Sunday, July 24, 2005
Cliff Notes: The EU
They have no coastline; no international mariners ply their non-existent territorial waters. You might think that would excuse landlocked Hungary and Slovakia from implementing European Union legislation on safety at sea, but that would be to underestimate Brussels bureaucracy.The Commission's right; that's not the point. The point is that only Brussels could label such logic a "double reasoned opinion." Says NRO's Andrew Stuttaford, "That’s Brussels for you – out of touch, out of control, and in charge."
The two countries are being threatened with expensive legal action in the European Court of Justice for failing to bring in Europe's maritime laws. . .
"The commission has decided to send a double reasoned opinion to Slovakia on account of its failure to transpose into national law a number of directives on maritime safety, including that of passenger ships and the prevention of pollution from ships," the EC said.
While admitting that Slovakia was "not a maritime state" the commission sought to justify its warning. There are 20 vessels which fly the Slovakian flag but trade elsewhere in the world, it said, and they need to be inspected and certified according to the new criteria. The Slovakian embassy countered that the Slovakian-flagged ships were not of the kind covered by the directive.
"As far as passenger ships are concerned, you're not actually allowed to register them in Slovakia," said Marta Domokova, a spokesman. Resignedly, she added: "We have no coastline but it looks as if we are going to have to implement all these laws anyway."
The Hungarian government was chastised for failing to respect EU laws on the "availability of port facilities for ship-generated waste."
This lack of respect may seem excusable given that Hungary has no visiting ships, no ports and therefore no need for facilities in which to store waste. This, the commission said, was not the point.
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4 Comments:
hmmm...they could always rescind the boundaries imposed by the Treaty of Trianon.
By 
ilona, at
6:22 PM, July 24, 2005
For those (like me) unfamiliar with Trianon, the 1920 treaty dismembered Hungary after WWI. Thereafter, Hungary "did not have access to the sea, which the former Kingdom had had through Croatia for over 800 years."
By 
Carl, at
7:39 PM, July 24, 2005
Well, you've got to get each individual country habituated to faithfully following orders, I suppose. Next thing you know, the peasants will rebel and start voting "no" in EU referendums.
Watch for the one saying that really important matters should only be decided by representative bodies, and never by direct vote.
By MaxedOutMama, at
7:56 PM, July 24, 2005
The HUMAN PARADIGM
Consider:
The missing element in every human 'solution' is an
accurate definition of the creature. The way we
define 'human' determines our view of self, others,
relationships, institutions, life, and future. Important?
Only the Creator who made us in His own image is
qualified to define us accurately. Choose wisely...
there are results.
Human is earth's Choicemaker. Psalm 25:12 He is by
nature and nature's God a creature of Choice - and of
Criteria. Psalm 119:30,173 His unique and definitive
characteristic is, and of Right ought to be, the natural
foundation of his environments, institutions, and re-
spectful relations to his fellow-man. Thus, he is orien-
ted to a Freedom whose roots are in the Order of the
universe. selah
By James Fletcher Baxter, at
9:26 AM, July 26, 2005
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