JEWISH KING JESUS IS COMING AT THE RAPTURE FOR US IN THE CLOUDS-DON'T MISS IT FOR THE WORLD.THE BIBLE TAKEN LITERALLY- WHEN THE PLAIN SENSE MAKES GOOD SENSE-SEEK NO OTHER SENSE-LEST YOU END UP IN NONSENSE.GET SAVED NOW- CALL ON JESUS TODAY.THE ONLY SAVIOR OF THE WHOLE EARTH - NO OTHER.
1 COR 15:23-JESUS THE FIRST FRUITS-CHRISTIANS RAPTURED TO JESUS-FIRST FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT-23 But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.ROMANS 8:23 And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.(THE PRE-TRIB RAPTURE)
DANIEL 7:23-25
23 Thus he said, The fourth beast (EU,REVIVED ROME) shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth,(7TH WORLD EMPIRE) which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.(TRADING BLOCKS-10 WORLD REGIONS/TRADE BLOCS)
24 And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings(10 NATIONS-10 WORLD DIVISION WORLD GOVERNMENT) that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.(THE EU (EUROPEAN UNION) TAKES OVER IRAQ WHICH HAS SPLIT INTO 3-SUNNI-KURD-SHIA PARTS-AND THE REVIVED ROMAN EMPIRE IS BROUGHT BACK TOGETHER-THE TWO LEGS OF DANIEL WESTERN LEG AND THE ISLAMIC LEG COMBINED AS 1)
LUKE 2:1-3
1 And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed.
2 (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.)
3 And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city.
Napoleon's shadow still falls on Europe-Statue of Napoleon in Cherbourg (France). The Emperor who lost at Waterloo "has become the property of all Europeans".By Eric Maurice-june 18,15-euobserver
BRUSSELS, 18. Jun, 09:26-His name, two-horned hat, and tired silhouette will be on the minds of the thousands of people gathering on a small patch of Belgian countryside this week.At the battle of Waterloo, exactly 200 years ago on 18 June 1815, Napoleon Bonaparte lost his army, his Empire, and even his freedom when he was sent to the tiny South Atlantic island of Saint Helena.Yet it is he, not Britain's Duke of Wellington and Prussia's Prince von Bluecher, the winners of Waterloo, whose image will be everywhere when the battle is commemorated and re-enacted.Two centuries on, the French Emperor remains a towering figure in Europe's history, and one of the most controversial.Napoleon is still able to stir seemingly irrational reactions.When Belgium minted a €2 coin in March to commemorate Waterloo, France filed an official complaint. Belgium retreated, temporarily. But then it produced a limited-edition €2.50 coin instead.
By contrast, British prime minister David Cameron faced a public outcry in 2013 when it emerged that his government did not plan to mark the anniversary of the battle.On Wednesday (17 June), Prince Charles and his wife visited the battlefield and unveiled a memorial to the British soldiers who died there.
Dictator or hero?
Napoleon's last battle was followed by several decades of stability on the European continent, at least until the 1870 Franco-Prussian war or even until World War I.Yet, contrary to commemorations of WWI and WWII, in which defeated Germany and Italy now regularly take part in, Waterloo and the Napoleonic era are still divisive events."It is difficult to transform Waterloo into a European episode, because unfortunately France still considers it as a defeat", Dutch historian and philosopher Luuk van Middelaar told EUobserver.
"Whereas Germany, for instance, built its national storytelling on the idea that the German people was also liberated from Nazism in 1945, France's relationship with Napoleon is more ambiguous," said Van Middelaar, who was also speechwriter for former EU Council president Herman van Rompuy.As a consequence, "one cannot imagine Cameron and French president Francois Hollande holding hands on the Waterloo battlefield" like Germany's Helmut Kohl and France's Francois Mitterrand did in Verdun in 1984.
The historical jury on Napoleon himself is still out.For some, his 16-year reign is "the birth of modern dictatorship", as Germany's Der Spiegel wrote in 2013.For others, he is the "absolute hero", as France's L'Express put it last year.
