The Portuguese Minister for Economic Affairs Manuel Pinho calls for a common European solution to the energy crisis: "[The rising oil prices] are particularly affecting low-income families and the most vulnerable companies. We cannot just shrug our shoulders and turn our backs on the situation. An answer is required at the European level. ... Because we are facing structural changes we must respond with structural measures. We can do nothing to alter the fact that the times of cheap energy have come to an end. The solution lies in renewable energies, in efficient consumption and in modernising our transportation systems. And also in creating more transparent markets with stronger competition." (13/06/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, hiszpański)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka UE, » Energia, » Infrastruktura / Komunikacja, » Europa
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Manuel Pinho

The Dutch government sees wind energy as a serious alternative to fossil fuels. "Windmills are castles in the sky", counters the magazine, demanding an end to subsidies for wind energy. "The view that windmills are an attractive source of energy that could significantly reduce Dutch dependence on oil and gas is one of the most expensive myths of the day. ... Windmills are the holy cow of the environmental movement, but they can play no more than a marginal role. There is little energy in wind, and the techology has reached its limits. The only way to make it more profitable is to build higher and cheaper windmills. But the key objection is that often there is no wind at all (in rural areas for roughly four months per year), and then the electricity must come from other sources. So it is pointless. ... It is not wind that turns windmills, but subsidies." (13/06/2008)

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Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Energia, » Holandia

The conservative daily calls for an end to subsidies for biofuels and increased use of nuclear energy. "If biofuels were no longer subsidised, the price for maize could go down by 20 percent for instance. Moreover the energy yield of biofuels is only moderate while their impact on the environment is considerable. It would be better to build nuclear power stations to replace oil and gas as energy sources and thus sink prices to the extent that biofuels lose their relevance. Food prices would then go down too. More nuclear energy means less poverty." (13/06/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, polski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Środowisko, » Energia, » Rolnictwo, » Cały świat
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Marcin Piątkowski

Europe is equipped for the end of the oil age, writes Jörg Häntzschel, but America's mobile society will soon become too expensive: "This wild, vast country was transformed by a hyper-efficient metastructure of traffic systems. ... Now, however, traffic flows in this infrastructural organism are slowing to a trickle. The worst hit is air traffic. ... Even in the best of times, Europe never departed from its culture of moderation. By contrast, America must now turn its back on the rampant splurges of the last two decades. The country is in for a bumpy ride. ... Not only does Europe have a functioning public transport system, it can also fall back on its old city structures when necessary. America has practically surrendered itself to oil. ... One day the drive to work will no longer be worthwhile. A paltry rural existence awaits those bereft of their livelihood and freedom of movement. America's map was drawn by cheap oil. Now it is being redesigned." (13/06/2008)

» Dalsze informacje (Link zewnętrzny, niemiecki)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Energia, » Infrastruktura / Komunikacja, » Polityka gospodarcza, » Europa, » USA
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Jörg Häntzschel

Following a ruling by the US Supreme Court granting Guantánamo prisoners extended rights, the daily calls for a review of the consequences for Spain: "Apart from the fact that [the ruling] will gradually end the nightmares of individual [prisoners], the Supreme Court's decision constitutes the reversal of a shameful legal construction ... used by President Bush as a cornerstone for his fight against Islamist terrorism in 2002 ... We should not forget that Spanish police officers and secret service agents [also] interrogated prisoners who are now at that prison. Nor should we forget that Spanish airports and military bases were used to transport the prisoners to Guantánamo. It is time for Spain to put an end to this legal shilly-shallying and investigate how [Spanish] functionaries and politicians were involved [in this affair]." (13/06/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, hiszpański)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka bezpieczeństwa / Kryzys / Wojna, » Hiszpania, » USA

The passing of tougher anti-terrorist legislation in the UK represents yet another defeat for Prime Minister Gordon Brown, the German daily writes. "Basically the British prime minister should be delighted he is still ... in office. Since the Labour Party's disastrous defeat in local elections Brown has been making desperate efforts to return to what passes as 'normality'. But the ranks behind him are no longer united. As a result the vote on a new security law became a matter of political survival for the prime minister. He has won that battle, but now it turns out he only won it because the MPs of Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party united to vote in favour of the bill. ... [This] further weakens one who is already weak. But at the same time this weakness is his only strength, because which other member of the Labour Party would be willing to take the helm of this (allegedly) sinking ship?" (13/06/2008)

