Comments on: Re-writing the idea of Europe: The Finan … http://talkislam.info/2008/07/11/re-writing-the-idea-of-europe-the-finan/ a crescent waxing eloquent Thu, 08 Jan 2009 12:07:50 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.1 By: aziz http://talkislam.info/2008/07/11/re-writing-the-idea-of-europe-the-finan/#comment-1502 aziz Fri, 11 Jul 2008 21:47:57 +0000 http://talkislam.info/2008/07/11/re-writing-the-idea-of-europe-the-finan/#comment-1502 thats how wisconsin feels about illinois :) i see the point but we arent talking about a union for political powre, rather economic. that dort of policy coordination is pretty orthogonal to the liberty quotient. arguably, the union will increase per capita gdp in the poorer countries, which is strongly coordinated with liberty (as per Fareed Zakaria). thats how wisconsin feels about illinois :)

i see the point but we arent talking about a union for political powre, rather economic. that dort of policy coordination is pretty orthogonal to the liberty quotient. arguably, the union will increase per capita gdp in the poorer countries, which is strongly coordinated with liberty (as per Fareed Zakaria).

]]> By: Willow http://talkislam.info/2008/07/11/re-writing-the-idea-of-europe-the-finan/#comment-1501 Willow Fri, 11 Jul 2008 21:17:42 +0000 http://talkislam.info/2008/07/11/re-writing-the-idea-of-europe-the-finan/#comment-1501 I remain skeptical of the efficacy of any political union comprised largely of dictatorships. The Arab League is a laughable institution for that reason--Mubarak and Assad and Gaddafi don't exactly believe in government by consensus. I remain skeptical of the efficacy of any political union comprised largely of dictatorships. The Arab League is a laughable institution for that reason–Mubarak and Assad and Gaddafi don’t exactly believe in government by consensus.

]]> By: aziz http://talkislam.info/2008/07/11/re-writing-the-idea-of-europe-the-finan/#comment-1499 aziz Fri, 11 Jul 2008 19:01:58 +0000 http://talkislam.info/2008/07/11/re-writing-the-idea-of-europe-the-finan/#comment-1499 The idea of a Mediterranean Union is an appealing one. I found <a href="http://media.ft.com/cms/d5af0646-4f3c-11dd-b050-000077b07658.gif" rel="nofollow">this graphic from the FT</a> rather fascinating, illustrating the economic disparity of the nations around the Med Rim. I am also reminded of the way in which the states surrounding the Great Lakes here in the US came together to form the Great Lakes Compact. Access to teh same massive shared body of water means that all adjacent polities have a vested interest in preserving it as a common resource. An economic union across the Med would also be a great way to uplift North Africa in particular, and provide an economic bulwark against fundamentalism. The idea of a Mediterranean Union is an appealing one. I found this graphic from the FT rather fascinating, illustrating the economic disparity of the nations around the Med Rim.

I am also reminded of the way in which the states surrounding the Great Lakes here in the US came together to form the Great Lakes Compact. Access to teh same massive shared body of water means that all adjacent polities have a vested interest in preserving it as a common resource. An economic union across the Med would also be a great way to uplift North Africa in particular, and provide an economic bulwark against fundamentalism.

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