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Livin' la vida euro (Do the French have a word for
“laissez-faire”?)
The French and Dutch referenda are now behind us, the
EU “constitution” is belly-up, and the $/€ exchange rate has taken a
big hit.
Would approving the document have been a good thing or
bad? Probably bad. I base that judgment on what I hear
about the document (I haven’t read it), on the hazy political goals,
and on the faulty P.R. surrounding the promotion of the document.
- Every voter was sent all 700 pages of close-printed
Brussels bureaucratese. The brave souls who read it couldn’t
figure out what rights it guaranteed them.
- This was because it was not a constitution, but
rather a set of amendments to the original Maastricht Treaty. Why
flummox voters by sending them the whole document and not just the
amendments?
- The EU does not aim for federal union, just a closer
integration of the several nations. There is no historical model for a
“constitution” for such a kludge, and the document, predictably a mess,
should not have been called a constitution. I hear it was Giscard
D'estang who insisted it be called a constitution.
- I have not met anyone here who has proclaimed, "I'm
a European." It’s still, I’m French, I’m Italian, or even I’m a
Limburger or a Brabanter. Europeans were not psychologically
ready for this.
- Few people had a firm idea of whether they were
voting on Turkey entering the EU, or the existence of the EU itself, or
what. Some French entrepreneurs voted yes because they’ve already had
to flee France for (are you ready for this?) the more laissez-faire UK,
to site their companies. Some voted no because they’re unhappy
with the current economy, or don’t like Chirac, or a host of other
reasons. Politicians selling the treaty failed to clarify this. It
would have been simple to say, “This has nothing to do with
Turkey.” Harder to say exactly what it does have to do with.
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New Europe, old Europe
Business Week
notes the treaty’s failure gives new voice
to Ireland, Poland, and other energetic European tiger cubs that ‘til
now have been subservient to the conservative German and French EU
leadership. If so, the Euro will get stronger again soon, and
Rumsfeld
will have some justification for his “old Europe / new Europe”
notion.
Unemployment in Germany is high, but the Germans just opened a new BMW
plant in Germany, using
dazzling new production technology, and it’s
too soon to count them out. Ireland’s an economic marvel, but it
can’t
match this kind of technology.
One of my faculty just returned from Kuwait, where he
witnessed the first day that Kuwaiti women were
admitted to the polls. Some claim the elections in Iraq
encouraged
women’s sufferage in Kuwait. However, it took a long time to
develop a
movement for women’s voting rights in Kuwait. The final passage
of the
law may have been speeded by events in Iraq, but was not caused by
them. You can anticipate where I’m going with this: I don’t want
to
give Bush credit for spurring democracy in the Middle East when he’s
done so much to subvert it at home.
Last week, Bush’s former lieutenant and successor,
Governor Rick Perry, signed a
terribly regressive bill restricting abortions in Texas. Sarah
Weddington (who successfully argued Wade vs. Roe before the Supreme
Court) and I used to be next-door neighbors. I emailed condolences to
her, with reassurances that her work is appreciated.
I'm glad my
daughters grew up without feeling they were under the thumb of Da Man,
and Sarah had a lot to do with that.
Another one of life's little lessons, maybe.
On a recent morning I put on a necktie and got grilled
by the
President of the Council of Europe and the former CEO of Unilever, both
members of MsM's Board. Did well. Later that night in
aikido class,
four white-belt students ganged up on me and succeeded in wrestling me
to the ground. Only four!
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Problem is, I can't figure out the lesson. Win
some, lose
some? We all get old sometime? Watch out that success doesn't
make you
overconfident? All of the above?
A number of Dutch welfare patients just got their
subsidies
cut, and some of them are getting aggressive in the clinics. The docs
are nervous about being attacked. I helped teach a self-defense seminar
to a group of physicians. They were clumsy as hell (surgeons may
be
good with their hands, but don’t necessarily know how to move the other
parts of their bodies), but enthusiastic and had a bunch of fun while
increasing their confidence.
Of cabbages & queens
Maastricht survived G.W. Bush's visit to the American
soldiers' cemetery just east of town in Margraten, with much
inconvenience but little worse. He flew into Maastricht-Aachen airport
and limo'ed over. Roads were closed, big hassle. Like many
Dutch
families, our friend Jean and his wife have adopted a soldier's grave
there and keep it mowed and spiffy. He went to the ceremony, but
had
to go early so the Secret Service could take his wheelchair apart to
check it for hidden bad stuff. He hasn't said whether they put it
together again for him. He did say he sat out in the cold so long
he
got an infection.
