1 step forward and a few backward

The European Union took one step forward and a few backward recently. All the leaders met to hash out the Constitution debacle. What came out of the meeting is not a Constitution but a treaty. There will not be a foreign policy minister which means that Europe will not speak to the world with one voice. This will limit Europe's effectiveness at counterbalancing the United States in world affairs. All the countries except for Britain signed an accord on fundamental individual rights. Britain was concerned that this accord could step on its much vaunted rights of business to conduct business. Poland also almost sidelined the entire affair to obscurity by insisting for weeks that voting strength would have to be decided by the square root of each country's population instead of simply its population figures. The voting procedures will go into place as planned in 2017, a long way off but at least without the Poles idiocy.