Old Europe meets

[Bereta_Eder]

Anyway, since it is formed, we can leave the job to the Arabs

[Bereta_Eder]

Actually the alliance backstepped on this one since it will not help union in Europe.

Things now are: Europe enjoys free defence from US which does all the paying, gets killed etc.

Meanwhile Europe has higher standard of living, less violence, universal health care etc etc.

A master- slave relationship with the US serving Europe and taking all the cost and all the slack. Of course it helps its US economy but not its people.
This will not change for the foreasble future.

[Bereta_Eder]

I think it's pretty smart myself

[Lonestar]

Originally posted by paiktis22
About the Kings, yes unfortunately. now they're gone too.

but do you have democracy now? even without kings? (or health care for that matter and peaceful life)

Democracy smarcracy, we're a federalist Republic, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

Health Care? The Government completely covers my health care.

The Euro was deemed impossible but yet happened and it is stronger than the dollar now.

Meh, stuff is still cheaper here in the states.

[Saras]

The word "Kimono" comes from the Greek work "chimona", which means "winter".
What do you put on when it's cold? A robe!. So there you, Chimono-Robe-winter-Kimono.

[Saras]

And Greeks invented POTTERY!

[Ned]

Originally posted by paiktis22
I think it's pretty smart myself

In a way it is smart because it maintains world peace. History has shown that military alliances, opposed to each other, more often than not, go to war. The only one that did not - at least overtly - was the Nato -- Warsaw Pact statndoff. However, the cold war was ugly for the world outside Europe, as we all know.

I was just thinking, is there any military alliance anywhere in the world, today, that is independent of the US?

[DinoDoc]

Originally posted by dannubis
are you threathened by it ?

Not really. I'm just curious how you can form a credible defense policy without British involvement.

[Drake Tungsten]

"The Bush administration has reacted angrily to suggestions that General Tommy Franks, the commander of the US-led war in Iraq, might be charged with war crimes.
A Belgian lawyer says he is preparing a case that could see General Franks charged under a law which allows the prosecution of non-Belgian citizens for war crimes. ..

"If this prosecution goes ahead, Bush administration officials are making it plain they will regard it as a major diplomatic incident - an example of political harassment."

And Euros wonder why the US doesn't support the ICC.

[Harovan]

Originally posted by DinoDoc
Not really. I'm just curious how you can form a credible defense policy without British involvement.

Now I'm curious what the Britons have to do with the defense of France and Germany. The Germans alone have an army twice as big as the British, and they are eqipped with enough heavy weapons, tanks and mech infantry for a formidable defense. And although they may be not able to project this power (which is true without any doubt), this ability is completely irrelevant for defensive purposes.

[Kropotkin]

He's been in Iraq for five minutes. What are going to be charged for? There's always a lawyer out there preparing a case for the most absurd things between heaven and the earth. doesn't mean that it has a chance in hell in a court room.

[Lawrence of Arabia]

Why should the US even care? Lets pull all our troops out of bases around the world. Let Europe deal with their problems.

[Harovan]

Originally posted by Lawrence of Arabia
Why should the US even care? Lets pull all our troops out of bases around the world. Let Europe deal with their problems.

[DinoDoc]

Originally posted by Sir Ralph
Now I'm curious what the Britons have to do with the defense of France and Germany.

That's not the topic of the summit. Nor is it the reason that Italy, Spain, and the Netherlands also expressed concern about the summit.

[Drake Tungsten]

doesn't mean that it has a chance in hell in a court room.

They convicted Sharon, didn't they? You don't really need a case to convict someone of human rights violations in Belgium.