I'd put down a lot of the new European attitude to a new sense of solidarity and self-confidence that has come from unification - even something as simple as establishing a single, and growingly strong, single currency has made a noticeable change in attitudes here.

You will note that the only EU member country not in the EMS employing the Euro is the yUK, which has increasingly become sidelined in European politics in the last 5-6 years due to the lack of commited involvement in Europe - a "we'll have the nice bits but the yukky bits we'll not bother with" duality which has frustrated and annoyed politicians for a long time. For some reason, the yUK government still thinks it means something in Europe - poor, deluded idiots: they are now totally out of synch. Soon, the US really will be the only country willing to exchange trade on an equal basis since the yUK has preferentially dealt with the US since Maggie (Spit, Spit) Thatcher, to the detriment of the relationship with Europe which should have been expanded upon at the earliest opportunity.

As Patrick concisely pointed out earlier, with "Wing Nut" jammed so far up Bush's arse as to be a third leg ("I'm Jake the Peg Diddle iddle iddle Um, With the Extra Leg Diddle iddle iddle Um") it's unlikely that the damage can be reversed in the near future, possibly ever. There is no compensation mechanism of a balancing social, cultural or economic power to go against the US since the fall of the USSR other than China, and - now - Europe? Perhaps the observed lack of former world unity is a natural consequence of the self confidence of a union of growing economic and political powers working together without needing to be dependent on the US to buoy up the world's economy (it's certain dragging it down at the moment for Gawd's Sake). Plus, Bush has pissed on the EU so many times following 911 (steel, bananas, meat, RAM tariffs, etc) it's not hard to see why politicians here might be willing to stick it up Bush and Powell's nether regions to say "Thank You!!!" in a suitably meaningful fashion (I doubt Bush would even notice).

Perhaps we are seeing the beginning of a new, tri-partite world power balance, the US/UK alliance, Europe, and China. Who knows how it will come out?

At the moment though, I just wish there were some British MPs brave enough to put forward a motion to propogate a Vote of No Confidence against the present British Labour government. That would be brave, wouldn't it? Risking your job for something you believe in - or am I being too bloody optimistic here

"This is the 51st State of the USA" (The The, "Heartland", circa 1986 - written when Ray-gun and Fatcher were bosom pals out to nuke the world to buggery)

If that hasn't blown my security clearance now, then I don't know what will. That's another 6 months out of work, I supppose (sigh)