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Wangja

Joined: 17 May 2004 Location: Seoul, Yongsan
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Posted: Mon Jun 13, 2005 10:45 pm Post subject: The French |
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Well, love 'em or hate 'em, they did give the world some interesting things. For example, they gave the US the Statue of Liberty.
And for the first and second world wars, they gave the venue. At least for the opening and closing scenes.
Now, they give Europe the logic that they, the French voters, said "non" to the French initiated and largely French drafted consitution becuase the Brits won't pay an extra 4.4 billion EUR.
Here's how the 2003 figures looked:-
So we can see that the biggest givers are the Germans, 7.7 bn EUR and the biggest takers the Spanish netting a cool 8.7 bn EUR.
The biggest givers per head are those Dutch stalwarts - and they said "nee" to the Constitution too. Their share is 2 bn EUR.
The French on the other hand, about the same population as UK, paid a measly 1.9 bn EUR - less even than the Dutch.
The Brits are there with a net payment of 2.8 bn EUR - already 47% more than the French. But the French want that increased to 6.6 bn, more than 3.5 times what they themselves pay.
Worse is to come. The CAP (Common Agricultural Policy) soaks up 40% of the EU budget for 5% of the population and 2% of GDP.
The canny Brits want the budget restructured so that peoples other than French smallholders receive the larger slice of this cash and that is goes where it should. In addition, they accuse the French of refusing to budge and hence increasing the cost of food for all Europeans and preventing developing nations form having access to the EU marketplace.
Chirac told Blair that "he had been badly brought up". Blair kept stiff his upper lip.
But next month UK takes the revolving EU presidency for 6 months. It could be a most interesting interlude.
It is sometimes said that UK has no policy towards Europe. That is wrong: in the words of Sir Humphrey, British European policy has not changed in 500 years - it is still disunity at all costs. |
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Hollywoodaction
Joined: 02 Jul 2004
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Posted: Tue Jun 14, 2005 5:10 am Post subject: Re: The French |
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Wangja wrote: |
Well, love 'em or hate 'em, they did give the world some interesting things. For example, they gave the US the Statue of Liberty.
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Psst, don't tell anyone, but the design was originally intended for a statue that would have marked the opening of the Suez Canal ("Egypt Bringing the Light to Asia").
http://www.pbs.org/kenburns/statueofliberty/timeline/ |
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W.T.Carl
Joined: 16 Jan 2003
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Posted: Tue Jun 14, 2005 5:15 am Post subject: |
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Ah, those nutty loveable Froggies. Only they could turn the principals of the enlightenment into a blood bath. |
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crazykiwi

Joined: 07 Jun 2003 Location: new zealand via daejeon
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Posted: Tue Jun 14, 2005 11:47 pm Post subject: |
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....and they gave new zealand its first and only "terrorist" attack, i know ill never forgive those those skin diving, frog eating psychos! (the bombers and the french government for sending them) |
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Emu Bitter
Joined: 27 May 2004 Location: Bundang
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Posted: Wed Jun 15, 2005 9:08 am Post subject: |
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French knock knock joke.
Knock, knock
Who's there?
I give up. |
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Wangja

Joined: 17 May 2004 Location: Seoul, Yongsan
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Posted: Wed Jun 15, 2005 3:46 pm Post subject: |
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���ӤӤӤӤӤӤӤӤӤӤӤӤ� |
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Hollywoodaction
Joined: 02 Jul 2004
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Posted: Wed Jun 15, 2005 4:26 pm Post subject: |
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W.T.Carl wrote: |
Ah, those nutty loveable Froggies. Only they could turn the principals of the enlightenment into a blood bath. |
Froggies? That's offensive. |
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canuckistan Mod Team


Joined: 17 Jun 2003 Location: Training future GS competitors.....
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Posted: Wed Jun 15, 2005 5:09 pm Post subject: |
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Interestingly, the French Revolution and later left-wing thought/teaching by French intellectuals laid the groundwork for communist movements in some other countries. |
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funplanet

Joined: 20 Jun 2003 Location: The new Bucheon!
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Posted: Thu Jun 16, 2005 4:31 am Post subject: |
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Why did the French plant trees along the Champs des Elysees???
To provide shade for the marching Germans...  |
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Ya-ta Boy
Joined: 16 Jan 2003 Location: Established in 1994
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Posted: Thu Jun 16, 2005 4:35 am Post subject: |
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Quote: |
Interestingly, the French Revolution and later left-wing thought/teaching by French intellectuals laid the groundwork for communist movements in some other countries |
For the right wing as well. Dictatorships come in all flavors but the techniques of crowd control are the same. |
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calypso

Joined: 31 May 2004
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Posted: Thu Jun 16, 2005 6:44 am Post subject: |
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how many gears in a french tank? 17. 1 forward and 16 backward.
Actually i dont mean the. i knew a guy who was in the british airforce but was french. excaped to britain to help fight. was shot down andmanaged to make his way back to britain. |
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crazykiwi

Joined: 07 Jun 2003 Location: new zealand via daejeon
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Posted: Thu Jun 16, 2005 10:55 pm Post subject: |
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Froggies? That's offensive. |
why? cause eating frog legs is associated with france? haha, get over it mate. everyone has been calling other countries by their animal nicknames for years. ie wallabies, kangaroos, kiwis, poms (noy an animal but all the same!" springboks etc. are europeans too wnakerish to now its a freindly term?? obviously. |
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ChimpumCallao

Joined: 17 May 2005 Location: your mom
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Posted: Sat Jun 18, 2005 2:29 am Post subject: |
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crazykiwi wrote: |
Quote: |
Froggies? That's offensive. |
why? cause eating frog legs is associated with france? haha, get over it mate. everyone has been calling other countries by their animal nicknames for years. ie wallabies, kangaroos, kiwis, poms (noy an animal but all the same!" springboks etc. are europeans too wnakerish to now its a freindly term?? obviously. |
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