*** Europe…&  English ***

EUROPEAN UNION (UE) SET UP AFTER THE MAASTRICH TREATY (1992) WAS THE LAST  PROCESS OF EUROPEAN INTEGRATION WHICH  STARTED ON 9 MAY 1950, THE DAY IN WHICH FRANCE OFFICIALLY PROPOSED TO THROW “THE FIRST CONCRETE BASES” OF AN EUROPEAN FEDERATION.   SIX STATES (BELGIUM, GERMANY, FRANCE, ITALY, LUSSEMBURG AND NEDERLAND) JOINED SINCE 1950.   TODAY, AFTER FOUR BIG WAVES OF ADHESIONS (1973:  DENMARK, IRELAND AND UNITED KINGDOM;  1981:  GREECE;  1986:  SPAIN AND PORTUGAL;  1995:  AUSTRIA, FINLAND AND SWEDEN) THE EUROPEAN UNION INCLUDES 15 STATES MEMBERS AND IT HAS BEEN  PREPARING FOR THE ADHESION OF 13 STATES OF CENTER-ORIENTAL AND MERIDIONAL EUROPE.

IN JANUARY 2002 THE GOAL OF THE ENTRANCE IN COURSE OF THE ONLY CURRENCY HAS BEEN CAUGHT UP:  THE EURO!

 12 MEMBER STATES OF THE EUROPEAN UNION THAT HAVE ADOPTED THE ONLY CURRENCY ARE:  BELGIUM, GERMANY, GREECE, SPAIN, FRANCE, IRELAND, ITALY, LUSSEMBURGO, LOW COUNTRIES, AUSTRIA, PORTUGAL, FINLAND.

WHICH WILL BE THE NEXT STEP…AN ONLY LANGUAGE? WHY NOT? PERHAPS BECAUSE EVERY COUNTRY WOULD HAVE TO LOSE  TOO MUCH GREAT PART OF ITS TRADITIONS.   BUT THIS IS NOT THE MAIN POINT.    AFTER ALL EVERY ONE OF US CAN NOTICE THAT THE EUROPEAN UNION POSSESSES ALREADY A COMMON LANGUAGE!   HOW OFTEN WE HAVE HEARD THE PHRASE :"ENGLISH IS IMPORTANT, IT OPENS YOU MANY DOORS!”, HAVEN’T YOU!?!  SO CONSIDER IN WHICH LANGUAGE  THIS ARTICLE IS WRITTEN!   WELL, ENGLISH REPRESENTS THE MORE DIFFUSED LANGUAGE TO COMMUNICATE WITH PERSONS OF OTHER COUNTRIES AND, WE MUST SAY IT, THAT IS TRULY WONDERFUL.   TRY TO IMAGINE HOW BORING WOULD BE INTERNET WITHOUT ENGLISH!   SIMPLE.  MOST DIFFICULT, MOST ANNOYING AND ALSO FRUSTRATING, BECAUSE WE WOULD UNDERSTAND ONLY A FEW AND WE WOULD BE FORCED TO LIMIT OUR RESEARCH OF INFORMATION IN THE WEB SITES OF OUR LANGUAGE, OFTEN UNSATISFACTORY!  

 BUT THESE AREN’T THE ONLY ADVANTAGES, AS AN EXAMPLE:  IF WE ARE LISTENING TO A FOREIGN SONG THAT WE LIKE, WOULDN’T IT BE WONDERFUL UNDERSTAND ALSO  THE MEANING?  OF COURSE! AND IF WE ARE ON HOLIDAY IN A FOREIGN COUNTRY AND WE’RE GOING OUT FOR DINNER WITH FRIENDS, IF WE KNOW SOME ENGLISH IT WOULD BE EASIER TO  UNDERSTAND THE WAITER THAT WE WANT ONLY MEAT, AND WE WOULD AVOID TO MAKE THE WAITER SERVE US THE MORE ABSURD AND OUTLANDISH PLATES OF THAT COUNTRY!   AND IN THE END, MORE COMMONLY…KNOWLEDGE OF ENGLISH HELPS US TO GO BETTER AT SCHOOL!!! THESE ARE ONLY FEW ADVANTAGES THAT ENGLISH BRINGS TO US, BUT I HOPE THAT THEY ARE ENOUGH TO  UNDERSTAND ITS IMPORTANCE  AND TO LIKE IT A BIT MORE!!!

Written by Alberto Zogno (free7@itcgbianchi.mi.it)