We are talking about birds facing extinction for ever, this is a very serious threat to nature which man is destroying gradually.

I hope these men, if found guilty, get at least a year prison sentence, anything less sends the wrong message to others.

Of course one wonders how the Italians will react to the ‘this is our hobby and we have every right to it’ mantra and ‘f*** the rules’ attitude.

If Malta doesn’t agree with a policy, it will vote against it, not because it wants to put pressure on the EU but because it doesn’t agree with the said policy.

This means that the veto can only be used to derail policies which Malta agrees with. If Malta agrees with these policies, it does so because it believes that the policies are beneficial for the country and for Europe.

What Joseph Muscat is saying is that Malta will vote against its own interests to put pressure on the EU on a single issue. This is a classic case of cutting one’s nose to spite one’s face.

Scenario number 1: The EU tries to limit the number of overtime hours people can work. Malta will vote against because it doesn’t agree with this policy.

Scenario number 2: The EU agrees on a transpacific deal with the USA. This will boost the European and Maltese economy.

Malta will veto the deal and screw Maltese businesses which are set to benefit just to blackmail the EU into accepting migrants which Muscat doesn’t want.

Scenario number 3: The EU draws up a new programme to help European students further their studies and read degrees at better universities.

You guessed it. Joseph Muscat will tell Maltese students set to benefit that offloading migrants is infinitely more important than their studies.

By its own raison d’être, the idea of using unrelated issue X to affect issue Y means that you will be holding back progress on issue X. If you don’t agree with the way forward on issue X, you will vote against it anyway. If you agree with the way forward and still vote against it, you’re inhibiting your own progress.

It goes even deeper than that.

If, for example, the EU reaches an agreement on a transpacific deal with the USA, the European economy will get a much needed boost. If the economy is better in Europe, then migrants will find it easier to integrate into European society because more jobs will be available. This will greatly ease the migrant problem.

Not only that, better business in Europe and America leads to better business in Africa. Richer companies will have more cash to invest in African countries and growth in Europe leads to a higher demand of African goods. When things improve in African countries (and despite all the doom and gloom, they have improved a lot in the last ten years), less people feel the urge to leave.

Likewise, if Joseph Muscat vetoes plans which would help students improve their education and study at better universities, he would be depriving the country of brains which are better equipped to deal with migrants and know how to find solutions to the problems Malta faces.

The ‘veto policy’ will in the long run actually exacerbate the problem Joseph Muscat wants it to solve. The reason why no other EU country uses this tactic is not because all other EU countries are pigeon-hearted but because the tactic is totally irrational.
The reason why Joseph Muscat cannot figure this out is that he thinks of politics as a zero sum game. He has the tribal and antiquated ‘min mhux magħna kontra tagħna’ mindset. It’s us against the EU, us against the migrants and us against the world. Either we win or they do. We can’t co-exist.

It’s the way pariah states tend to think; politics fuelled by paranoia. It’s classic Mintoff. It’s Malta taking a 40-year-step back in 100 days

The fact that after being given so much time to ruminate over it, Joseph Muscat still thinks that the ‘veto policy’ is a good idea proves that not only do we have an undemocratic and uncouth man as our prime minister who will be hated by his counterparts for being so insufferable but it also proves that our prime minister is a fucking moron.

Ah yes, pretty pink combat boots from Michelle’s favourite shoe store. Little Joey is checking out a pair with high heels.

Many hundreds of euros each.

They’ll just replace ballet shoes with combat boots and they’re good to go.

The beginning of the end for ODZs?

And still, the enviormental groups remain silent.

How mystifying.

Will the prime minister be going without his wife and children, this time?

How much are they worth on the black market?