Another Charlemagne
One thing is sure: He is part of many countries' history."Napoleon has become the property of all Europeans. He concerns all of them for better and for worse", French historian Thierry Lentz told this website."In 200 years from now, he will be like Charlemagne. We will not know anymore if he was only French or the sovereign of the European Empire he ruled," said Lentz, who is director of the Paris-based Fondation Napoleon.In this case, history would come full circle, because, as Van Middelaar noted, Napoleon considered himself as a successor of Charlemagne and not of Louis XIV, the French Sun King.
Napoleon appears to be the historical product of Europe's dramatic history, with both its dark and bright strands alongside one another.His imperial designs brought war from Portugal to Russia, but also political and administrative progress which laid the foundations for modern Europe."Napoleon is not a model, of course. But he arrives at a time when Europe is made through war," said Lentz.In the conquered lands, the Emperor imposed the rule of law instead of feudal rules and exported French concepts of equality and social rights, as well as a pyramidal organisation of power, said the French historian."The administrative organisation of European centralised states seems natural today, but it is because everybody copied the Napoleonic model."
From Vienna to the EU
Napoleon also helped shape European power by his fall.After his first defeat and exile in 1814, the Congress of Vienna redrew the map of Europe and established what came to be known as the "concert of nations".For decades, European powers sat at the same table to settle the issues of the time in a manner that prefigures today's G7 or EU summits."The Congress of Vienna is the first supranational body, where decisions are taken that impose on nations" on issues such as the abolition of slavery or rules on river circulation, Lentz said.After two world wars Europe tried a new model of political development but the Napoleonic and post-Napoleonic eras are still there as a background."The European Council is both in the logic of the Congress of Vienna and in the post-1945 institutional logic," said Luuk Van Middelaar, who wrote about it in his book: The Passage to Europe.When Jean Monnet and Robert Schuman launched the European project, "it was to start something new, without the marks of the old interstate diplomatic games".But even the post-modern and supranational EU could not put aside "the diplomatic irreducibility," Van Middelaar said."A part of the political game is made of negotiations and ratio of power which we cannot completely make disappear".Europeans still sometimes replay the old rivalries, at EU summit tables or at the Waterloo commemorations. But at least they don't wage war against each other anymore.
Explaining the EU: United in Complexity By Gareth Harding-june 18,15-euobserver
BRUSSELS, 18. Jun, 09:27-With over 20 years experience describing how the European Union works, what it does and what challenges it faces in speeches, articles, lectures and trainings, I thought I could explain what the EU is all about in terms that anybody could understand. How wrong I was.In the last month I have given half a dozen ‘EU in an hour’ talks to visiting groups of American politics, journalism and international relations students - who are all extremely keen, bright and willing to ask questions. But almost invariably, the students leave the classroom flabbergasted at how needlessly complicated the EU is and suspecting that I have made up some of the Byzantine decision-making procedures just to mess with them.
This is how the average talk goes:Me: So basically, you have three main institutions: The European Commission, Parliament and Council.Q: I thought there were four? A: Well, yes, if you include the European Council.Q: Wasn’t that one of the three you just mentioned? A: No, that’s the Council of the European Union. Which is different from the Council of Europe, which is a non-EU body that meets in Strasbourg.Q: Doesn’t the European Parliament meet in Strasbourg? A: It does. But so does the Council of Europe. And to be precise, the Parliament also meets in Brussels.Q: So, just to be clear, the Parliament has offices in both Brussels and Strasbourg? A: Yes, and Luxembourg, where a lot of the support staff are based. But anyway, let’s go back to the institutions I mentioned before. Firstly, the European Commission. This is often called the EU executive body.Q: So like the U.S. President? A: Not really. The Commission can’t declare war or veto laws. But it can do trade deals. So it has some executive functions, but also some legislative.Q: But my textbook says the parliament and EU Council are the two law-making bodies? A: Correct, but the Commission proposes all draft laws.Q: Wait. What? How can an unelected body propose laws? Shouldn’t that be the Parliament? A: No, the Commission has what they call the ‘sole right of initiative’ because it is supposed to represent the European interest and be free from national