» Dalsze informacje (Link zewnętrzny, niemiecki)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka bezpieczeństwa / Kryzys / Wojna, » Polityka wewnętrzna, » Wielka Brytania

A reform of the law governing the donation of organs is under discussion in the Netherlands. The government had previously rejected a reform based on the Belgian model. The Dutch daily examines Belgian practices in this sensitive area: "Belgium has a law under which it is assumed that everyone wants to donate their organs unless they have registered themselves as non-donors. Nonetheless, as far as is known, no hospital removes organs without obtaining prior consent from the relatives. Doctors cannot and do not wish to proceed otherwise. After all ... they have to inform relatives of the removal of organs once it is done ... and that would perhaps be even more painful for them. So it is not the amended law as such that has led to an increase in the donation of organs in Belgium, but perhaps rather the fact that people are well informed and that there is a general climate of solidarity with the sick, and most importantly: good, humane healthcare from which the deceased also benefit." (13/06/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, niderlandzki)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Zdrowie / Medycyna, » Holandia, » Belgia

Slovakia is seeing an increase in the number of people moving there in search of work, many of whom come from Romania and Bulgaria. Last year it was around 8,600. The liberal daily Sme welcomes this development: "There can be no greater compliment for a country than when foreigners choose to live there. It is wonderful that the number of immigrants is growing. Of course, many of them will only work here for a couple of years, and if they could would perhaps prefer to spend that time in Germany, England or America. But even so we should be delighted that not so many jobs are going abroad and that globalisation has made our country a land that can welcome new citizens." (13/06/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, słowacki)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Migracja, » Integracja, » Słowacja
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Lukáš Fila

Paolo Paranagua compares regional integration in Latin America with the development of the European Union: "The EU remains the benchmark, if not the mirror, for Latin American initiatives on regional integration. The most recent initiative, the Union of South American Nations (Unasur), which was born in Brasilia on May 23, is no exception. ... The Southern Common Market Mercosur had already more than fulfilled its original ambition of a growth in trade - despite departures from and changes in the free trade accord. Like the EU, the member states have harmonised their passports, which bear the name Mercosur over the respective country name. ... Regional integration is not a question of ideology. It depends on progress in the areas of infrastructure, economic growth, cooperation and prosperity. ... The EU was constructed on the basis of an understanding between the European Left and Right, a consensus which presupposes that concessions will be made. Latin American integration cannot take place if the negotiators continue to defend their own petty sovereignty." (12/06/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, francuski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Stosunki międzynarodowe, » Polityka UE, » Handel, » Europa, » Ameryka Łacińska
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Paolo A. Paranagua

In the Italian daily's leading article Boris Biancheri, former Italian ambassador to Great Britain and the US, comments on the US president's tour of Europe, which is provoking much less protest than it once would have. "From the 1970s until not so long ago, the visit of a US president would unfailingly prompt hundreds of thousands of left-wing extremists to take to the streets and demonstrate against the enemy. The President of the United States symbolised all that the left-wing extremists despised: the worst brand of capitalism, the absolute power of money, military might and the subjugation of the world's poor." Biancheri attributes the lack of protest to the diminishing importance of a president nearing the end of his time in power and the current position of the US: "America has lost the supremacy it wielded since the last world war, and in doing so has also lost its diabolic face." (13/06/2008)

» Dalsze informacje (Link zewnętrzny, włoski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Stosunki międzynarodowe, » Niemcy, » Włochy, » Ameryka Północna
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Boris Biancheri

Nils Bernstein, Governor of the National Bank of Denmark, has rubbed many people the wrong way by stating that Denmark's economy would profit from a rise in the unemployment rate, currently at 1.8 percent. The newspaper comments that despite their lack of sensitivity, Bernstein's remarks deserve attention: "Higher wages are a real problem when unaccompanied by a rise in productivity that can maintain competitiveness. One solution - the one Bernstein mentions - is higher unemployment. Another solution, more promising for the man on the street, lies in strengthening manpower through reforming the labour market and the taxation system, so that the public and private sectors may choose between more hands and heads. This would dampen wage competition. The government knows very well that something is rotten. With the benefit of hindsight, it is clear that it has taken far too long to address the bottlenecks that have arisen." (13/06/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, duński)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka wewnętrzna, » Polityka gospodarcza, » Dania

