Earlier quoted context omitted.
With von der Leyen being president, I am pretty sure we make the wrong decision. Yes, some Europeans might think she looks sympathetic, especially those that don't know her well because of language barriers. That she is on the position is testament to the democratic dysfunction of the Union. Officially she is in a conservative party, which eastern European countries liked very much. If we want to take democracy serio…
It only became apparent to me yesterday on another forum how much central Europeans, especially Germans, seem to quite dislike von der Leyen!
Germany will violate international agreements with Unitary Patent, says FFII
231–240 of 283 posts
Re: Germany will violate international agreements with Unitary Patent, says FFII
#232Earlier quoted context omitted.
The EU is not a great place for innovation, period. Here are the major problems: 1. No common language 2. Incredibly high taxes, particularly sales taxes 3. Unfinished transition out of Communism in many Eastern Countries 4. Preference for cheap illegal labor instead of automation This could be solved by: 1. Formalising an 'EU English' language so that schools teaching it can open up around the continent and families…
This reads more like a (ultra-)right-wing party program than a substantiated plan to increase innovation.
>deport --illegal-- immigrants
"ultra" right wing
Low taxes and people valuing the rule of law is not "ultra right wing"
Re: Germany will violate international agreements with Unitary Patent, says FFII
#233Earlier quoted context omitted.
> It is a particularly weird opinion to hold in the wake of the most recent challenge to its continuity -- the Brexit fiasco, with the EU having maintained a united front for more than 4 years, while the UK emerges out of it in a terrible state -- and the worst is yet to come. If would be a weird opinion to hold if the EU managed to keep britain. But the fact that the EU lost a major nation doesn't make it a weird op…
> heck EU members don't really have a name do they? This is very funny assuming you are from the USA. What do you call yourselves?
Do you identify as solely as European?
Re: Germany will violate international agreements with Unitary Patent, says FFII
#234Earlier quoted context omitted.
Immigration is NOT the issue. Corrupt government and corporatocracy is. With all those subsidies going to coal, oil, cars, planes and whatnot, we could pay and educate all the immigrants a thousand fold, and make them a super producive labour force. You're gonna be a kick ass employee if you're motivated enough to risk your life and travel for years, for education and a better job.
The economic migrants that have travelled to Europe illegally are mostly illiterate and with few skills. They are consistently borne out to be at the bottom of society and over-represented on welfare rolls and jails. Essentially they will form a permanent underclass in Europe and a forever burden. They come into Europe to work on huge farms owned by wealthy Europeans. Here is an example - essentially all of the manua…
Re: Germany will violate international agreements with Unitary Patent, says FFII
#235Earlier quoted context omitted.
"In Germany she's well known for nepotism" As a German this is not "well known" to me, do you have a source? Until now I thought one Accenture manager was the godfather of a child of a deparment manager in the ministry of defence and Accenture got an consulting gig? I didn't know until now she was giving jobs to her relatives.
Being a consultant in Germany myself I can tell you that during the whole "Bundeswehr Berateraffäre" (an alledged scandal involving contracts given to consultancies when von der Leyen was Secretary of Defense), that at least all Blue Chip to Mid Cap Stock Index companies in Germany cringed in silence, as the 300M € von der Leyen supposedly embazzled look pathetic to the budgets these companies dump on consultants eac…
Re: Germany will violate international agreements with Unitary Patent, says FFII
#236Earlier quoted context omitted.
I don't consider her being in the conservative party the actual problem. In Germany she's well known for nepotism and corruptness, even if until this day she successfully evaded the punishment. Not long ago there's been a claim that her phone contains important evidence in support of the accusation, but it turned out that data on the phone had been "accidentally" wiped.
I'm german and it's the first time I hear someone calling her corrupt or nepotistic.
Re: Germany will violate international agreements with Unitary Patent, says FFII
#237Earlier quoted context omitted.
She hired the company where her son was working using taxpayer money. And then that company paid commission for it to her son. So she indirectly paid taxpayer money to her son.
This isn't remotely an example of corruption unless there is a direct conflict of interest. If she hired her son directly, or as part of the team, if he was lobbying her, then it's a problem. But if her son worked at IBM and she, as Defence Minister hired IBM for some defence contract, then it's irrelevant. Edit: I should be clear, among the elite, specifically if there are central groups which exist especially withi…
Re: Germany will violate international agreements with Unitary Patent, says FFII
#238Earlier quoted context omitted.
The enthusiasts need to temper their dreams and expectations - EU is doing fine, and doesn't need to always become more powerful or more integrated. Especially not now, when citizens don't want it.
In fact I think EU should take few steps back: the perfect state was before Lisbon treaty, when EU was basically just a free trade zone. Since Lisbon they try to make it a single country, with unified policy on international affairs, military, etc, which doesn't make sense.
It has always had a political element.
To quote a 1963 Court of Justice judgment:
"The Community constitutes a new legal order of international law for the benefit of which the states have limited their sovereign rights, albeit within limited fields and the subjects of which comprise not only member states but also their nationals. Independently of the legislation of member states, Community law therefore not only imposes obligations on individuals but is also intended to confer upon them rights which become part of their legal heritage. These rights arise not only where they are expressly granted by the treaty, but also by reason of obligations which the treaty imposes in a clearly defined way upon individuals as well as upon the member states and upon the institutions of the Community. "
Re: Germany will violate international agreements with Unitary Patent, says FFII
#239Earlier quoted context omitted.
In fact I think EU should take few steps back: the perfect state was before Lisbon treaty, when EU was basically just a free trade zone. Since Lisbon they try to make it a single country, with unified policy on international affairs, military, etc, which doesn't make sense.
>EU was basically just a free trade zone Exactly! That's what the EU should be and nothing more.
It has always had a political element.
To quote a 1963 Court of Justice judgment:
"The Community constitutes a new legal order of international law for the benefit of which the states have limited their sovereign rights, albeit within limited fields and the subjects of which comprise not only member states but also their nationals. Independently of the legislation of member states, Community law therefore not only imposes obligations on individuals but is also intended to confer upon them rights which become part of their legal heritage. These rights arise not only where they are expressly granted by the treaty, but also by reason of obligations which the treaty imposes in a clearly defined way upon individuals as well as upon the member states and upon the institutions of the Community. "
Re: Germany will violate international agreements with Unitary Patent, says FFII
#240As a german i am quite sure they will ratify software patents. The very sad part is the people deciding this have absolutely no understanding what they are doing and that they open the box of pandora. There is currently almost no invest money in european startups, and if everyone of these startups is liable for bogus software patents they will have absolutely no chance on getting big.
I don't like software patents but I have a hard time buying that it will limit investment further. It hasn't significantly done so in the US where software patents have long existed. I imagine it may spur investment because investors see software patents as protecting their investments in startups from both other startups and established companies. Edited to correct a typo kindly pointed out by a comment below.
Speaking as someone who has worked in fields related to data compression and audio/video codecs, you can't imagine how wrong you are about this. Entire fields of research have been blocked off from the point of view of commercial developers and researchers. Nobody would touch arithmetic encoding with the proverbial ten-foot pole until IBM's fundamental patent expired, for instance.[1] Never mind LZW derivatives.
It's outrageous that patents on fundamental algorithms were ever allowed. Germans need to do what they can to stop it.
[1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arithmetic_coding#History_and_...