prejudices.Q: But don’t EU member states propose Commissioners? A: Yes they do. But when they arrive in Brussels they have their national hard drives erased. In theory. Unlike the Council of the EU, which represents the naked national interests of the 28 states.Q: So the Council is a bit like our Senate? One member per state, regardless of size? A: Yes, except big states like Germany have many more votes than small states like Malta.Q: So it’s not really like our Senate? A: Er…no. Anyway, the Council makes laws, along with the Parliament. It also adopts the EU budget, which is about €140 billion a year.Q: That’s not much. I thought the EU was the world’s biggest economy? A: Ah, yes, the total GDP of the 28 member states is the biggest in the world but Brussels is only responsible for about 1% of that.Q: The Council meets in Brussels right? A: Yes, except in April, June and October, when it meets in Luxembourg.Q: You’re kidding? A: I wish I was.Q: So who’s in charge of the EU? A: Ah, the Kissinger question. In one word – nobody. In reality, there are three presidents - of the European Council, Commission and Parliament. The first two are basically chosen by EU leaders and the third by MEPs. None are directly elected to the post by voters. Oh, and there’s also a presidency of the Council of Ministers.Q: Wait, what? A: Well, every six months a different EU state is in charge of chairing ministerial meetings. At present, that is Latvia but on July 1 that changes to Luxembourg. However, meetings of foreign ministers are presided over by EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, who is also vice-president of the European Commission. And Eurogroup meetings are chaired by Dutch Finance Minister Jeroen Dijsselboem.Q: Hang on, what’s the Eurogroup? A: Well, that’s the meeting of EU finance ministers from the 19 EU states that use the euro? Q: What? I thought the EU had a single currency? A: It does, but not for all its states. Britain, Denmark and Sweden decided to keep their own currencies and some central European countries are not ready to join the Eurozone yet.Q: You’re making this up aren’t you? The EU can’t possibly be that complicated.
A Belgian townhouse
Unfortunately, it is. Part of the reason is that the EU has not been made according to a grand design like a Gothic cathedral. Instead its structure more resembles the back-end of a Belgian townhouse: always messy, often ugly and sometimes decidedly dodgy.It also doesn’t help that the EU is a moving target, constantly changing its name, membership, treaties and even fundamental aims. No wonder over three-quarters of EU citizens don’t know how the Union works.So what can the EU do to make it simpler to understand? Firstly, it could be a tad more inventive labelling its main institutions. Renaming either the European Council or the Council of the EU would be a start. The difference between presidents and presidencies could also be spelled out better.Secondly, that whole double-hatted Commission VP/Council High Representative thing? That has to go.Thirdly, stop the travelling circus to Strasbourg. Obviously.Finally, naming things based on reality rather than wishful thinking would help. The EU doesn’t have a common foreign and defence policy and certainly doesn’t have a single currency, so why pretend it does? Of course, none of this would make the European Union more popular or prosperous. But it would make it easier to understand – which is surely one policy both supporters and opponents of the EU project should be able to rally around.
Thousands rally in Athens to support PM Tsipras-By EUOBSERVER
18. Jun, 09:31-Thousands of people demonstrated in Athens Wednesday night against austerity and Greece's creditors proposals, in a show of support for Alexis Tsipras' government on the eve of a eurozone Finance ministers meeting in Luxembourg. They were joined by Syriza officials including Parliament speaker Zoe Konstantopoulou.
Greece's debt 'illegal, illegitimate and odious'-By EUOBSERVER
18. Jun, 09:31-The Greek debt is "illegal, illegitimate and odious" and should not be repaid, the Truth Committee on Public Debt said Wednesday in a preliminary report. The committee was established in April by the Greek Parliament to audit the debt and determine if it infriges on the Greeks' human rights.
Merkel tough on Greece but says deal possible-By EUOBSERVER
18. Jun, 11:39-German chancellor Merkel Thursday maintained a tough stance on Greece ahead of key talks between euro finance ministers saying Athens has "committed itself to full repayment of loans". She said a deal between Greece and its creditors is "still possible" and Germany is focussing on keeping Athens in the eurozone.
Greece in default if fails to meet IMF payment-By EUOBSERVER
18. Jun, 17:53-Greece will be in default if it fails to meet a €1.6 billion repayment to the International Monetary Fund due on 30 June 30, Christine Lagarde said on Thursday. There would be "no period of grace" for Greece, Lagarde told reporters following a meeting with the finance minister of Luxembourg.
