FOLLOWING THE EUROPEAN UNION

It is the time here for winter rains, and the last several days have delivered their fill of it. Today the sun broke through and the clear fresh air blowing off the Pacific made for a truly wonderful day, I just returned from a most refreshing walk over the hills north of the Golden Gate, on the so-called Dipsea trail. The long grass was still wet, but the trail otherwise passable, and the experience refreshing and invigorating. ( I saw no Europeans on the walk, but I'm sure that if I had encountered one. I would have been very nice.)

There's an old German-American club on the Pacific side of the trail, in the woods above Stinson Beach, -- a great stop for a welcome glass of beer. I feel very relaxed and refreshed.

Could it be that some of you feel that my reaction to the reports of Moslem radicalism in the Balkans was a bit intemperate? ... perhaps even something you've heard from me before? An overdose of strong coffee? ... or just the typical irritability of a crank on his favorite subject? Who knows? However the "reports" themselves of trouble in the Balkans had a familiar ring to me - and all-too-familiar, and obvious, implications. I certainly didn't want to leave any of you disappointed or unsatisfied.

Moreover the theme I expressed is one which I feel our European critics almost always fail to acknowledge or even consider in their equally familiar critiques of U.S. policy and actions. We have all sinned, and I believe it is unfortunate that Europe has become so complacent, forgetful and critical. A divide between us is widening: one that I believe will benefit no one.

However these are matters for another day. I am far too relaxed for it now.

It is the time here for winter rains, and the last several days have delivered their fill of it. Today the sun broke through and the clear fresh air blowing off the Pacific made for a truly wonderful day, I just returned from a most refreshing walk over the hills north of the Golden Gate, on the so-called Dipsea trail. The long grass was still wet, but the trail otherwise passable, and the experience refreshing and invigorating.

Berlusconi also suggested that Fascism was not as bad as Nazism or Communism

nimh wrote:

Berlusconi also suggested that Fascism was not as bad as Nazism or Communism

I'd be inclined to agree with that, although I'm not very informed about fascism. What say the oracle?

I've been in Muir Woods there.

It's nice.

Muir was a Scot, as was Monroe of Doctrine fame.

Give the Brits some credit George, you know we deserve it. :wink:

That sounds positively wonderful. I'm quite jealous, although, if I were the kind to enjoy below-zero temperatures, I'm sure I could have enjoyed a walk in the Buda Hills myself. As it is, I'm pining for spring.

(The Irish are still our largest single ethnic group - you Brits should remember that.)

Walter,

Is this correct? Does our census brueau actually say there are more Germans here than Irishmen???

f$$#@&g Germans!

[size=18]Is Finland laughing at Conan O'Brien?[/size]
Mock endorsement of president puts host in political crosshairs

Monday, January 16, 2006

HELSINKI, Finland (AP) -- Finland's president finds her traditional support among women and the Social Democratic Party base, but lately to the surprise of many Finns -- and her opponents in Sunday's election -- she has gotten an endorsement of a different sort.

The redheaded late-night talk show host Conan O'Brien has been promoting President Tarja Halonen's re-election bid as part of a long-running joke about their supposed physical similarities.

"Why do I support Tarja Halonen? Because she's got the total package: a dynamic personality, a quick mind, and most importantly -- my good looks," the comedian, whose show is broadcast on cable in Finland, said in a statement to The Associated Press.

Halonen earned a victory in the first round of the presidential election Sunday, but with 46.3 percent of the vote, she faces a run-off on January 29 against former Finance Minister Sauli Niinisto, a conservative candidate, for a final six-year term.

Whether O'Brien has a real interest in Finnish politics is uncertain, but his gags and mock campaign ads for Halonen have not gone unnoticed in this Nordic country of 5.2 million.

"Late Night with Conan O'Brien" airs five days a week on SUBTV, a Finnish cable channel, with a few days' delay. Every time he mentions Finland or Halonen, local tabloids report it prominently.

The Halonen camp is laughing all the way to the polls.

"Of course, when she is mentioned so many times it's positive for our campaign," said Halonen's campaign manager, Markku Jaaskelainen.

Halonen's supporters quickly saw an opportunity, and her campaign started running real ads before the O'Brien's show on Finnish TV.

Halonen was hugely popular even before O'Brien discovered their similarities, but Jaaskelainen said hits on the campaign Web site have quintupled partly because of O'Brien's shows.

In one show, O'Brien presented a mock ad for Halonen in which he and two Finns were discussing the election while fishing on a frozen lake.

When they talk about rival candidate Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen, a dead fish shoots out of the hole in the ice, prompting a joke about how the mere mention of his name causes fish to commit suicide.

"Fish recognize a bad leader," O'Brien says in broken Finnish to laughter from his studio crowd.

Halonen's opponents are not amused.

"He's just making fun of the whole election," said Harri Jaskari, campaign manager for Niinisto. "If this decides the election, then we're in trouble. It gives a very poor picture of Finnish democracy."

Markus Haapamaki, Vanhanen's campaign manager, was less worried.

"It's not really affecting our campaign," he said. "Personally, I'm fed up with it, and it's continued too long to offer anything interesting."

In Helsinki, people did not seem to take offense at O'Brien's use of their presidential election for comic relief.

"I think it's quite funny," said Mia Myllymaki, a 28-year-old elementary school teacher. "Of course we are proud that Conan O'Brien talks about Finland and Finnish people. ... People in the USA don't even know where Finland is, so maybe it helps if he talks about it."

Anu Linnus, a 22-year-old economics student, said O'Brien's backing could indirectly affect the election.

"I don't think people are going to vote for Tarja because she's on the show, but it helps her image," she said.

NBC, which runs Conan's show in the United States, said the popular host is planning a trip to Finland in February. It was not clear whether he would meet with Halonen, 62, who apparently does not mind being compared to the 42-year-old O'Brien.

"She thinks that it's very nice that she looks the same as Conan O'Brien because Conan O'Brien is so much younger than she," said Jaaskelainen, the campaign manager.

As for their similarities, he was not as convinced.

"They have red hair," Jaaskelainen said. "And same kind of nose."

The number of people seeking asylum in Sweden has dropped for a third year in a row. The migration board recorded just over 17 and a half thousand asylum seeking applicants in 2005 , down 25 percent on 2004.

The party has chosen a logo which includes the colors of the three main parties in Greece: blue, green and red.

Merkel adopts hardline approach to Russia
The Independent

summary:

Angela Merkel, the German Chancellor, confronted Russia's Vladimir Putin on a range of difficult issues that her predecessor had studiously avoided. A fluent Russian speaker educated in East Germany, she tackled Putin on Moscow's nuclear co-operation with Iran, on the state of Russian democracy, and on the behaviour of Russian forces in Chechnya. She promised to monitor a controversial new law that would strictly regulate the activities of foreign human rights organisations in Russia, prompting Putin to assure her in public that the lawful activities of foreign human rights groups would be unaffected. She met citizens' rights groups, opposition MPs, and church leaders, at Germany's Moscow embassy.