I recently read that about 30% of Egyptian antiquities have been smuggled to Europe and the US. Some artifacts are displayed at museums, while others are privately owned. I'm currently in Athens and visited the Acropolis last week. Unfortunately, I learned that a lot of pieces of the Acropolis were stolen by the British and is now held at the British Museum. John Oliver once humorously remarked, "The entire British Museum is an active crime scene." This is a sad reality for many other European museums as well.
Nefertiti is the main attraction for a whole museum and she was acquired under really shady circumstances. And then there's the theory that she's a fake, which doesn't seem that far-fetched considering the incredible condition she's in for something that's nearly 3500 years old.
Re EU democracy (I had to figure this out because of the AI Act...) Actually, there are THREE legislative bodies in the EU, two of which are more or less elected. The European Parliament as you mention, but also the Council of the European Union (or Council of Ministers, or just Council, but not to be confused with the Council of Europe, which is older and has many more member nations) which is composed of people from whatever democratic government of the single member nation presently hosting the EU for 6 months. Then don't forget the European Council (not to be confused with the Council OR the Council of Europe) which is the elected heads of all member states and determines who is the head of the European Commission. So actually, there's a LOT of democracy, whatever Nigel Farage says.
That is true, at least on paper. The problem is that it's too complex. Nobody knows how the various bodies interacts, the names are confusing and the only one that is actually elected directly by the people has the least power.
I recently read that about 30% of Egyptian antiquities have been smuggled to Europe and the US. Some artifacts are displayed at museums, while others are privately owned. I'm currently in Athens and visited the Acropolis last week. Unfortunately, I learned that a lot of pieces of the Acropolis were stolen by the British and is now held at the British Museum. John Oliver once humorously remarked, "The entire British Museum is an active crime scene." This is a sad reality for many other European museums as well.
Nefertiti is the main attraction for a whole museum and she was acquired under really shady circumstances. And then there's the theory that she's a fake, which doesn't seem that far-fetched considering the incredible condition she's in for something that's nearly 3500 years old.
Berlin to overtake NRW and Bayern economically by 2035 (source: me)
I was very surprised to get an English letter about the elections... Just to find out that now I have to fill out a 4 page PDF in very dense German 🫠
What did the letter say?
Thanks for the shout-out, Maurice!
Re EU democracy (I had to figure this out because of the AI Act...) Actually, there are THREE legislative bodies in the EU, two of which are more or less elected. The European Parliament as you mention, but also the Council of the European Union (or Council of Ministers, or just Council, but not to be confused with the Council of Europe, which is older and has many more member nations) which is composed of people from whatever democratic government of the single member nation presently hosting the EU for 6 months. Then don't forget the European Council (not to be confused with the Council OR the Council of Europe) which is the elected heads of all member states and determines who is the head of the European Commission. So actually, there's a LOT of democracy, whatever Nigel Farage says.
That is true, at least on paper. The problem is that it's too complex. Nobody knows how the various bodies interacts, the names are confusing and the only one that is actually elected directly by the people has the least power.
Well, did have no power, but the EP's power has been increasing, actually. CF their role in the recent AI Act debates.