The Netherlands

The 2009 Legatum Prosperity Index Table Rankings based on various factors:

1 Finland

2 Switzerland

3 Sweden

4 Denmark

5 Norway

6 Australia

7 Canada

8 Netherlands

9 United States

10 New Zealand

11 Ireland

12 United Kingdom

13 Belgium

14 Germany

15 Austria

16 Japan

17 France

18 Hong Kong

19 Spain

20 Slovenia

21 Italy

22 Portugal

23 Singapore

24 Taiwan

25 Czech Republic

26 South Korea

27= Israel

27= Hungary

29 Poland

30 Greece

31 Estonia

32 Costa Rica

33 Uruguay

34 Slovakia

35 Croatia

36 Chile

37 Latvia

38 Argentina

39 Malaysia

40 Trinidad and Tobago

41 Brazil

42 Panama

43 Mexico

44 Thailand

45 India

IMHO, a sad day for Europe. The Lisbon treaty will "federalize" Europe and take away a lot of the powers from sovereign nations .. RIP Europe!

Europe’s elite celebrated the imminent arrival of its first president last night as the last lingering resistance to the Lisbon treaty fell away with the stroke of a pen in Prague.

European leaders wasted no time in starting the process to choose their new president from a range of names including Tony Blair. Fredrik Reinfeldt, the Prime Minister of Sweden, which holds the EU presidency, began a round of telephone diplomacy to determine a shortlist of names.

Top 20 countries on the Human Development Index:

1. Norway

2. Australia

3. Iceland

4. Canada

5. Ireland

6. Netherlands

7. Sweden

8. France

9. Switzerland

10. Japan

11. Luxembourg

12. Finland

13. United States

14. Austria

15. Spain

16. Denmark

17. Belgium

18. Italy

19. Liechtenstein

20. New Zealand

Source: UN Human Development Report 2009

Sydney : Oct, 24

London's Heathrow Airport has been voted the worst airport in the world for the second year running in a poll of 14,500 frequent fliers while Singapore's Changi was again ranked as the best.

The survey participants, all member of airport lounge programme Priority Pass, rated Paris' Charles de Gaulle airport as the world's second worst with Los Angeles International Airport coming third despite a recent $1 billion overhaul.

"A result that suggests anyone wanting a romantic break in Paris should avoid the Heathrow-Charles de Gaulle route if they don't want to kill the mood," said a statement from Priority Pass.

"Sadly, Heathrow remains firmly entrenched as the airport the world loves to hate," added Jonathan French, head of brand for Priority Pass.

!!!! DIWALI WISHES TO ALL QL !!!!
Diwali (Tamil: தீபாவளி; is a significant festival in Hinduism, Sikhism, and Jainism, and an official holiday in India
Adherents of these religions celebrate Diwali as the Festival of Lights. They light diyas—cotton string wicks inserted in small clay pots filled with oil—to signify victory of good over the evil within an individual.
In India and Nepal, Diwali is now considered to be a national festival, and the aesthetic aspect of the festival is enjoyed by most Indians and Nepalese regardless of faith. Kerala is the only state in India where Diwali is not a big celeberation.

Eurozone unemployment is at its highest rate for 10 years.

The unemployment rate across the 16 countries that use the euro has risen again as the effects of the recession continue to be felt.

The number of people without a job in the Eurozone is now 15.2 million.

Despite the fact that many Eurozone economies are recovering from recession, economists expect unemployment rates to continue rising.

Among the member states, the jobless rate was highest in Spain, with a rate of 18.9%, and Latvia, with a rate of 18.3%.

The lowest rate of 3.5% was recorded in the Netherlands.

http://news.bbc.co.u...

AUSTRALIA - Always Understanding Someone's True Reality
And Loving Innocent Actions.
BURMA - Between Us, Remember Me Always
CALGARY - Crawling Around Long Grass Attracts Rowdy Yaks
CANADA - Cute And Naughty Action that Developed into Attraction
CHINA - Come Here I Need Affection
EGYPT - Everything's Great, You Pretty Thing
FRANCE - Friendships Remain And Never Can End
GERMANY - Great Emotions Remain Maltreated And Noone Yells.
HOLLAND - Hope Our Love Lasts And Never Dies
HONGKONG - Hug Only Nice Guys, Kiss Only Naughty Girls.
INDIA - I Nearly Died In Adoration
ITALY - I Trust And Love You
JAPAN - Just Always Pray At Night
KENYA - Keep Everything Nice, Yet Arousing
KOREA - Keep Optimistic Regardless of Every Adversity
LIBYA - Love Is Beautiful; You Also

already under discussion here:
http://www.qatarlivi...

Doha Hockey club has announced plans to further develop hockey in Qatar. Last year saw the formation of Qatar’s first women’s hockey team. It consisted of ladies from 9 different countries (England, Scotland, Netherlands, Spain, Argentina, South Africa, Kenya, Australia and Sweden) with varying degrees of experience, from ex European National League players to beginners. The ladies took on the Qatar Hockey Academy junior boys in a friendly series which saw both teams improve greatly over the course of the 4 competitive matches.