Ha ha ha! You nailed it!
"Mr. Gorbaciov, knock down that wall!"
Whereas our geniuses at best would have suggested ways of making it prettier!
Exactly. I am noticing all the time that Europe is so interested in aesthetics and not at all focused on the chess game going on in the world. Say what you want about Bush; he is trying to effect beneficial change for people in this world who are not born yet. A lot of the EU posturing is just that. No courage to stand up to evil. It's all about how things LOOK rather than how things ARE.
Ciao Yaelle,
Put it this way: Europe, at present, is very good at drinking the wine, but absolutely careless and shoddy about taking care of the vine. And because of this, she is destined both to diminishing returns and diminishing enjoyment.