Culture & Ideas
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Internet: Right to be forgotten law welcomed
25 January 201258 7PresseuropLa Repubblica -
Portugal: Guimarães - can culture beat the crisis?
25 January 2012148 4 El País Madrid -
Internet: ACTA non grata
24 January 2012PresseuropGazeta Wyborcza -
Cinema: The secret of Denmark’s success
20 January 2012299 1 Público Lisbon -
Debate: EU can no longer play the war card
19 January 2012187 67 De Morgen Brussels -
Scotland: “Devo max” - the formula that could save the UK
13 January 2012154 25 The Guardian London -
Nationality: Multiple citizenship, way of the future
11 January 2012313 16 The Economist London -
Cinema: “Play” — a film that upends racist clichés
10 January 2012296 1 Aftonbladet Stockholm -
Debate : Why I’m feeling strangely Austrian
10 January 2012324 8 Financial Times London -
Interview: Geert Mak — Reconquering Europe
9 January 2012237 7 NRC Handelsblad Amsterdam -
Bailouts: Against all the rules
6 January 2012375 52 Die Zeit Hamburg -
Eurozone crisis: Will the EU end up like Yugoslavia?
5 January 2012373 67 Politika Belgrade -
Internet: Commission to rule on right to be forgotten
2 January 201298PresseuropPúblico -
Interview: George Steiner, a certain idea of knowledge
30 December 20111316 19 Télérama Paris -
Literature: 2011 - the year of the translator
28 December 2011456 4 The Observer London -
History: Sixty-Eight Publishers - books of dissent
27 December 2011153 Lidové noviny Prague -
Interview: Andrzej Stasiuk’s European lesson
26 December 2011203 12 Wprost Warsaw -
Eurozone crisis: Iceland is our modern Utopia
23 December 20115961 39 Público Madrid -
Debate: Don’t let the European ideal die
20 December 2011242 34 El País Madrid -
Internet: The new gold mine of open data
16 December 2011360 3 La Stampa Turin -
Debate: Europe’s seven deadly sins (2/2)
15 December 2011237 24 Die Zeit Hamburg -
Debate: Europe’s seven deadly sins (1/2)
14 December 2011498 21 Die Zeit Hamburg -
Eurozone crisis: Farewell sweet sovereignty...
8 December 2011349 17 El País Madrid -
Music: Eurozone crisis too red hot for Metallica
8 December 2011334PresseuropThe Wall Street Journal Europe -
European of the Week: The cyber-revolutionary on Tahrir Square
6 December 2011272 1 Fokus Stockholm -
Profile: Jürgen Habermas, the last European
2 December 20112923 13 Der Spiegel Hamburg -
European Union: Give democracy a chance
1 December 2011407 30 The Guardian London -
Eurozone crisis: Panic - hottest all-time business model
30 November 2011671 14 Berliner Zeitung Berlin -
European Union: Look who sets the agenda now
29 November 2011166 12 De Morgen Brussels -
Extremism: The internationalism of the new far-right
29 November 2011273 17 Aftonbladet Stockholm -
Debate: Crisis tears us apart
29 November 2011345 7 The Irish Times Dublin -
Greece: Athens Biennale, the crisis as art
28 November 2011219 4 Expressen Stockholm -
Ideas: Never mind the cave paintings, here’s the Sex Pistols
25 November 2011413 3 The Guardian London -
Who’s afraid of Germany? (5): Europe - an awfully wonderful family
25 November 2011259 19 Die Zeit Hamburg -
Who’s afraid of Germany? (3): Goethe, in technocrat’s clothing
23 November 2011206 15 Der Spiegel Hamburg -
European Union: A revolution from above
23 November 201166 5 Libération Paris -
Who’s afraid of Germany? (2): Europe sprechs German now
22 November 2011227 10 Berliner Zeitung Berlin -
Eurozone crisis: What have the Dutch ever done for us?
18 November 2011261 13 De Volkskrant Amsterdam -
Debate: Why Europe needs enemies
17 November 2011168 8 Hospodářské Noviny Prague -
Debate: In defence of technocrats
17 November 2011192 11 The Guardian London -
Debate: The crisis and three Europes
14 November 2011195 9 România libera Bucharest -
Eurozone crisis: Europe against the people?
