Not that this is an original thought, but good riddance nonetheless.

From the BBC News site comes this disconcerting news:
Europe is falling behind Asia in terms of education and skills, according to a report by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
It blames France and Germany which are criticised for mediocre education systems and their inherent class bias.
And further on:
“Europeans from difficult socio-economic backgrounds don’t [...]

East Ethnia

European Tribune - Putting the Squeeze on Transdniestr by Soj
I see that the western press is almost completely ignoring the developing situation in Transdniestr, despite the huge ramifications involved.
[...]
With the election of Viktor Yushchenko in early 2005, Ukraine has steadily allied itself with the west, including the United States. And the west believes that Russia [...]

CNN.com - Milosevic dies in prison cell - Mar 11, 2006
Former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic has been found dead in his prison cell in The Hague, Netherlands, according to the United Nations. He was 64.
Serbian radio says he hung himself, just like the Krajina president did. I must have misread something.
BBC says:
Steven Kay, Mr [...]

A belated link, you could say. I somehow missed this article in The New York Review of Books when it was published in january. Better read it right away, before it dissapears behind the subscrption wall.
It’s by Timothy Garton Ash; he’s usually good when writing about central europe.

Well, we are united in our diversity here at Fistful. I have to say I disagree with almost every point Doug made about Montenegro in his last post, and will respectfully dissect his arguments below. But first off, a plea for some sanity here. Too many people seem to think that the break-up of [...]

Identity and Global Conflict | TPMCafe

So, Montenegro.
Little mountainous state on the Adriatic. Six hundred thousand people, mostly Montenegrins, a few Albanians and whatnot. Was an independent country until 1919, when it got swept up into Yugoslavia. Now it’s part of the “Federal Union of Serbia and Montenegro”, which consists of (1) Serbia, and (2) Montenegro.
And [...]

Battle may be about to be joined. EU competition commissioner Neelie Kroes is back in the news. She made a speech yesterday, and in that speech she suggested that the golden days of the EUs unreformed energy giants may be numbered, as the European Commission is considering launching an onslaught on monopolistic [...]