Greek bank run fears grow, despite ECB lifeline By Benjamin Fox-june 18,15-euobserver
BRUSSELS, 18. Jun, 10:45-Deposits in Greek banks continue to tumble despite the European Central Bank increasing its financial life-support to the Greek banking sector by a further €1.1 billion on Wednesday (17 June).The ECB’s emergency liquidity assistance (ELA) programme for Greek banks now totals €84.1 billion following a meeting of its governing council. The move comes just a week after the Governing Council decided to allow a €2.3 billion increase to the ELA ceiling for Greece, taking it to €83 billion.However, the increasing likelihood of talks between Greece and its creditors collapsing, resulting in a Greek default, is causing savers to withdraw their money at record levels.According to the most recent figures from the ECB, Greek bank deposits fell by €27 billion over the first four months of 2015 and at €139.6 billion, are at their lowest level for a decade. An estimated €1.7 billion was withdrawn between Monday and Wednesday this week.The ECB has repeatedly stressed that a solution to the Greek crisis will have to be thrashed out by politicians, but the Frankfurt-based bank would be one of the main losers from a Greek default and exit from the eurozone.The ECB is owed €20 billion by the Greek government, although its real exposure is far higher. The bank has pumped in €118 billion into the Greek banking system, through the ELA programme and collateral based lending to the Greek central bank.This figure is equivalent to around 66 percent of the Greek annual economy, and more than double the amount exposed at the end of 2014.Greek lenders have become increasingly reliant on ELA as worried depositers continue to move money out of the country.Speaking at a hearing in the European Parliament on Monday (15 June), ECB President Mario Draghi maintained that the bank would continue to lend to Greek banks despite the increasing possibility of a Greek default which would almost certainly prompt a bank run on the country’s banks, putting the ECB’s money in severe peril.“ELA is being given to banks that are solvent and are in a position to offer collateral,” he said, adding that “the major Greek banks are solvent and the collateral they provide is adequate”.“Of course, the situation is evolving..and we need to assess the general health…there is no set ceiling for ELA."For his part, in an interview in Italian daily La Stampa on Thursday, Bundesbank president Jens Wiedmann stated that the ECB would have to end its ELA lending to Greek lenders if a political agreement with the country's creditors cannot be found."It is not the ECB's task to finance states, in fact it is forbidden," Wiedmann said.
Euro leaders to discuss Greece at emergency summit By Eric Maurice-june 18,15-euobserver
BRUSSELS, 18. Jun, 22:02-Eurozone leaders are to meet on Monday in Brussels for an emergency summit to discuss Greece after talks between finance ministers broke off without agreement on Thursday evening."It is time to urgently discuss the situation of Greece at the highest political level," EU council president Donal Tusk said in a statement.A few minutes earlier, at a press conference following the meeting, Eurogroup president Jeroen Dijsselbloem said that "too little progress [had] been made in the talks between the institutions and Greece and that no agreement as yet [was] in sight"."We sent a strong signal to the Greek authorities that it is clearly up to them to submit new proposals in the coming days to fully engage with the institutions within the framework of the [Eurogroup] statement of 20 February," Dijsselbloem said, referring to the agreement to extend the bailout programme to 30 June and unblock a €7.2 billion loan in exchange for reforms."It is still possible to find an agreement and extend the current programme," he added, officially mentioning an extension for the first time.But far from being an opportunity to restart a dialogue after talks collapsed last Sunday (14 June), the meeting appeared to entrench the positions further."The key emergency is to restore dialogue with adults in the room," International Monetary Fund (IMF) chief Christine Lagarde said at the press conference."We are dangerously close to a state of mind that accepts an accident," Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis said in a separate press conference.Varoufakis said he presented a "comprehensive and strong proposal" to the Eurogroup. But another participant said the discussion on Greece was "a non-discussion"."He presented ideas. We don't know if they are from the Greek government or if they are specific," the official said. "There is no more patience."A political agreement between elected leaders has for weeks been the strategy of Greek prime minister Alexis Tsipras.But some kind of technical agreement will be necessary beforehand."We need a staff level agreement first," a top EU official said."It is always better for the leaders when things are prepared. These are extremely technical talks. Leaders don't like that."Only eight days before the end of the programme on 30 June, when Greece also has to repay €1.6 billion to the IMF, Monday's summit could be presented as a take-it-or-leave-it discussion to Tsipras."We're approaching the time when the game is over," Moscovici warned."I appeal to the Greek government to come seriously back to the negotiating table and accept to make a reasonable compromise and avoid a completely catastrophic fate," he added.The warnings come amid fears by the European Central Bank that Greek banks, subject to large daily deposit outflows, may not be able to open Monday.Reuters reported that when ECB Executive Board member Benoit Coeure was asked during the eurogroup meeting if Greek banks would be able to open on Friday he answered: "Tomorrow, yes. Monday, I don't know."