11 November 2011431 23 The Economist London -
Czech Republic: The “Looney” is dead
11 November 2011PresseuropLidové noviny -
Eurozone crisis: Technocracy is no way to go
7 November 2011283 6 Il Sole-24 Ore Milan -
Literature: Brussels subsidises cut-price Kafka
4 November 201188PresseuropFrankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung -
Greek referendum: Democracy has junk status
2 November 20111012 18 Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung Frankfurt -
Mohammed cartoons: Satirical weekly offices attacked
2 November 20112PresseuropCharlie Hebdo -
Privacy: Europeans open the Facebook files
24 October 2011784 3 The Irish Times Dublin -
Austerity Europe: The cynicism of Greece’s elites
21 October 2011459 5 The Guardian London -
Journalism: European prize contested
19 October 201139PresseuropExpressen
A former textile industry boom town, Guimarães is using its 2012 European Capital of Culture status to resurface after over twenty years in the economic doldrums. 
At a time when the drive for austerity has led most countries to cut back on cultural budgets, the Danish film industry remains one of the most successful in Europe thanks to a pro-active policy of grants and support for young film makers. 
European leaders have used the threat of war to justify policies undertaken to save the euro. But this argument no longer works, argues Dutch philosopher Paul Scheffer. The hearts and minds of Europeans must be won with valid arguments. 
While most Scots reject a complete break with the UK, they favour a form of autonomy which would include powers to raise their own taxes. The reluctant English should accept this, argue Simon Jenkins. 
In an increasingly globalized and racially mixed world, it's natural to have multiple identities. That's why states should loosen up naturalisation rights and grant the right to vote more easily, says The Economist. 
Is this a racist movie? Ruben Östlund’s latest film — a story of poor black and middle class white children which deliberate plays on the audience’s prejudices — has sparked controversy in Sweden. 
As the financial crisis continues to ravage the West, the dominant ideology of all triumphant free-market liberalism is collapsing. But what new political trends are emerging, and which will succeed? asks Gideon Rachman. 
What’s in store for project Europe this year? A community under the supervision of a strong European Commission or a decentralised intergovernmental system, advocated by the Germans? Dutch historian Geert Mak has painted a bleak picture for the future of the European Union. 
He who makes mistakes must pay the price. Ever since the crisis erupted five years ago, this key law of the market economy has been trampled on. Politicians must now decide between prosperity and morality, writes Die Zeit. 
Seen from Belgrade, Zagreb or Sarajevo, the economic and institutional crisis that has struck the European Union has a certain air of déjà-vu. Serbian daily Politika remarks on the similarities with the years preceding the break-up of the federation founded by Tito. 
Literature, philosophy, science: today, our tools for understanding the world are developing separately, regrets the renowned intellectual and humanist. However, culture remains a saving grace, particularly in Europe. 
With the worldwide success of Stieg Larsson and Haruki Murakami, translation has not enjoyed such a boom for over a generation. But will it ever attain to that Holy Grail, of perfect fidelity to the original? 
They published Václav Havel and all those Czechoslovak writers banned by the communist regime. Forty years ago, Zdena and Josef Škvorecký created in Toronto one of the most important publishing houses of the Eastern European resistance. 
Why do the Germans and the Poles have a hard time getting along? How does one recognise a Pole? Is there a way to help Germany better "dominate" the EU? A hard to pigeon-hole Polish writer provides some leads. 
In rejecting by referendum a bailout for their toxic banks and the repayment of external debt, the citzens of Iceland have shown it is possible to escape the laws of capitalism and take control of one's destiny, writes a Spanish historian. 
The integration of Europe has allowed the Old World to prosper, but the journey has cost it some of its soul, regrets the Spanish philosopher Rafael Argullol. It's not too late to affirm the values that make Europe strong – but it has to be done quickly. 
Encouraged by Brussels, the online availability of open data provided by public authorities could give rise to a multitude of applications that are useful to citizens and society, with economic gains estimated at no less than 140 billion euros per year. 
The politicians of Europe love to flourish the flag of Community togetherness. But in their day-to-day politicking they give the lie to their supposed virtues. The second part of Die Zeit's list of national egotisms that are harming the Community. 
The politicians of Europe love to flourish the flag of Community togetherness. But in their day-to-day politicking they give the lie to their supposed virtues. Die Zeit has compiled a cheat-sheet of national egotisms that are harming the Community. 
