Papenvest works as a journalist in Brussels covering European affairs and is originally from Ireland, but has spent the last 3 years in Brussels and London. Normally he plans to write on politics and economics; although he might
“jot down one or two notes about the Belgium that exists beyond the confines of the Euro-bubble.
You’ve got to love Belgium’s local election campaigns. Far from being conducted over the barrel of a gun, they’re just, well, conducted over barrels full of beer! Candidates can be frequently seen setting out their ‘refreshments’ and manifestos outside Brussels’ many cafés.
Being a frequenter of many a Belgian café myself, and not being such a fan of the knocking on doors approach, I’m more than slightly taken with this style of campaigning. Sure it’s second nature to Belgians – sitting, drinking, chatting with an enviable lack of urgency.
There is a serious point here though, it rips politics from the newspaper pages giving it an everyday accessibility. It looks a hell of a lot more natural than the parachute attack photo shots of national campaigns. I admire the street-corner familiarity, and live in hope that the “solving the world ills over a pint” school of political philosophy might one day catch…
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Some View on the World 