DANIEL 7:23-25
23 Thus he said, The fourth beast (EU,REVIVED ROME) shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth,(7TH WORLD EMPIRE) which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.(TRADING BLOCKS-10 WORLD REGIONS/TRADE BLOCS)
24 And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings(10 NATIONS-10 WORLD DIVISION WORLD GOVERNMENT) that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.(THE EU (EUROPEAN UNION) TAKES OVER IRAQ WHICH HAS SPLIT INTO 3-SUNNI-KURD-SHIA PARTS-AND THE REVIVED ROMAN EMPIRE IS BROUGHT BACK TOGETHER-THE TWO LEGS OF DANIEL WESTERN LEG AND THE ISLAMIC LEG COMBINED AS 1)
LUKE 2:1-3
1 And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed.
2 (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.)
3 And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city.
Napoleon's shadow still falls on Europe-Statue of Napoleon in Cherbourg (France). The Emperor who lost at Waterloo "has become the property of all Europeans".By Eric Maurice-june 18,15-euobserver
BRUSSELS, 18. Jun, 09:26-His name, two-horned hat, and tired silhouette will be on the minds of the thousands of people gathering on a small patch of Belgian countryside this week.At the battle of Waterloo, exactly 200 years ago on 18 June 1815, Napoleon Bonaparte lost his army, his Empire, and even his freedom when he was sent to the tiny South Atlantic island of Saint Helena.Yet it is he, not Britain's Duke of Wellington and Prussia's Prince von Bluecher, the winners of Waterloo, whose image will be everywhere when the battle is commemorated and re-enacted.Two centuries on, the French Emperor remains a towering figure in Europe's history, and one of the most controversial.Napoleon is still able to stir seemingly irrational reactions.When Belgium minted a €2 coin in March to commemorate Waterloo, France filed an official complaint. Belgium retreated, temporarily. But then it produced a limited-edition €2.50 coin instead.
By contrast, British prime minister David Cameron faced a public outcry in 2013 when it emerged that his government did not plan to mark the anniversary of the battle.On Wednesday (17 June), Prince Charles and his wife visited the battlefield and unveiled a memorial to the British soldiers who died there.
Dictator or hero?
Napoleon's last battle was followed by several decades of stability on the European continent, at least until the 1870 Franco-Prussian war or even until World War I.Yet, contrary to commemorations of WWI and WWII, in which defeated Germany and Italy now regularly take part in, Waterloo and the Napoleonic era are still divisive events."It is difficult to transform Waterloo into a European episode, because unfortunately France still considers it as a defeat", Dutch historian and philosopher Luuk van Middelaar told EUobserver.
"Whereas Germany, for instance, built its national storytelling on the idea that the German people was also liberated from Nazism in 1945, France's relationship with Napoleon is more ambiguous," said Van Middelaar, who was also speechwriter for former EU Council president Herman van Rompuy.As a consequence, "one cannot imagine Cameron and French president Francois Hollande holding hands on the Waterloo battlefield" like Germany's Helmut Kohl and France's Francois Mitterrand did in Verdun in 1984.
The historical jury on Napoleon himself is still out.For some, his 16-year reign is "the birth of modern dictatorship", as Germany's Der Spiegel wrote in 2013.For others, he is the "absolute hero", as France's L'Express put it last year.
Another Charlemagne
One thing is sure: He is part of many countries' history."Napoleon has become the property of all Europeans. He concerns all of them for better and for worse", French historian Thierry Lentz told this website."In 200 years from now, he will be like Charlemagne. We will not know anymore if he was only French or the sovereign of the European Empire he ruled," said Lentz, who is director of the Paris-based Fondation Napoleon.In this case, history would come full circle, because, as Van Middelaar noted, Napoleon considered himself as a successor of Charlemagne and not of Louis XIV, the French Sun King.
