12 METRO Friday, September 25, 2009 D Will EU be better? Keeping Commissioner: McCreevy If Natalia is pro-Europe, why she is knocking the EU. The Lisbon Treaty will make the EU more democratic and more transparent and make it work better now that we have 27 member states instead of 15. We have 12 MEPs, one for every 358,000 people, compared with Germany, which has one for every 854,000. The Lisbon Treaty enhances the power of all national parliaments in framing EU legislation and allows for a citizens initiative under which one million citizens from a number of EU countries can petition the European Commission on issues. Lisbon changes the voting system in the Council. A double voting system based on equality between the member states in one phase and on population size in a second would be introduced. All Council meetings will be in public. If we vote Yes we will keep our Commissioner due to the legally binding guarantee secured. I think that Brussels has seemed distant and unresponsive in the past, but I think the Lisbon Treaty offers a real chance to make the EU better for all of us. Orla, Rush Natalia, according to degressive proportionality, the smaller states of the EU are more important than the big ones. The European Parliament has 736 seats for 500 million EU citizens. Germany has 82 million inhabitants (16.4 per cent), but only 99 seats (13.4 per cent). Ireland has 4.2 million (0.8 per cent), but 12 seats (1.6 per cent). Angelo, by e-mail I cant vote in this election but I want to have my say. The Lisbon Treaty is the European constitution the French and Dutch said No to. The last No vote did not cause this countrys recession the world is in the same boat. If you vote No the EU will not ask for their money back. If they did you could claim Dublins best-read letters page Metro Mail E-mail letters to mail@metroireland.ie with a name. Or text us. Text MAIL followed by comment and name to 53131. *Texts cost 30cent per message + standard network charges. SP. Oxygen8 Communications, Hospitality House, Cumberland Street South, D2. Customer service number 0818286606 talk to us Lovin it: All this talk of needing to point out to people that eating McDonalds and the like is bad for you is hilarious! Who among us really walks in under the golden arches and expects something healthy? Its convenience, thats all. Non-fast-food eater, by e-mail Report concerns: Worried, if youre so concerned about speeding buses then the time taken to send in your comment perhaps could have been better used to contact Dublin Bus and report what you saw. And just because there are a few idiots who ignore health and safety issues it doesnt mean we are all like that so dont stereotype drivers. Andy, by e-mail Titanic Treaty: My biggest concern is the change in voting and how it will make it easier to pass through new laws, contrary to Irelands best interests. These water-tight legal guarantees are as water-tight as the Titanic. The Protocol will clarify but not change the content or the application of the Treaty of Lisbon from the guarantee document EU Council Presidency 18-19 June 2009. The guarantees regardless of where or with whom they have been lodged are worthless. Jboy, Dublin In Brief compensation for the billions of euros that the French, Spanish and Portuguese have plundered from your fisheries. You fought for hundreds of years for your freedom and have had it for 80 years. Are you now prepared to surrender it to Brussels? EU law supersedes Irish law and guarantees mean nothing. Grizzly, by e-mail The last time we had the Lisbon referendum the Yes side told us it was good for us but never said why it would be. At least the No campaign focused on its issues, even if some werent true. This time the Yes campaign have a better approach but I dont believe most of it. Yes to jobs, recovery, staying in Europe. If I believe everything they say its like Lisbon is a magic wand that will fix the world. If thats the case surely the Yes side can find a way to apply Lisbon to fix the Malahide viaduct quicker, clean up Fs or save the Giant Panda from going extinct. This re-run seems more like a Mockcracy than a Democracy. Ryan, by e-mail Sendusyour txt What do a bottle of champagne and the GAA have in common? Everyone wants the cork to be removed! David Galvin Is anyone else fed up and bored of reading about Lisbon here every day. Please lets talk about something else. Fed up The European Commission has approved a 50million Polish grant to Dell resulting in Dell in Limerick shedding 1,900 jobs ! Yes to Lisbon is good for jobs? Jo Hey Sorcha, I read the Treaty as best I could, given how dry and turgid it is, and I understand the main points. Its not perfect but to think voting No is good for Ireland and its future is ignorant. Ronnie Realist Theres a Rock Against Lisbon gig this Saturday (September 26). Its on in the Cobblestone in Smithfield from 8pm. All welcome ! Danny Red Light Girl, they are the exterior lights from airplanes when they are flying low to the ground. Sky guy txt MAIL to 53131* IT LOOKS ridiculous, uncomfortable and tricky to ride yes, its the unicy- cle of the future. The U3-X may resemble an over- sized key fob but it is the latest effort to create a personal mobility vehicle for Japans ageing population. Those brave enough to try it will find all they need do is sit and lean in the direction they want to go. Engineers have built a series of smaller, motor-controlled wheels in- side the main wheel, letting the gizmo swerve in any direction and even go backwards. Maker Honda claims the 10kg (22lb), battery-powered device is unobtrusive enough to mingle with pedestrians on pavements although how it will handle kerbs is open to de- bate and we cant see much in the way of suspension. Itd be easier to get around so I might really use it if my legs grow weaker, said Honda president Takan- obu Ito. Honda engineers are always thinking about peoples dreams and wishes about mobility. We will con- tinue to work hard, he added. There are no plans to sell the device, which has a one-hour battery life and top speed of 6kmh (3.7mph). Just loin back and go: Honda president Takanobu Ito cuts an unflattering figure as he models the U3-X in Tokyo yesterday Pictures: AFP/Getty Reinventing the wheel Honda engineers come up with an electric, self-balancing, er, unicycle By Fred ATTewIll index.html2.html3.html4.html5.html6.html7.html8.html9.html10.html11.html12.html13.html14.html15.html16.html17.html18.html19.html20.html21.html22.html23.html24.html25.html26.html27.html