US citizens are united by one common thread. They are all American in identity. And that's what the EU lacks?

I am going to say this and I am not trying to undermine all the frustration but I haven't had any issues with Uplay except for once where I had to wait a few hours before logging on. I also don't get all the acrimony directed towards them

Walsie....please tell me that a respected gastronome of your position wouldn't really eat at MacD....you just teasing right...please tell me that

I didn't know historically what a Penny Dreadful was until you mentioned it and I checked. Now it makes sense

Well, that's unsurprising. Unless they actually start suggesting collectivization of agriculture, nationalization of means of production and the works, which sounds a bit leninist for most voters' sensibilities, the economic policies of most parties with a strong populist-statist streak (read: authoritarian wannabes) are difficult to tell from one another, regardless of whether they market themselves as right- or left-wing. It doesn't get much more right-wing than ol' NSDAP, and by the standards of any liberal democracy, their economic policy was seriously left-wing: Huge public works to bandage the rampant unemployment, direct state control over strategic economic sectors, price controls, reining in small businesses, etc. It's all about the degree of control, and the window dressing is tailored around the voter target they intend to make suckers out of, really. What's your view on the future of the EU 2133?

Guys I have just started watching 2 series that some of you may have seen already but if not and you like your horror\supernatural you MUST watch SalemSet in the town during where the infamous witch trials were held. Its a combination of supernatural, as there are real witches, and historical account of what it was like in those days Penny DreadfulSet in England in the 1890's it has vampires and other beasts from Victorian mythology. I won't say more or I may ruin the excitement

You mean young people in Finland are taught how elections really work in school? I'm genuinely impressed. Do you also get basic legal and fiscal education? And, by the way, there is no popular legislative initiative at the EU level, or EU-wide referenda. So no participating, at all. Yes we have nationwide curriculum that includes civics (In Finnish Yhteiskuntaoppi) classes that needs to give information how our elections work, what every governmental institutions do and how they work with each other, these same classes also include basics legal and fiscal education. That makes loads of sense, very prudent I wish our schools taught those types of soft skills

You right they omitted the DPP for some reason but what does the DPP stand for politically ? I can google it but I prefer to get the view of people who live in Denmark

Gorgon do you feel guilty that most of the international news channels are positioning Denmark as being one of the EU countries where the far right has gained immense popularity? Do you think you personally could have done more to counter this rise of the right in your country? The international News don't know what they are talking about, but it's hard to blame them when one of the front runners is called Morten Messerschmidt. He once got really drunk in Tivoli gardens and started 'heiling', true story. It was entirely a joke, but all the associations are there. In summary what in your opinion does this DPP stand for from an ideological and political perspective Here is a link that discusses other " far right " parties that have won seats in the EU parliament, do you guys think the definition of these parties is accurate? http://www.itv.com/news/2014-05-27/seven-far-right-parties-that-made-gains-at-european-elections/

I do realize I am generalizing and some of the "far right " parties are more anti-establishment than right wing but its easier just to say "right" parties who gained popularity than to have to go into a more accurate definition for each country. Those who follow EU politics know these is a difference between the UKIP and Golden Dawn for example so I feel I don't need to go into specifics And yes my definition of far right is more Golden Dawn but the definition is complicated and becomes subjective

Gorgon do you feel guilty that most of the international news channels are positioning Denmark as being one of the EU countries where the far right has gained immense popularity? Do you think you personally could have done more to counter this rise of the right in your country?

That's very true, I live in a country where the vast majority of rural people still go to a witchdoctor for medical remedies In Africa there are many examples of people who believe in shamans and other types of mysticism. For example in Nigeria the police arrested a goat as they were told that the goat was a person who used black magic to change shape to avoid capture http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1127012/Police-arrest-goat-accused-armed-robbery.html

What makes you think we will only have three or four companions at any given time? ... not know what you will do, but Gromnir will only have three or four. HA! Good Fun! Gromnir I wouldn't advise that, I know the game won't have Romance but don't let that disappoint you or make rash discussions around the number of companions you choose. Remember multiple companions means more party interaction and spending time on companion side quests which enhances the overall game

Spoken like a true veteran of the interminable " console to pc port wars"

I call your stomach bug and raise with my 2 week holiday (all i got this year) and sinusitis. When I had sinusitis it was just after a filling which became infected leading to a root canal, but not before the weekend when the dental surgery isn't open, all while I was on my first playthrough of Dragon Age 2. Bioware should take some responsibility for some of the ills of the world but blaming them for your dental problems may be a bit unreasonable

How are you finding the derogatory references to women? And yes I haven't played this game but its not just the Eurogamer review that made a point of pointing this out. Other gaming websites had the exact same criticism so there must be some truth to it How am I finding them? Mostly by going through the game. *ba-dum-dum-tsch!* Thank you, thank you...I'll be here all week. Be sure to try the veal. Seriously, I'm not sure I'm far enough into it to see anything that's terribly bad (if it exists). There is a scantily clad character who is both commented on (and disliked both for appearance and for "being a witch") and gives back what she gets. There are some unsavory comments regarding women - but this to me seems specific to characters (the biggest amount of "whore" calling, for example, is a drunk) or to the society that has yet to crumble more than some kind of commentary on the real world (certainly exceptional women exist in the world, and aren't all scantily clad sex workers). I wanted to revisit this since I've finished the game. I don't understand the complain. I went and re-read the Eurogamer review you reference, and I still don't get their complaint. The script - and its a short game - is not littered with prejoratives about women (and when they're used they make sense in the context of the game; I mean the reviewer complains that the word "concubine" is used and that the concubines wear revealing tops disregarding that the concubines were created out of people by an evil ice lord who, essentially, created supernatural sex slaves. I dunno, the complaints are ludicrous and it'd be a shame if people skipped the game because (IMO at least) its been misrepresented in the media. Thanks for the feedback, I have decided to purchase the game myself and your positive perspective played a part in that decision

You make some compelling and interesting points Monte, I am interested in someone on these forums posting what they like about the EU at the moment. Not what they want changed or is flawed but just what is great about being in the EU

We could start by abolishing it. Really Monte? Maybe you could give some more details around why you feel like that . That statement is a serious one. Would you prefer Europe went back to days where all countries were independent?

Seeing that you're supporting India (a country with one of the greatest gaps between rich and poor) shifting even further to the right-wing, I find that hard to believe. Oh no believe it, trust me. I do take issues of social justice very seriously. But just explain to me why if I think that India is a relevant global economy that means I don't care about social justice issues or the inequality gap that is prevalent in most countries? I'm missing the connection

I love tea, I was raised on tea and only drink coffee if I want a break. I need a cup of tea everyday to get me up in the morning I generally drink local brands and Rooibos