Rotating presidency of EU to be scrapped after Nazi smear

The Independent (U.K.) ^ | 07/07/03 | Stephen Castle

[weegee]

So the Germans can call President Bush a nazi or like-Hitler is "okay" (in an election, no less) but the Italians saying the same thing of Germans is verboten. I see.

[HHFi]

EU bureaucrats just can't handle the truth.

[ClearCase_guy]

I suppose a rotating presidency seemed to make sense, when they believed that the presidency would always be occupied by a hardcore socialist. Now they realize that it is possible that someone not on the Left may achieve the office -- so it's time to establish new rules.

[AF68]

Some Greenies and the socialist MEP Martin Schulz were the first to give offense, but that fact is not mentioned here. I'll wager that the new semi-permanent EU president will be a left-wing socialist who'll run the place like a Nazi.

[Ohioan]

The absurdity of the EU was never more obvious.

Wasn't the Italian Prime Minister merely responding to a suggestion by a German Socialist that he censure a member of the Italian Government for expressing a view with which the German Socialist disagreed? If so the Nazi taunt was well earned!

It was precisely the total intolerance for dissent, that distinguished the Nazis from the other Western Socialist movements of their era. The shoe fits the present German Socialist Government, very nicely. [It is important to remember that the mass killing of those out of favor with the German Socialists did not start the last time until well into the World War. Do not misjudge Herr Schroeder's Government as being tolerant, simply because in peacetime, he dare not resort to the total brutality of the Nazi variety of German Socialism.]

It would be nice to see the reaction, if one of the anti-Socialist groups in Germany, were to invite Berlusconi to lecture on Western tradition--as opposed to the Socialist War on that tradition. I suspect that many Germans are applauding Berlusconi, for the exchange, although you would never learn that from the biased reporting.

William Flax Return Of The Gods Web Site

[God luvs America]

Dude...you are so right; as we used to say as kids, "dish it out but can't take it!" Does anyone have a link to exactly what the Italian PM said? It was orignally reported that he quiped of wanting to be a concentration camp guard in a movie.

[Phsstpok]

OK, so German members of the EU parliment and members of the German goverment, including Schroeder himself, can imply or even state flatly that Blair and Bush are worse than NAZIs, but if anyone makes a joke about a German who is making nasty remarks about an Italian, then all hell breaks loose? OK. Got it. Black is white. Up is down. George Orwell was right and Big Brother is in charge.

Lets see. No more rotating presidency for the EU. Bill Clinton is out of a job. Bill Clinton attened school in Europe for almost a year. That's it! Bill Clinton rides to the rescue. And don't worry about those little clauses in the EU constitution. Bill will just straighten those out in private conferences. Of course, that will need to remain confidential for at least 100 years...

[norton]

Didn't I see somewhere that the Germans had been using the term "Godfather" rather liberally prior to the Prison Camp comment??

They certainly had been vocally anti-Berlusconi leading up to the comment itself.

I wonder how much of this is due to Italy having not supported Germany & France's undermining of our move on Iraq??

[Bob J]

What it means is that the French, Germans and Belgiums will be running the show from now on.

[norton]

PS:
That 'semi permanent president' role will, of course, rotate between France, Germany, and, on odd numbered tuesdays, Belgum.

[God luvs America]

"likening Germans to Nazis is strictly off-limits. So sensitive is the issue of the Second World War that the EU does not recognise armistice day as a public holiday

Once again, like the french, germany sticking its' head in the sand and avoiding the truth.

[jocon307]

"The absurdity of the EU was never more obvious."

Agreed! The last place I heard of that had a rotating presidency was Yugoslavia, before the crack-up. Actually, they had a "committee" of presidents, and then rotated the presidento de tutti presidenti (apologies, Dante), that worked well until one would not step down for the next in line. Next stop - chaos! Or should that be C.H.A.O.S.?

The EU will not work. They should just stop it now, but of course, it is too far gone. Who knows what mayhem will follow in this wake? Especially with all those Muslims ensconsed there.

[GOPcapitalist]

Does anyone have a link to exactly what the Italian PM said? It was orignally reported that he quiped of wanting to be a concentration camp guard in a movie.

I saw a translation of it in the paper yesterday. Berlusconi said something about an Italian filmmaker who was doing a film on WWII and suggested that Schulz would be a good audition for concentration camp guard. It followed Schulz making an attack on Berlusconi by likening him to a mafia "godfather."

[Highest Authority]

Looks like Berlin is rewriting history again!! Let's see, there was NO WW2, there were NO Nazis, there is NO Socialist plot to rule Europe. If the world ever gets an enema, France, Germany and Belgum will be empty!!!!!

[weegee]

It was orignally reported that he quiped of wanting to be a concentration camp guard in a movie.

While he may harbor fantazies of being in a concentration camp movie, I think that he was commenting in regards to someone else being right for the part.

Italy has elected several porn stars to parliment so being in a "nazi" film doesn't necessarily mean what we think it does.

In the 60s, 70s, and 80s there was a subgenre of the "women in prison" films with sadistic wardens, the nazi exploitation film. Examples have titles like Canada's Ilsa She Wolf Of The SS, Love Camp 7, then there were the "art" films like Italian director Passolini's 120 Days Of Sodom (DeSade's work recontextualized for fascists).

[ARCADIA]

Mr Berlusconi's attack on the German Social Democratic MEP Martin Schulz, in which he likened him to the commandant of a Nazi concentration camp, provoked almost universal outrage. The words not only broke a strong taboo but were also seen by some as an attack on the EU's fundamental values.

So they author is saying that they are Nazis. More evidence that the EU has some serious problems.

[Procyon]

So sensitive is the issue of the Second World War that the EU does not recognise armistice day as a public holiday.

The Independent U.K had muddled its own sense of history. Armistice Day (Nov. 11th) marked the end of the First World War.

[Husker24]

She added that the Italian leader "is not representative of the EU".

Yeah, hes actually got some balls.

[cwb]

"The EU will not work. They should just stop it now, but of course, it is too far gone. Who knows what mayhem will follow in this wake? Especially with all those Muslims ensconsed there."

Agreed. Yesterday, we were talking about the threat the EU could pose to the US. At this rate, the only threat the EU is going to pose, is to themselves. Turning Europe into a "United" states is a far greater challenge than anything this country had to endure. Europe has too much divergent histories, cultures, languages...and immigrants (re: Muslims). The idea that these independent nations are going to continue to be subserviant to the wishes of a few utopiates, is arrogance beyond belief. Oh, they'll try and it may work for a while...but give it time. It can't (or at least shouldn't) last.