The European basket case

European Commissioner Oettinger, a German from the center-right conservative party, had his Mitt Romney moment at a speech in Brussels, reports the tabloid Bild Zeitung.

The European Union is a basket case, says he.

He lashed out against the Gutmenschentum in the EU. Which kind of means "demonstrating being good people with a side of bigotry", or in a more American friendly way "the kumbaya brigade".

He called some European Union states "virtually ungovernable", smacking down the EU Mediterranean Rim countries in one Thor-worthy blow, told the French that they had no idea of how to handle their debt and competitiveness problems, and he called the Germans bigots for importing Russian gas but refusing to go full bore on fracking at home.

For his fellow Germans, he had the stern warning that Germany was at the height of its economic power and that it would not get any higher.

His reason was, of course, that wages, benefits, costs mantra. Where he really should have pointed out the declining population and the weird lip service in many places (there are exceptions) to integration of foreigners.

The man is the European Energy Commissioner and a career politician of the first order.

The K-landnews team very much enjoyed the meltdown of a man so much part of the buddy system over here, yet frustrated by the very institutions and processes he helped shape.

Does it sound evil when we say we enjoy the meltdown?

It probably does sound a little evil but it is meant in a supportive way: the value of a crisis is that it opens up new mental spaces. Isn't that what it says in Homegrown Psychology 101?

The kumbaya brigade wishes the European Energy Commissioner a speedy recovery from the meltdown and hopes he will soon regain the energy needed for the valuable work done by the Commission.

In the unlikely case that he wants to give up this unrewarding post, TheEditor is willing and capable, just drop us an email. If you want me to interview, please send your chauffeur to pick me up at your convenience.

One more thing:
Please wait a couple of weeks until we have received our tax return. TheEditor is pretty sure that the German taxman is finally checking how we can live on so little money. No worries, it's all cool, remember, when in Rome do not do as the Romans.