ABOUT

Facts about Europe

In 1953, the official flag of the European Union was whittled down to 12 from 15 stars because:

• The Germans objected to the inclusion of Saarland's star, as that would have given the territory of Saarland "star" status.
• The French strongly objected to 14 stars, as that would indicate that Saarland was now completely a part of Germany.
• Nobody wanted 13 stars, because that was unlucky.
• Twelve stars seemed reasonable and more commmon, as there were 12 hours in a day, 12 months in a year, etc.

Since then, the state of affairs surrounding European Unity have only somewhat improved.

In Heaven: the cooks are French,
the policemen are English,
the mechanics are German,
the lovers are Italian
and the bankers are Swiss.

In Hell: the cooks are English,
the policemen are German,
the mechanics are French,
the lovers are Swiss
and the bankers are Italian.