If approved by the Twenty-Seven, the fiscal union proposed by Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy would be a decisive new stage on the path to European federalism. But are all willing to pay the price: the surrender of the budgetary autonomy of states? 
If Mubarak failed to cut the Egyptian revolutionaries off from the rest of the world last January, it was thanks to a Swedish student and theorist of hacktivism: Christopher Kullenberg, named “Swede of the Year” by the weekly Fokus. A profile. 
Jürgen Habermas has had enough. The philosopher is doing all he can these days to call attention to what he sees as the demise of the European ideal. He hopes he can help save it -- from inept politicians and the dark forces of the market. 
Is the EU turning into an empire ruled by Germany? For German sociologist Ulrich Beck, we should take advantage of this widespread and much discussed fear to establish a new organisation for the Union, based on a real community of citizens. 
Fear, alarm, apocalypse: moods rather than facts steer mankind, writes futurologist Matthias Horx. This holds true for the eurozone crisis as well. 
With the crisis, power is increasingly concentrated in Brussels, where not just European institutions but also the most powerful, English-speaking media, congregate. Both make the agenda for politics in member states, writes a Belgian columnist. 
A new Europe threatens to emerge in the shadow of the crisis: a continent dominated by despondency and a defiance of politics that that has paved the way for a resurgence of nationalism and Islamophobia. These are much more serious dangers than national debt figures, writes Aftonbladet. 
Debt and austerity are the new reality for most Europeans. But for some, such a situation is an opportunity to turn a fast profit. In such a context, how can we still talk of nations and society? asks Irish columnist John Waters. 
In a country destabilised by the crisis, the 3rd Athens Biennale contemporary art festival has been largely overlooked. However, a Swedish journalist argues that the exhibition offers an opportunity to appreciate the urgency of the moment. 
Is the graffiti left by the 1970’s punk band in London as worthy of humanity as prehistoric cave art? A British archeologist believes so, seeing on these walls the end of faith in "human progress" initiated by our ancestors. 
A family with strict parents, black sheep and tough love: that’s today’s Europe, says an editor at Die Zeit, who sends out a call to defend the historically unprecedented culture of solidarity. 
What Germany’s leadership of the EU means isn’t very clear – least of all to the Germans themselves. A Spiegel columnist looks for the answer in two books, wandering between the lost soul and the genius of the country. 
Political changes in Greece, Italy and Spain have highlighted how European leaders have upset the balance of power between society and the state and politics and the economy. French philospher Etienne Balibar points out that these developments have overlooked the role of citizens. 
“Europe is speaking German,” trumpeted CDU deputy Volker Kauder. Just let’s not overdo it, warns the Berliner Zeitung. An association of free democracies should look a bit different. 
In the current crisis, the Dutch tend to pontificate about the citizens of ill performing countries like Greece and Italy. But as recession now looms, they should keep in mind that their prosperity isn’t just due to their own virtuousness. 
Nothing better than an enemy to forge a common identity. But the adage of the nineteenth century doesn’t quite fit the current crisis. Only by changing their relationship to power can Europeans unite and overcome the crisis, says a Czech editorialist. 
The appointments of non-politicians Lucas Papademos and Mario Monti in Greece and Italy has caused much ink to flow. But on the continent, experts have often played a positive role in politics in times of deep crisis, points out a Guardian editor. 
The EU may well soon be split up between the performers, the lame, and the laggards, worries Romanian political scientist Alina Mungiu-Pippidi. And let’s not count on a fake European identity to bring everyone together. 
Efforts to save the euro cannot run against the will of the voters indefinitely, writes Charlemagne of the Economist. 
Governments of “experts” proposed in Italy and Greece could be good at taking emergency decisions, but would deepen European citizens’ diffidence towards ever more indirect democracy. To avoid this, politics must reclaim its role. 
He who submits a vital issue to a referendum is a public menace to Europe. This has been the message from the markets – and since Monday night, from the politicians too. 
Is Facebook too curious about its users’ data? A series of complaints initiated by an Austrian law student have led to a data protection audit in Ireland, where the social networking site’s European HQ is based. 
After two days of massive strikes and street battles, Greece seems to be edging ever closer to the brink. As European leaders gather this Sunday in a last ditch bid to save the euro, a Greek author condemns the national elites that have brought his country to this juncture.