Posted on 12/27/2006 9:35:51 AM PST by WesternCulture
Top ten EU achievements in 2006
Ten examples have been selected from 2006 of how the EU is working to improve your economic and social well-being – these include sending out peacekeepers, developing a satellite navigation system, making chemicals safer and reducing roaming charges for mobile phones.
It may not be widely recognised, but the EU is acting in an ever‑growing number of areas that directly affect all Europeans.
In 2006, for example, it took steps to ban misleading claims on food packaging, helping consumers choose healthy foods and avoid obesity. Claims such as "low fat" have now become standardised to mean the same thing in all EU countries.
Another of the EU's targets has been roaming charges on mobile phone use within the EU. Extortionate prices – averaging four times the price of a domestic call – are now being curbed. A new draft law is set to cut prices across the board from summer 2007, with the highest rates to be reduced by up to 70%.
A new law regulating chemicals will protect workers and consumers, requiring industry to replace hazardous chemicals with safer alternatives wherever possible. For over 30 000 chemicals, manufacturers will also have to pass on information concerning possible dangers and how these can be reduced.
In the technology field, the EU has been developing its own satellite navigation system, Galileo. In January 2006, the system received its first test signals from an experimental satellite sent into orbit at the end of 2005. Consisting of a constellation of 30 satellites, Galileo is set to become fully operational in 2008, providing navigation assistance to land, sea and air traffic as well as to travellers around the world.
Internationally, the EU has sent troops to the Congo and south Lebanon – two highly volatile areas. In the Congo, these forces helped maintain stability during the first democratic presidential and parliamentary elections in over 40 years, while in Lebanon, 7 500 troops were deployed to bolster the interim UN force.
Other major achievements in 2006 include Bulgaria and Romania's EU entry, Slovenia's adoption of the euro, cuts in sugar prices and an end to overproduction, the opening of the European market to trade in services, and measures to tackle illegal immigration.
You're right.
As long as you're talking of Europe versus the US.
Please don't compare the standard of living in Scandinavia, the richest part of the world, to the US.
The US is rich, richer than Europe in general, but you can't afford to drive around in the Audi's, BMW's and Volvo's we do and the building standard of your houses are not similar to ours.
Umm wrong.
Prices in Scandinavian countries are already atrocious. How long do you think it will take before the "World Market" will buy goods somewhere else where it is cheaper?
Most Americans don't want to drive around in BMW, Volvos and Audis.
They prefer the Lexus, Acura and American cars at half to one third of the price. A much better Value.
As to Building standadrs of houses, it depends where you live. In the Northeast, close to northern European standards.
Here in Florida, Northern homes or European Homes couldn't be nuild, because the codes are very strict. Here a House and especially a roof has to withstand 150 Miles per Hour Wind in hurricanes.
Out West houses have to be build with Earthquakes in mind.
You simply cannot generalize like most Eunochs do without looking into the facts about each individual situation. Do some research.
Here in Florida most houses are Stone houses. Northeast lot of Wood, Out west also lots of wood, except in cities where large buildings are Stone, but have to be Earthquake proof.
Remember the old saying: Arrogance comes before the fall.
by the way, people who drive Volvos purchase them at half price through Ford, the parent company.
Same goes for Saab, only those are purchased from General Motors, again, the parent company.
"Prices in Scandinavian countries are already atrocious. How long do you think it will take before the "World Market" will buy goods somewhere else where it is cheaper?
Most Americans don't want to drive around in BMW, Volvos and Audis.
They prefer the Lexus, Acura and American cars at half to one third of the price. A much better Value.
As to Building standadrs of houses, it depends where you live. In the Northeast, close to northern European standards.
Here in Florida, Northern homes or European Homes couldn't be nuild, because the codes are very strict. Here a House and especially a roof has to withstand 150 Miles per Hour Wind in hurricanes.
Out West houses have to be build with Earthquakes in mind.
You simply cannot generalize like most Eunochs do without looking into the facts about each individual situation. Do some research.
Here in Florida most houses are Stone houses. Northeast lot of Wood, Out west also lots of wood, except in cities where large buildings are Stone, but have to be Earthquake proof.
Remember the old saying: Arrogance comes before the fall."
- Still, Scaninavia just happens to be richer than the US.
When did you visit Scandinavia last time? Or are you by any chance a feeble dweller of Rosengård, Malmö?
Sedan 1600-talet bestämmer vi här uppe vad ni får säga.