There were some protest demonstrations. But
basically most
people here feel they have a stake in the American cemetery, so they
were willing to be courteous to Bush when he spoke in honor of the
soldiers. After taking pains to explain that they don't like his
politics. (Ditto for another friend who just wanted to see Air
Force One.)
New places, plus the usual digressions
Rotterdam was
bombed heavily during WWII, so the historical
core is small. Still seems like a pleasant city, especially the
campus
of Erasmus University, where the meeting of our external MBA advisory
board was held. Short meeting, didn’t see much of the city, sorry!
Valkenburg is
just 15 km from Maastricht. Nice scenery, many
caves, the ruins of a fortified castle, lots of B&Bs, and a large
hot springs spa complex.
One member of the MBA advisory board told me there is a sign in the
complex asking “Please do not have sexual intercourse in the
pools.” I
think he was pulling my leg – I looked for the sign and didn’t find it
– but I don’t read much Dutch, and could have missed it. On
the
possibility that there might really be such a rule, Hyon and I were
careful not to violate it.
Banholt is one
of several villages in the hills between
Maastricht and Margaraten. Friend and aikido student Esther
invited us to
dinner at the remodeled farmhouse she lives in. Totally charming
and
as “under the Tuscan sun” as you can get in the relatively chilly Dutch
springtime. In the Netherlands there are public walking trails
crossing through private farms, so we did as the locals do, enjoying
a long hike. And then a dinner heavy on the local seasonal
asparagus
and strawberries, mmm.
Aubel, Belgium,
is a very clean and prosperous town (the Lake Oswego of Belgium) not
far from Maastricht, with an
upscale Sunday morning market full of yummy items. The flower pic
at
left is from Aubel.
Roermand is a nice
small city a half hour north of here, with canals. There's a
Turkish market for cheap rice, and, heaven help me, an outlet
mall. They say a good wife can make a man rich. In my
wife's case, the man is Salvatore Ferragamo. Sal - can I call you
Sal? I feel like I know you - shouldn't I at least get frequent flyer
miles or something for supporting you in such grand style?
I’ve been to The Hague
thrice now, the most recent time on
Sunday on the way to see Leiden. Stately houses and government
buildings, nice beaches, close to Delft. There is a tribunal
there
where Serb war criminals, alleged ones, that is, are being tried.
That
caught our attention because we had just been in Arusha, Tanzania,
where another tribunal is trying the malefactors of the Rwandan
genocide. (Incidentally, another one of my faculty used to stay at the
Hotel Rwanda, and knows the “Rwandan Schindler” who was celebrated in
the recent movie.)
Visitors say "Europe is so civilized," but incredible
savagery erupted here 65 years ago. There is still no explanation
for
the sudden outbreak of genocide in Rwanda. What makes it break
out?
This is one of the biggest questions we can pose. (An Indonesian
colleague just asked the same question about the atrocities in the 90s
in his country.) I know a lot of
scientists, but none who are studying this. It’s disappointing.
The Hague bills itself as "The Legal Capital of the
World." As marketing slogans go, it lacks the pizzazz of "Austin,
Live Music Capital of the World." Then again, sweet home Austin
doesn't have the original Girl
with Pearl Earring - it's in den Haag's Mauritz House Museum.
Leiden is a fun
university town (the Dutch royal family traditionally go
to college at U. of Leiden), lots of canals. We
saw where Rembrandt went to grammar school. It's in the
neighborhood where the Plymouth Pilgrims lived for two years before
taking the Mayflower to Massachusetts. During our visit, the
Pilgrims' church
served as the staging point for the Leiden marathon.
Visitors
My college roommate Rick and his wife Jeanne were with
us for
a day or so at the end of last month. My sister Beth gave a guest
lecture at MsM, about project management, and we took a day to see
sights in Maastricht, Liege and Aachen. We had a nice couple of
days
with Steve, an IC2 Fellow who taught Strategy for us in
Kuwait and
swung through Maastricht on his way back to the U.S.
Anna was here for three days before flying to Spain for
sightseeing. That's Anna, identifying with the bear in the photo
at the top of this entry, and again at left. She’s been sending a
nice email travelogue from the Riviera, and will hook up with cousin
Lara in Paris for a few days, then return to Maastricht when Gina
arrives. (Gina’s been in Oregon,
competing in the U.S. Women’s Ultimate Frisbee Championship.) We’ll
then take a family car trip. I hope the car takes us someplace
warm…
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