EuroNotes
Two notes from Europe this morning, both of which my jingoistic American side is ashamed of even writing about.
1) A bunch of scousers were happy in Istanbul last night as Liverpool won the Champions League. Unlike the mysterious UEFA cup, I actually know what the Champions League is. Great game, with the Reds coming back from a 3-0 deficit to win. I do have to say (especially in light of the FA Cup final played last weekend) that this deciding soccer games based on penalty shoot-outs is absolutely retarded. If a basketball game was tied at the end of an overtime, would you decide your winner by shooting a best of 5 free throws? Would the Super Bowl be decided based on a Field Goal contest? No. You play the freaking game until someone wins.
I suppose there is Ukrainian angle to this, as Ukrainian super-star Andriy Shevchenko was on the losing side, AC Milan, and he had two potentially game winning shots stopped in the final minutes. It was also his missed penalty shot that sealed the win for Liverpool.
I can't honestly claim to be a Liverpool fan now, but I was when I lived in England back in the 80s (during the good old days of the Belgian soccer riots). So I was rooting for them last night. You'll never walk alone...or something.
When does the NFL start up again?
2) I couldn't help but be amused by reading this Financial Times article. It looks like the frogs are leaning towards voting down the new EU constitution in a referendum this weekend. And if they don't vote it down, the Dutch probably will shortly thereafter. So what's the EU's reaction? Well, obviously anyone voting against the EU got the wrong result, so they should have to vote again until they vote "correctly."
"The countries which have said No will have to ask themselves the question again." Said Jean-Claude Juncker, current EU president.
Obviously, the 349 page Constitution couldn't be flawed. Obviously, the people voting against it have no clue what they're talking about. People are voting "incorrectly" and they need to go back to the drawing board, not Brussels.
I wish I could say that this surprised me, but the EU has pulled this shit before. Didn't like the Danes voting down Maastricht? Make 'em keep voting until you get the result you want. Didn't like the Irish voting down Nice? Make 'em keep voting until you get the result you want. How meaningless is it to say that all structural changes in the EU are based on unanimous consent of all member countries, when you just make countries keep voting until they vote your way? Seeing crap like this makes me wonder how people over here (E. Europe especially) are able to take the EU seriously. Fundamentally, how is this different than only being able to vote for a Communist Party candidate in an election?
1) A bunch of scousers were happy in Istanbul last night as Liverpool won the Champions League. Unlike the mysterious UEFA cup, I actually know what the Champions League is. Great game, with the Reds coming back from a 3-0 deficit to win. I do have to say (especially in light of the FA Cup final played last weekend) that this deciding soccer games based on penalty shoot-outs is absolutely retarded. If a basketball game was tied at the end of an overtime, would you decide your winner by shooting a best of 5 free throws? Would the Super Bowl be decided based on a Field Goal contest? No. You play the freaking game until someone wins.
I suppose there is Ukrainian angle to this, as Ukrainian super-star Andriy Shevchenko was on the losing side, AC Milan, and he had two potentially game winning shots stopped in the final minutes. It was also his missed penalty shot that sealed the win for Liverpool.
I can't honestly claim to be a Liverpool fan now, but I was when I lived in England back in the 80s (during the good old days of the Belgian soccer riots). So I was rooting for them last night. You'll never walk alone...or something.
When does the NFL start up again?
2) I couldn't help but be amused by reading this Financial Times article. It looks like the frogs are leaning towards voting down the new EU constitution in a referendum this weekend. And if they don't vote it down, the Dutch probably will shortly thereafter. So what's the EU's reaction? Well, obviously anyone voting against the EU got the wrong result, so they should have to vote again until they vote "correctly."
"The countries which have said No will have to ask themselves the question again." Said Jean-Claude Juncker, current EU president.
Obviously, the 349 page Constitution couldn't be flawed. Obviously, the people voting against it have no clue what they're talking about. People are voting "incorrectly" and they need to go back to the drawing board, not Brussels.
I wish I could say that this surprised me, but the EU has pulled this shit before. Didn't like the Danes voting down Maastricht? Make 'em keep voting until you get the result you want. Didn't like the Irish voting down Nice? Make 'em keep voting until you get the result you want. How meaningless is it to say that all structural changes in the EU are based on unanimous consent of all member countries, when you just make countries keep voting until they vote your way? Seeing crap like this makes me wonder how people over here (E. Europe especially) are able to take the EU seriously. Fundamentally, how is this different than only being able to vote for a Communist Party candidate in an election?
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