Napoleon appears to be the historical product of Europe's dramatic history, with both its dark and bright strands alongside one another.His imperial designs brought war from Portugal to Russia, but also political and administrative progress which laid the foundations for modern Europe."Napoleon is not a model, of course. But he arrives at a time when Europe is made through war," said Lentz.In the conquered lands, the Emperor imposed the rule of law instead of feudal rules and exported French concepts of equality and social rights, as well as a pyramidal organisation of power, said the French historian."The administrative organisation of European centralised states seems natural today, but it is because everybody copied the Napoleonic model."
From Vienna to the EU
Napoleon also helped shape European power by his fall.After his first defeat and exile in 1814, the Congress of Vienna redrew the map of Europe and established what came to be known as the "concert of nations".For decades, European powers sat at the same table to settle the issues of the time in a manner that prefigures today's G7 or EU summits."The Congress of Vienna is the first supranational body, where decisions are taken that impose on nations" on issues such as the abolition of slavery or rules on river circulation, Lentz said.After two world wars Europe tried a new model of political development but the Napoleonic and post-Napoleonic eras are still there as a background."The European Council is both in the logic of the Congress of Vienna and in the post-1945 institutional logic," said Luuk Van Middelaar, who wrote about it in his book: The Passage to Europe.When Jean Monnet and Robert Schuman launched the European project, "it was to start something new, without the marks of the old interstate diplomatic games".But even the post-modern and supranational EU could not put aside "the diplomatic irreducibility," Van Middelaar said."A part of the political game is made of negotiations and ratio of power which we cannot completely make disappear".Europeans still sometimes replay the old rivalries, at EU summit tables or at the Waterloo commemorations. But at least they don't wage war against each other anymore.
Explaining the EU: United in Complexity By Gareth Harding-june 18,15-euobserver
BRUSSELS, 18. Jun, 09:27-With over 20 years experience describing how the European Union works, what it does and what challenges it faces in speeches, articles, lectures and trainings, I thought I could explain what the EU is all about in terms that anybody could understand. How wrong I was.In the last month I have given half a dozen ‘EU in an hour’ talks to visiting groups of American politics, journalism and international relations students - who are all extremely keen, bright and willing to ask questions. But almost invariably, the students leave the classroom flabbergasted at how needlessly complicated the EU is and suspecting that I have made up some of the Byzantine decision-making procedures just to mess with them.
This is how the average talk goes:Me: So basically, you have three main institutions: The European Commission, Parliament and Council.Q: I thought there were four? A: Well, yes, if you include the European Council.Q: Wasn’t that one of the three you just mentioned? A: No, that’s the Council of the European Union. Which is different from the Council of Europe, which is a non-EU body that meets in Strasbourg.Q: Doesn’t the European Parliament meet in Strasbourg? A: It does. But so does the Council of Europe. And to be precise, the Parliament also meets in Brussels.Q: So, just to be clear, the Parliament has offices in both Brussels and Strasbourg? A: Yes, and Luxembourg, where a lot of the support staff are based. But anyway, let’s go back to the institutions I mentioned before. Firstly, the European Commission. This is often called the EU executive body.Q: So like the U.S. President? A: Not really. The Commission can’t declare war or veto laws. But it can do trade deals. So it has some executive functions, but also some legislative.Q: But my textbook says the parliament and EU Council are the two law-making bodies? A: Correct, but the Commission proposes all draft laws.Q: Wait. What? How can an unelected body propose laws? Shouldn’t that be the Parliament? A: No, the Commission has what they call the ‘sole right of initiative’ because it is supposed to represent the European interest and be free from national prejudices.Q: But don’t EU member states propose Commissioners? A: Yes they do. But when they arrive in Brussels they have their national hard drives erased. In theory. Unlike the Council of the EU, which represents the naked national interests of the 28 states.Q: So the Council is a bit like our Senate? One member per state, regardless of size? A: Yes, except big states like Germany have many more votes than small states like Malta.Q: So it’s not really like our Senate? A: Er…no. Anyway, the Council makes laws, along with the Parliament. It also adopts the EU budget, which is about €140 billion a year.Q: That’s not much. I thought the EU was the world’s biggest economy? A: Ah, yes, the total GDP of the 28 member states is the biggest in the world but Brussels is only responsible for about 1% of that.Q: The Council meets in Brussels right? A: Yes, except in April, June and October, when it meets in Luxembourg.Q: You’re kidding? A: I wish I was.Q: So who’s in charge of the EU? A: Ah, the Kissinger question. In one word – nobody. In reality, there are three presidents - of the European Council, Commission and Parliament. The first two are basically chosen by EU leaders and the third by MEPs. None are directly elected to the post by voters. Oh, and there’s also a presidency of the Council of Ministers.Q: Wait, what? A: Well, every six months a different EU state is in charge of chairing ministerial meetings. At present, that is Latvia but on July 1 that changes to Luxembourg. However, meetings of foreign ministers are presided over by EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, who is also vice-president of the European Commission. And Eurogroup meetings are chaired by Dutch Finance Minister Jeroen Dijsselboem.Q: Hang on, what’s the Eurogroup? A: Well, that’s the meeting of EU finance ministers from the 19 EU states that use the euro? Q: What? I thought the EU had a single currency? A: It does, but not for all its states. Britain, Denmark and Sweden decided to keep their own currencies and some central European countries are not ready to join the Eurozone yet.Q: You’re making this up aren’t you? The EU can’t possibly be that complicated.
