Μιχάλης Χαραλαμπίδης – He predicted the Greek economic crisis in 1996.

A series of video’s from the PASOK 1996 Symposium. He predicted the Greek current crisis in 1996, he studied the facts and predicted that Greece would not be able to cooperate.

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Will mankind survive?

A very interesting video, makes me think of how small we are, how our everyday problems are meaningless compared to the years we live, to the planet we live on. Humans, why are you so stubborn?

This post serves as an introduction to my next article “Will the EU survive?”

by youtube.com/bigthink

Do we need Kings & Queens?

Some thousand years ago, groups of people teamed up to create villages, and as the years passed by the villages grew, they became small cities, they created civilizations, and bigger cities and bigger armies, and they fought each other for more power, more gold, more land, more of anything they could get.

Every village had a leader, the leader became the boss of the clan, then the chief of the village, later on the Ruler of the city, the Lord of the state, the King of a country, the Emperor of an empire. There has always been people with power, ruling over countries they created.

From what I understand countries are creations of Kings, so why do we have countries today if we don’t have Kings?

So who are today’s Kings & Queens? Who are today’s rulers? Today’s leaders are Politicians. I don’t know whether we need politicians, Kings, or any other “leaders” but we certainly need a government, we needs laws to protect our rights and we need codes of conduct as human beings BUT do we need countries? Why do we still seek power over other peoples. Why do we still have national boarders and wars if the Kings that created these are long gone?

Dear Kings, you created the countries, you are dead, can we disband your countries? Is it possible that one day, this earth sees only one country? Maybe in the future, every person born on earth will be free to travel all around it. I hope that one day, Governments will be standing for the advancement of the human race and protecting our lives.

What do you think? Do we need national leaders? Do we need to protect our “Kingdoms” and their History? or are we ready to move on?

“Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely”

@beingEuropean

Lux…wait for it, because this is way too cool and needs an introduction…embourg! Luxembourg!

I decided that after writing some,  I like to consider,  serious articles, I needed something fun and entertaining. I made a research, not a deep one, just a Google search and these are some fun facts about Luxembourg. Of course I added some myself.

By the way did you notice the the Barney Stinson style introduction? (For those who don’t watch How I met Your Mother….wait, is there anyone who doesn’t watch HIMYM? Better not.)

Continue reading →

Leaving a European environment to live in a Eurosceptic one

Let us fight to free the world, to do away with national barriers, do away with greed, with hate and intolerance. Let us fight for a world of reason, a world where science and progress will lead to all men’s happiness.

In the name of democracy, let us all unite! ¬  Charlie Chaplin, The Great Dictator

Hi, my name is Christos and here are a few things that you might need to know,

I am 18 years old, graduated from the European School of Luxembourg almost half a year ago (was 17) and now I live in Oxford, UK where I am studying Architecture at Oxford Brookes University.

This article covers my transition from living in Luxembourg, a very pro-European environment, to a eurosceptic UK.

“For as long as people want to divide themselves in groups, they can do that, even if they are all of the same nationality, they ll find a football team to divide them”

There are a few things that we need to take in mind but first I will compare some attributes of Luxembourg and the UK.

Luxembourg: almost half the population of Luxembourg consists of “foreigners”, 43% of people in Luxembourg do not possess a Luxembourgish nationality! (source: luxembourg.public.lu)

It is a very international country, welcoming people from all over the world, with major European Institutions based in the European Quarter of Kirchberg, Luxembourg has offered the EU a place for a central base. It welcomes 3 official languages, provides free education for all of its citizens and funds continuing education (University studies) for anyone having graduated highschool in Luxembourg (www.gouvernement.lu/). In Luxembourg  we are all foreigners and locals, we can feel at home here.