Romanian newspapers recently reported that an avant-gardist burned a book written by the renowned author Mircea Cartarescu. Although the report turned out to be false, the writers' association threatened the artist with immediate expulsion from the association. The Romanian daily Cotidianul writes: "This is a classic example of how for the past twenty years Romanian intellectuals have been creating hysteria for foolish reasons. They have always enjoyed doing battle against weak opponents like this writer, who immediately denied everything. ... It is one thing to burn all the books of an author; that is indeed abuse. But it is quite another to demonstratively burn a single copy. ... This is not an incitement to burn books. I feel an urgent need to escape this totally destructive form of provincial lassitude. ... I declare my solidarity with any true avant-gardist who burns a book in an act of intelligent protest." (13/06/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, rumuński)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Literatura, » Rumunia
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Costi Rogozanu

Art dealer Charles Saatchi has struck again and purchased all the works in an exhibition of three young artists. David Lee, editor of the art magazine The Jackdaw, comments on Saatchi's influence on the art market. "It is fair to assume that the three graduates he picked up cheaply this week will be subjected to the same tried-and-tested formula of 'brand development'. ... It will probably work. Over the past 20 years Mr Saatchi has achieved the Midas touch envied by other art dealers. Simply by buying work he could induce the credulous rich to dash out and buy up other pieces by the same artist, thereby raising prices. ... He realised that the importance of an art object need have nothing to do with the perceivable quality of its appearance. ... He knows, and the art market knows, that what a work looks like has ceased to matter. ... Don't underestimate Mr Saatchi's aptitude for persuasion or his influence in making sensible people see quality that is not there." (13/06/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, angielski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Wystawy / Muzea, » Sztuki piękne, » Handel, » Wielka Brytania

At the tenth World Russian Press Congress, Russian president Dmitry Medvedev has praised Russian-language media abroad, promising financial support. The Latvian newspaper accuses the president of duplicity: "One cannot help thinking of the dependence of the Russian media in Latvia on financial aid from the Kremlin, even if these media forever deny the claim. For his part, Medvedev's predecessor Putin never stopped referring to certain countries where the Russian press was systematically suppressed. ... And indeed, even in a democratic country it can happen that for economic reasons or because of strong competition, media have to be closed down. But in Russia's 'steered democracy' a different practice is prevalent. There it is the authorities who see to it that the media are suppressed." (13/06/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, łotewski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka medialna, » Łotwa, » Rosja
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Askolds Rodins

Plans by American billionaire Donald Trump to build a huge golf course and amusement park in Scotland have met with local protest. Simon Jenkins comments: "This is a massive development on what is a beautiful and deserted three-mile stretch of Scottish coast. ... [Trump specialises] in talking up world-class golf courses, some of which mysteriously change into housing estates and casinos or just vanish. ... This project is primarily about luxury holiday homes, not fairways. ... Every environmental outrage committed in the name of quick commercial gain, whether claimed for 'jobs' or 'investment' or 'modernisation', is later regretted, from the Algarve to the Amazon forest." (13/06/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, angielski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Środowisko, » Wielka Brytania
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Simon Jenkins

The victory of the Dutch team against Italy in the European Football Championships has triggered a storm of enthusiasm. De Volkskrant writes: "A Dutchman wants to remain true to his character, for this is all he has. The Dutch team has become part of his character, part of his identity. We have no great monuments, no great writers and the Netherlands is not a key player in the European Union or the UN. We must be content with our trade, modesty and a little happiness. [But] precisely because we are so small and yet so successful, we think we are better than the rest. ... We, the Dutch team. Oranje [the Dutch national team] is our army, our diplomatic mission, our paintings, our philosophy and our hobby all in one. It must compensate for all this country lacks. ... At last the world is taking notice of us." (13/06/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, niderlandzki)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Religia, » Sport, » Holandia