Europe - lady in her midlife crisis?

27 short statements in a photo-gallery of 27 European politicians, writers, celebrities, among them Bono,Vaclav Havel, Leon de Winter, Dario Fo, Frederick Taylor. Occasion: the 50th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome. (in Spiegel/International).

Kate Ryan, a Belgian singer, says: "For me personally the EU is a success story. I have travelled all over Europe to perform and I have noticed that it is easier to travel and to get in touch with people now. There are less political and cultural barriers and there is more common ground."

Wolfgang Petritsch, Austria's ambassador to the UN wants a more courageous Europe, Bono would want more poetry, whereas crime-writer Liza Marklund wants to tear down the iron curtain we are building between ourselves and the third world.Sylvie Goulard sees Europe in its midlife crisis and Dario Fo thinks, it is good that Italy is forced to keep up with the pace of the other members because many events in Italian politics are evidence of bad habits.