United Kingdom: Many consider Britain to be very multicultural because of the commonwealth. A population consisted of 85% of British (Whites) and 5% Other (Whites) and then some minorities like Indian and Pakistani, Britain doesn’t have a big percentage of foreigners (source Wikipedia) and yet they are more discriminating people compared to the Luxembourgish, often calling foreigners with a tagline of “foreigner”, Spanish, Indian, Greek or the considered-racist “Paki”. This doesn’t apply for all British people, but for an important percentage of them at least. Some British people don’t seem fond of immigrants, they do not appreciate their position within the EU, they feel superior to others within the EU and like to show it. But I don’t blame them completely; as I stated in my previous article they simply can’t understand the situation because they are not getting the same education as we do in Luxembourg. Personally, I just think they are more discriminating than other Europeans, they refer to us, coming from continental Europe as coming from “overseas”, I mean come on who uses this phrase in the 21st century? Other than that their University system is indeed excellent.

Continue reading →

European Schools, an example of European education or a failure to unite our history?

I dare you to read and comment, for it is hard to accept the truth.

The European Schools are co-educational schools providing nursery, primary and secondary. They are established to provide free education for children of personnel of the European Institutions and leading to the European Baccalaureate. Other children may be admitted subject to the availability of places. All full-time teachers are appointed by their national governments, after completing a selection procedure.

“the only ones left to defend our Europe, our European Union are those who receive a European Education”

As a student graduating from the school only a year ago, I have mixed feelings about the system, our education and the way we are brought up in the European schools. It is impossible to compare a European school to any other schooling system in the world. It is far more international than an International school, with children being educated in more than 27 different languages, with different education systems, and with a huge number of students in the major schools.

At the European school, you start off when you are 6 years old(in average), you start by getting education in your mother tongue and every year you are given more lessons(courses/subjects) in your first and second foreign language. Your daily life will be spent with people from countries of the European union. You will learn at a young age to treat people without looking at their nationality. You will have friends from Denmark, Greece, Italy, Sweden, Germany, England, Scotland… it doesn’t matter where they are from as long as you can communicate with them, usually in English, French or German.

The official aim of the schools is suppossed to be expressed in the following words of Jean Monnet  in 1953

The aim

“Educated side by side, untroubled from infancy by divisive prejudices, acquainted with all that is great and good in the different cultures, it will be borne in upon them as they mature that they belong together. Without ceasing to look to their own lands with love and pride, they will become in mind Europeans, schooled and ready to complete and consolidate the work of their fathers before them, to bring into being a united and thriving Europe.“

Unfortunately the system is not working…or is it?
The European Economic crisis has resulted in a heavy number of students siding with their countries, with what they hear from their OLD parents, from their national news broadcasts etc etc.
It is impossible for a European School Student to understand what he will face when he leaves his school, and more precisely I am referring to leaving the European School of Luxembourg, but that will be covered in a future article called “leaving a European Environment to live in a Eurosceptic one”.

“We can not take peace for granted.” Continue reading →

Facing who I am to become someone else

Things aren’t that dramatic, but I like certain things, dig a variety of other things and put myself down to do different things.

I like to think of myself as a mature person, who cares about people, history, politics, society and my health and well-being. I read articles on politics, watch movies or documentaries on socio-economic problems and history.

I do things, I am an active person or I used to be.. I am studying architecture, enjoying it? not so much, people say its normal, first year, architecture, work…

So basically everyday I want to apply for a NYFA (New York Film Academy) to do an acting summer course and then there is the other side of my brain (my dad) who advises me to do something else and even if it were for my to do Drama, I should do it at Columbia or any other well-respected University. and yes, my good side agrees with that, but that good side is thinking very low, safe side, what’s best… but damn it I wanna do something else.

What is it to become of me? An architect to please my family, a failed actor, a respected actor? a failed architect? a famous actor? something totally different? For all I know, I will be failing people I love and care about. BUT…It’s me or them.

I want to do something meaningful, something fun, something I enjoy doing and other people enjoy or has a positive impact on them.

I am so well confused, or i like to think I am, to avoid saying that am just afraid to acknowledge am scared to follow my dreams, knowing no one around them wants to support them.

I am facing who I am to become someone else, and I am finding it very hard to accept my “someone else” me.