A Belgian townhouse
Unfortunately, it is. Part of the reason is that the EU has not been made according to a grand design like a Gothic cathedral. Instead its structure more resembles the back-end of a Belgian townhouse: always messy, often ugly and sometimes decidedly dodgy.It also doesn’t help that the EU is a moving target, constantly changing its name, membership, treaties and even fundamental aims. No wonder over three-quarters of EU citizens don’t know how the Union works.So what can the EU do to make it simpler to understand? Firstly, it could be a tad more inventive labelling its main institutions. Renaming either the European Council or the Council of the EU would be a start. The difference between presidents and presidencies could also be spelled out better.Secondly, that whole double-hatted Commission VP/Council High Representative thing? That has to go.Thirdly, stop the travelling circus to Strasbourg. Obviously.Finally, naming things based on reality rather than wishful thinking would help. The EU doesn’t have a common foreign and defence policy and certainly doesn’t have a single currency, so why pretend it does? Of course, none of this would make the European Union more popular or prosperous. But it would make it easier to understand – which is surely one policy both supporters and opponents of the EU project should be able to rally around.
Thousands rally in Athens to support PM Tsipras-By EUOBSERVER
18. Jun, 09:31-Thousands of people demonstrated in Athens Wednesday night against austerity and Greece's creditors proposals, in a show of support for Alexis Tsipras' government on the eve of a eurozone Finance ministers meeting in Luxembourg. They were joined by Syriza officials including Parliament speaker Zoe Konstantopoulou.
Greece's debt 'illegal, illegitimate and odious'-By EUOBSERVER
18. Jun, 09:31-The Greek debt is "illegal, illegitimate and odious" and should not be repaid, the Truth Committee on Public Debt said Wednesday in a preliminary report. The committee was established in April by the Greek Parliament to audit the debt and determine if it infriges on the Greeks' human rights.
Merkel tough on Greece but says deal possible-By EUOBSERVER
18. Jun, 11:39-German chancellor Merkel Thursday maintained a tough stance on Greece ahead of key talks between euro finance ministers saying Athens has "committed itself to full repayment of loans". She said a deal between Greece and its creditors is "still possible" and Germany is focussing on keeping Athens in the eurozone.
Greece in default if fails to meet IMF payment-By EUOBSERVER
18. Jun, 17:53-Greece will be in default if it fails to meet a €1.6 billion repayment to the International Monetary Fund due on 30 June 30, Christine Lagarde said on Thursday. There would be "no period of grace" for Greece, Lagarde told reporters following a meeting with the finance minister of Luxembourg.
