Schengen Travel Free Zone

[Trek]

For those that didn't know, as of midnight last night, nine new countries (including Estonia) joined the Schengen Passport Free Zone. You can now travel across 24 nations in Europe without having to show your passport. No more border controls.

The nine new countries are: The Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia.

For non-EU nationals you can get a Schengen Visa that allows you to travel across all the Schengen countries.

Mr Fico said: "From midnight tonight you can travel 4,000km (2,485 miles) from Tallinn in Estonia to Lisbon in Portugal without any border controls."

Happy Travels! Come visit me if you get the chance!

BBC NEWS | Europe | Europe's border-free zone expands

[gandalf42]

And in the meantime the US is building a fence along its border with Mexico and requiring passports for travel to Canada and Mexico.

[Texas Proud]

Quote:

Originally Posted by gandalf42 And in the meantime the US is building a fence along its border with Mexico and requiring passports for travel to Canada and Mexico.

Think of the EU as the US... and all the 'countries' as states and you will see it is not that different than what we have... and the size is about the same.

[dex]

Quote:

Originally Posted by gandalf42 And in the meantime the US is building a fence along its border with Mexico and requiring passports for travel to Canada and Mexico.

Is this an example of a non sequitur or of just trying to insert a political position into every place it can be crammed?

[poyet]

Quote:

Originally Posted by gandalf42 And in the meantime the US is building a fence along its border with Mexico and requiring passports for travel to Canada and Mexico.

The idea behind Schengen is that we've tried to let people travel through states having "roughly" the same GNP / habitant (it's obviously a bit more sophisticated but putting things in simple terms). Of course some new Schengen space members show some GDP discripancies but they remain within an acceptable range (as might be the case between states in the US). We also build "fences" to (try) prevent people from outside this average GNP/hab area to submerge us. It does not work well, e.g. in Malta for instance, as boat people are rescued (we can't sink them do we ?), then parked, then after some time allowed to stay, then to work, then as Malta is in the Schengen space since tonight, allowed to migrate wherever they wish in Europe...

In that respect, and comparing things with the the Americas, we would not have any border left with Canada (Schengen logic) but would certainly maintain one with Mexico and South America.

My two cents.

[gandalf42]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dex Is this an example of a non sequitur or of just trying to insert a political position into every place it can be crammed?

Neither. Just a comparison of Europe moving towards dropping border restrictions vs the US increasing them.

[Notmuchlonger]

Quote:

Originally Posted by gandalf42 Neither. Just a comparison of Europe moving towards dropping border restrictions vs the US increasing them.

Hi,

With the recent events would you suggest to just opening the borders to anyone?

[gandalf42]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Notmuchlonger With the recent events would you suggest to just opening the borders to anyone?

You're right. With the recent influx of Canadian and Mexican terrorists its clear something needs to be done.



But seriously, I don't claim to have answers but having grown up in the days of the building of the Berlin Wall, and having been proud that the US is "the land of the free" and has a Statue of Liberty that has a palque that says "Give me your tired, your poor..", it saddens me that we are building a major fence across our border with Mexico.

[dex]

Quote:

Originally Posted by gandalf42 But seriously, I don't claim to have answers but having grown up in the days of the building of the Berlin Wall, and having been proud that the US is "the land of the free" and has a Statue of Liberty that has a palque that says "Give me your tired, your poor..", it saddens me that we are building a major fence across our border with Mexico.

You are comparing a wall to keep people in with a wall to enforce immigration laws (stop illegal entry)?

That is a bit like saying your words are wrong. They remind me of the words the Nazis used to deamonize the Jews. It saddens me that you would use such words.

Or

Berlin wall (or fence) = bad
There is a fence on the boarder it must be bad.

Let's try to step up the analysis and logic a notch.

[travelover]

OK, the Nazi reference is here. Doesn't that mean end of thread?

[dex]

No - it is Hitler - so this is the end.
Thanks