"Check my page and look at the flag, junior.
I live in Stockholm since many years back, but I have retained my scanian (yes, skåning från Malmö) accent, and as far as I know there is no one who decides what I may say or not ( - except on this forum where we keep to the rules set by the owner, Mr Jim Robinson).
Now, a kindly advice. It is never good policy to keep shouting "I am richer than everyone else", but if you want to do it despite evidence to the contrary, at least provide some data to support your case.
Sweden was one of the richest countries in the world during the 50s and 60s. That was partly due to the fact that we managed to stay out of the war, and partly due to the fact that we do have a large number of multinational companies which have been very successful on the export markets. And it is true that many of them happen to have their HQs in Gothenburg.
Since then a lot of things have happened. And most of that has not been good for us. As a friend of my grandmother used to point out (he was for a time the head of the Swedish-Swiss Chamber of commerce); after the war the exchange rate between the Swedish krona and the Swiss franc was 1:1 - look at it now!
High taxes, a declining education system, faulty macroeconomic policies are some of the things that we could have avoided, but didn't. More recently a totally mismanaged immigration policy has added to our woes.
However, although some cracks are starting to appear in the social fabric, and the underlying problems will have to be remedied soon if things are not going to take a turn for the worse, our country - like all the other Scandinavian countries - is still a very good place to live in."
- If you think twice and/or read what you've written above anew, you might just find out why I didn't address you in a friendly manner. But let's be mature persons and forget about that little incident. Even if it wasn't evident, It was all tongue-in-cheek. If I took things too far, I apologize for this.
I like Skåne/Scania a lot and my impression is that most inhabitants of that part of Europe as well as most persons originating from it are intelligent and decent people in every way.
Anyhow, the underlying problem is this:
Conservative people in Sweden often love to portray Sweden as a very poor country - a shining example of the failure of socialist experimentation.
I am conservative too, but my perspective is very different.
Despite the fact that Sweden is one of the richest countries on earth and despite the fact that no other country has been as successful in producing large corporations per capita, many Swedish conservatives still go on saying Sweden is socialist and more or less bankrupt. I can't see how we promote conservative values through this denial of reality.
The swedish social democrats might be stupid and like most swedish politicians, they are often unbearably PC, but they are not what I call socialists/communists.
In the 1970's, radical trade unionist tried to enforce their proto-communist policies through their control over the SAP (The Social Democratic Party of Sweden). They failed. That's true. But today, even former communists like Schyman are pro-market and pro-capitalist. Schyman is a stupid populist (and I despise her), but she's not stupid enough to realize that Sweden is BUILT on capitalism like few other nations.
The truth about Swedish prosperity looks like this: We don't have oil, we work less than for instance US Americans, still we are the 9th richest country in the world!
We are again A MODEL to other countries. A MODEL of progressive capitalism that is!!!
Socialism is a failure, Sweden is not.
Below, some statistics from the International Monetary Fund.
Rank Country GDP
per capita
1 Luxembourg 80,288
2 Norway 64,193
3 Iceland 52,764
4 Switzerland 50,532
5 Ireland 48,604
6 Denmark 47,984
7 Qatar 43,110
8 United States 42,000
9 Sweden 39,694
10 Netherlands 38,618
11 Finland 37,504
12 Austria 37,117
13 United Kingdom 37,023
14 Japan 35,757
15 Belgium 35,712
16 Canada 35,133
17 Australia 34,740
18 France 33,918
19 Germany 33,854
