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SOUTH OF LITANI RIVER

Militarization in Eritrea

VIKINGS OF THE ALPS

$The European Parliament is the directly elected body of the EU. It has recently been object of debate and dispute for several reasons, and amongst them the absurdity of the double meeting places and enormous costs that this moving from one place to the next has meant. Every three weeks all the offices, objects and documents belonging to the members of Parliament, all 750 of them including the presidency. Trucks are loaded and unloaded from Brussels to Strasbourg 10 times per year to enable the parliamentarians and all the staff following them to sit at the monthly session in France. The sense of this very expensive operation has been often disputed by MEP and various commissions, but when the dispute comes to the vote in the parliament itself, no change is implemented. Each year the activities of the Parliament cycle between committee weeks where reports are discussed in committees and inter-parliamentary delegations meet, political group weeks for members to discuss work within their political groups and session weeks where members spend 3½ days in Strasbourg for part-sessions. Speakers in the European Parliament are entitled to speak in any of the EU\'s 27 official languages, and this is another recurring object of debate, as all the staff used for simultaneous translation amounts to enormous costs of the EU, and its citizens.$ EU Parliament Strasbourg

EU political and media theater

TUAREG OF MALI

$Financial districts have been a recent annexes to modern cities in Europe and the world. Economics has been an integrated part of everyone\'s daily life and life span since the existence of Government and State, but as markets and production processes have become truly global and automated in every aspect so finance and “unreal” economics have stemmed out of reach. Financial markets have truly been the heavy weights of national economies and the actors of these markets, consulting companies and corporate investment firms, have detached themselves from their surrounding environments. This is probably why all main countries in the West or First World have all given spontaneous rise to financial districts. London is the most important centre of finance and banking in Europe, and has in fact two areas where finance and the stock markets breath and are established. The traditional area surrounding the Bank of England the Stock Exchange and a more recent neighbourhood especially built to host all the world\'s most powerful and influential financial and banking corporations, Canary Wharf. Everyone refers to these two areas as the City, as if no other part of London would represent it more. In these inner city\'s islands time is literally money and there is no other reason for people to be or go there if not to work in or in connection to the monolithic companies and banks of the City. In fact the glass buildings and impenetrable skyscrapers put the everyday City workers, who are like any other person, in a deeply contrast with what should be their environment. The contrast is overwhelming and natural as unnatural are these financial areas, which are only alive for money and creation of money in a form which is impalpable and virtual to most people. Economic gains from banking and financial instruments have proven to be virtual and borderline with reality and the real economy with the 2008 world economic crisis, where financial institutions can be said to have negatively influenced people\'s everyday life out of proportion. Financial districts in cities like London life a life of their own, which never stops. Their workers may have schedules and working hours, but the companies present in these environments never stop, following the markets 24 hours a day around the globe.$ TIME IS MONEY

$Today, Antwerp remains a global powerhouse in the diamond trade. With the thriving diamond Stock Exchange, in the heart of the high security Diamond Square Mile, almost 85% of the world\'s rough diamonds, and about half of the polished diamonds (est. $16 billion US), pass through Antwerp every year. There are approximately 4,000 people working in Antwerp\'s diamond-cutting industry alone. The Antwerp Diamond Centre covers one square mile, housing 1500 diamond companies and 4 diamond bourses. In this highly protected quarter, thousands of highly skilled diamond workers are active to keep up the international quality label ”Cut in Antwerp” based on a tradition of 5 centuries. Millions of diamonds are literally passing through their hands. The Antwerp diamond companies have the best polishers in the world.$ Antwerp Diamond Capital of the World

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