Still there

I just sneaked out for a few words..

Everyone has been voting for or against something these days. In Egypt they voted "na3am" (yes) for amending the constitution (can't wait to see if this will actually change anything), and in France they voted "non" for the EU treaty. What is interesting about this whole referendum thing is what I read on BBC news about a sample referendum they run by a few people and how the phrasing of the question produced different results. Compare:

• Should the United Kingdom approve the treaty establishing a constitution for the European Union?

--> 39% yes, 39% no, 22% don't know

• If there were a referendum tomorrow, would you vote for Britain to sign up to the EU constitution or not?

--> 26% yes, 54% no, 20% don't know

So how about trying these versions:

• Is the EU treaty good for the UK?
• Would you vote yes or no for the UK to join the new EU constitution?
• Will the UK benefit from signing up to the EU constitution?
• Don't you think it is not an unreasonable idea for the UK to not join the EU constitution? (do you understand anything? too much negation perhaps? :) )
• In case there is a referendum now and you are supposed to vote immediately, would you approve of the decision for the UK to sign up for the EU constitution whereby a better future for Europe is promised or would you reject this decision on the basis of a particular political or personal stand, that is if you decide to actually vote in the first place? (if the guy doesn't die before you finish asking him this :) )
• Do you give a damn whether the UK joins the EU constitution or not? (ok, maybe not this one :) )

And.. more linguistic stuff: did you ever hear the expression "the linguistic guillotine" before? Obviously, it has something to do with the French and their apathy towards other languages.

Finally, quote of the day:

Beware the lollipop of mediocrity: lick it once and you suck forever.

All the more reason I should go back..

Ok, here goes nothing.. byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee..

Mai