20 Italy 30,200
21 United Arab Emirates 27,700
22 Spain 27,226
23 Singapore 26,836
24 New Zealand 26,464
25 Kuwait 26,020
26 Brunei 25,754
27 Hong Kong 25,493
28 Greece 20,327
29 Cyprus 20,214
30 Israel 19,248
31 Bahrain 18,403
32 The Bahamas 18,062
33 Portugal 17,456
34 Netherlands Antilles, Netherlands 17,270
35 Slovenia 16,986
36 South Korea 16,308
37 Republic of China (Taiwan) 15,203
38 Malta 13,803
39 Saudi Arabia 13,410
40 Oman 12,664
41 Trinidad and Tobago 12,625
42 Czech Republic 12,152
43 Barbados 11,088
44 Saint Kitts and Nevis 10,895
45 Hungary 10,814
46 Antigua and Barbuda 10,727
47 Estonia 9,727
48 Slovakia 8,775
49 Croatia 8,675
50 Seychelles 8,556
51 Poland 7,946
52 Lithuania 7,446
53 Mexico 7,298
54 Chile 7,124
55 Latvia 6,862
56 Libya 6,696
57 Botswana 6,439
58 Gabon 6,397
59 Equatorial Guinea 6,205
60 Lebanon 6,034
61 Russia 5,349
62 Uruguay 5,274
63 South Africa 5,106
64 Turkey 5,062
65 Malaysia 5,042
66 Mauritius 5,029
67 Venezuela 5,026
68 Saint Lucia 4,963
69 Argentina 4,799
70 Panama 4,794
71 Grenada 4,670
72 Costa Rica 4,620
73 Romania 4,539
74 Brazil 4,320
75 Belize 4,146
76 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 3,950
77 Dominica 3,947
78 Kazakhstan 3,717
79 Jamaica 3,657
80 Bulgaria 3,459
81 Dominican Republic 3,411
82 Turkmenistan 3,406
83 Fiji 3,349
84 Algeria 3,086
85 Belarus 3,031
86 Namibia 3,022
87 Serbia 2,880
88 Peru 2,841
89 Tunisia 2,829
90 Republic of Macedonia 2,810
91 Iran 2,767
92 Ecuador 2,761
93 Albania 2,673
94 Thailand 2,659
95 Colombia 2,656
96 Suriname 2,637
97 El Salvador 2,468
98 Bosnia and Herzegovina 2,384
99 Maldives 2,350
100 Swaziland 2,336
101 Jordan 2,317
102 Angola 2,129
103 Tonga 2,106
104 Cape Verde 2,066
105 Guatemala 1,995
106 Samoa 1,832
107 Republic of the Congo 1,785
108 Ukraine 1,766
109 Morocco 1,713
110 People's Republic of China 1,709
111 Iraq 1,700 [2]
112 Vanuatu 1,530
113 Azerbaijan 1,493
114 Georgia 1,480
115 Syrian Arab Republic 1,464
116 Paraguay 1,288
117 Indonesia 1,283
118 Egypt 1,265
119 Sri Lanka 1,200
120 Philippines 1,168
121 Honduras 1,148
122 Armenia 1,140
123 Bhutan 1,126
124 Guyana 1,039
125 Bolivia 993
126 Djibouti 973
127 Cameroon 952
128 Côte d'Ivoire 900
129 Moldova 861
130 Nicaragua 850
131 Sudan 820
132 Senegal 738
133 Mongolia 736
134 Pakistan 728
135 India 705
136 Nigeria 678
137 Kiribati 672
138 Mauritania 663
139 Papua New Guinea 662
140 Chad 654
141 Zambia 627
142 Lesotho 621
143 Vietnam 618
144 Comoros 615
145 Solomon Islands 611
146 Benin 592
147 Yemen 586
148 Kenya 560
149 Ghana 512
150 Laos 485
151 Haiti 478
152 Kyrgyz Republic 473
153 Uzbekistan 444
154 Mali 432
155 Burkina Faso 430
156 Cambodia 430
157 São Tomé and Príncipe 430
158 Bangladesh 400
159 Zimbabwe 383
160 Togo 377
161 Tajikistan 364
162 Guinea 355
163 Timor-Leste 352
164 Tanzania 336
165 Central African Republic 335
166 Mozambique 331
167 Nepal 322
168 The Gambia 306
169 Uganda 303
170 Afghanistan 300
171 Madagascar 282
172 Niger 274
173 Rwanda 242
174 Sierra Leone 223
175 Myanmar 219
176 Eritrea 209
177 Guinea-Bissau 190
178 Liberia 161
179 Malawi 161
180 Ethiopia 153
181 Democratic Republic of the Congo 119 [3]
182 Burundi 107
- and don't give me that GDP at Purchasing Power Parity nonsense. Those statistics don't recognize the fact that Swedes get a lot of things for free which, for instance, US Americans do not.
Hey, does it matter? We beat both of your miseable little countries anyways :-)
And, btw, shouts out to Ethiopia who has been punching above their weight class in recent days.
But, seriously, I wish you a very merry christmas, and a happy new year from across the border.
Cheers,
Euro.
"Hey, does it matter? We beat both of your miseable little countries anyways :-)
And, btw, shouts out to Ethiopia who has been punching above their weight class in recent days.
But, seriously, I wish you a very merry christmas, and a happy new year from across the border.
Cheers,
Euro."
- I sincerely wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year as well!!
Take care,
WesternCulture
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