Irish gripes
Bag slung over my shoulder, overcoat on, and heading for the door bad luck struck in the form of a readout of the Irish prime minister's speech. So forgive me if I am terse in my summary. I will give you more detail later.
He made it clear he saw October as a reporting stage, not a deadline, arguing "it would be counterproductive to any potential way forward.. for us to attempt to predetermine a precise time frame".
He identified a list of reasons for the referendum defeat, none of which will be surprising for those who've followed the campaign. He added that the poor economic outlook might have been a factor, noting it's not going to get any better. While that sounds suspiciously like a warning of the dangers of a second referendum, much of the rest highlights troubled waters where oil might usefully be poured. I am not sure if this points towards a second referendum. I don't think the other EU leaders are sure. I am not sure if Mr Cowen is sure. I'm going to sleep on it, and when I wake up I am not sure it will be any clearer.
I’m Mark Mardell, the BBC's North America editor. These are my reflections on American politics, some thoughts on being a Brit living in the USA, and who knows what else? My 
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This is totally non-sense. It should be clear by now that there is something wrong in EU. Everytime people have the chance to vote on Europe the answer is NO.
Politician should take notice and change, but no, Europe has to be as they wanted!!
I really hope that if there is a new referendum the Irish vote NO again!!!
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It has been stated elsewhere by a BBC reporter that Sarkozy's telling people that enlargement can't go ahead without Lisbon might be taken as a threat by the Irish and was "the wrong signal" to send.
I'm not sure about that. People here (Ireland) are generally pro-enlargement. Nice 1 failed because the enlargement issue hadn't been highlighted enough. I remember criticism from the pro-Nice folk of the Referendum Commission because it hadn't mentioned in its information booklet the necessity for Nice's ratification to allow the entry of the 10 new members.
Nice 2 was finally passed because the "Yes" side kept banging on about this. It was passed because people wanted enlargement to happen and I think that's still the case.
Polls have shown that people here are far less against Turkish membership than in most other EU countries and I think they'd look favourably on Croatia, another small country with a turbulent history.
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I'm finding it hard to reconcile the different approaches taken within the EU to the handling of the Constitutional Treaty and the Lisbon Treaty.
When French and Dutch voters rejected the Consitution, the other nations backed off. Labour rapidly stopped the proposed UK referendum (saving itself from embarrassment) on the grounds that the Treaty was dead.
Nobody told the French to go back and sort out what their electorate would accept...
So why the difference now?
The Irish voted No. The Treaty is dead.
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Mark, Thanks for the hard work and up-to-date posts.
When you're back up, go to your local Le Pain Quotidien and enjoy some good Belgian coffee and croissants.
Later on, as the weekend beckons, sip a nice Irish Guinness followed Czech Pils.
Cheers!
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Just had Pilsner Urquell.
Tasted better than ever, for a strange reason.
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The main reasons for why the Irish voted NO are clear enough. One of the main ones being that the majority of the people (remember them) do not want further EU integration. Not just in Ireland but throughout Europe. It has been argued that those saying NO did not understand the Treaty but they understood it far better than those sheep saying YES.
Until the majority of people are behind the leaders and are treated with the respect they deserve, the EU will be seen as a fascist organisation.
Leaders like Brown, who was never elected.
His party was elected by only 22% of the electorate and at the last election the EU was not even an issue because all the main parties PROMISED a Referendum.
And even then he had to force his MPs with a three line whip to vote for ratification.
Even Mugabe is allowing the people to speak.
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The peoples memories are long.
They remember the Roman Empire.
They remember Nepolian.
They remember Hitler.
They remember Franco.
They remember the tyranny of the Inquisition.
We do not want a Dark-Age, by treaty or otherwise!
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Sarkozy is a real used-car salesman isn't he?
Any photoshop heroes out there show us what the chancer looks like in a del-boy sheepskin coat?
Modern leaders are all show and no substance. No humility and then throw a tantrum when things don't go their way.
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