Greek bank run fears grow, despite ECB lifeline By Benjamin Fox-june 18,15-euobserver
BRUSSELS, 18. Jun, 10:45-Deposits in Greek banks continue to tumble despite the European Central Bank increasing its financial life-support to the Greek banking sector by a further €1.1 billion on Wednesday (17 June).The ECB’s emergency liquidity assistance (ELA) programme for Greek banks now totals €84.1 billion following a meeting of its governing council. The move comes just a week after the Governing Council decided to allow a €2.3 billion increase to the ELA ceiling for Greece, taking it to €83 billion.However, the increasing likelihood of talks between Greece and its creditors collapsing, resulting in a Greek default, is causing savers to withdraw their money at record levels.According to the most recent figures from the ECB, Greek bank deposits fell by €27 billion over the first four months of 2015 and at €139.6 billion, are at their lowest level for a decade. An estimated €1.7 billion was withdrawn between Monday and Wednesday this week.The ECB has repeatedly stressed that a solution to the Greek crisis will have to be thrashed out by politicians, but the Frankfurt-based bank would be one of the main losers from a Greek default and exit from the eurozone.The ECB is owed €20 billion by the Greek government, although its real exposure is far higher. The bank has pumped in €118 billion into the Greek banking system, through the ELA programme and collateral based lending to the Greek central bank.This figure is equivalent to around 66 percent of the Greek annual economy, and more than double the amount exposed at the end of 2014.Greek lenders have become increasingly reliant on ELA as worried depositers continue to move money out of the country.Speaking at a hearing in the European Parliament on Monday (15 June), ECB President Mario Draghi maintained that the bank would continue to lend to Greek banks despite the increasing possibility of a Greek default which would almost certainly prompt a bank run on the country’s banks, putting the ECB’s money in severe peril.“ELA is being given to banks that are solvent and are in a position to offer collateral,” he said, adding that “the major Greek banks are solvent and the collateral they provide is adequate”.“Of course, the situation is evolving..and we need to assess the general health…there is no set ceiling for ELA."For his part, in an interview in Italian daily La Stampa on Thursday, Bundesbank president Jens Wiedmann stated that the ECB would have to end its ELA lending to Greek lenders if a political agreement with the country's creditors cannot be found."It is not the ECB's task to finance states, in fact it is forbidden," Wiedmann said.
Euro leaders to discuss Greece at emergency summit By Eric Maurice-june 18,15-euobserver
BRUSSELS, 18. Jun, 22:02-Eurozone leaders are to meet on Monday in Brussels for an emergency summit to discuss Greece after talks between finance ministers broke off without agreement on Thursday evening."It is time to urgently discuss the situation of Greece at the highest political level," EU council president Donal Tusk said in a statement.A few minutes earlier, at a press conference following the meeting, Eurogroup president Jeroen Dijsselbloem said that "too little progress [had] been made in the talks between the institutions and Greece and that no agreement as yet [was] in sight"."We sent a strong signal to the Greek authorities that it is clearly up to them to submit new proposals in the coming days to fully engage with the institutions within the framework of the [Eurogroup] statement of 20 February," Dijsselbloem said, referring to the agreement to extend the bailout programme to 30 June and unblock a €7.2 billion loan in exchange for reforms."It is still possible to find an agreement and extend the current programme," he added, officially mentioning an extension for the first time.But far from being an opportunity to restart a dialogue after talks collapsed last Sunday (14 June), the meeting appeared to entrench the positions further."The key emergency is to restore dialogue with adults in the room," International Monetary Fund (IMF) chief Christine Lagarde said at the press conference."We are dangerously close to a state of mind that accepts an accident," Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis said in a separate press conference.Varoufakis said he presented a "comprehensive and strong proposal" to the Eurogroup. But another participant said the discussion on Greece was "a non-discussion"."He presented ideas. We don't know if they are from the Greek government or if they are specific," the official said. "There is no more patience."A political agreement between elected leaders has for weeks been the strategy of Greek prime minister Alexis Tsipras.But some kind of technical agreement will be necessary beforehand."We need a staff level agreement first," a top EU official said."It is always better for the leaders when things are prepared. These are extremely technical talks. Leaders don't like that."Only eight days before the end of the programme on 30 June, when Greece also has to repay €1.6 billion to the IMF, Monday's summit could be presented as a take-it-or-leave-it discussion to Tsipras."We're approaching the time when the game is over," Moscovici warned."I appeal to the Greek government to come seriously back to the negotiating table and accept to make a reasonable compromise and avoid a completely catastrophic fate," he added.The warnings come amid fears by the European Central Bank that Greek banks, subject to large daily deposit outflows, may not be able to open Monday.Reuters reported that when ECB Executive Board member Benoit Coeure was asked during the eurogroup meeting if Greek banks would be able to open on Friday he answered: "Tomorrow, yes. Monday, I don't know."
