The Russians will send the Constitution into space

The Italian astronaut Roberto Vittori will be carrying a copy of the as yet unratified Constitution for Europe (presumably it will be wheeled along in a trolley) as he boards the Soyuz rocket that is due to take off tomorrow from Baikonur in Kazakhstan.

So, finally, that document will be in the environment that is most appropriate for it: space. It is not quite clear what will happen to it eventually. One assumes Signor Vittori intends to come back to earth at some later date. Will he bring the hefty document back with him? Surely, the EU is not so wicked as to pollute space with it.

Meanwhile, Günther Verheugen, Commission Vice President has waxed lyrical on the event:

“In orbit, the constitution will not only encompass Europe, but the whole world.Let us hope that this symbol of European identity will be well received both by Europeans and by the peoples of other continents.”

Someone should do something about Herr Verheugen’s medication in our opinion. It is the rocket that will be going … well, we are not sure where it is going but it is not encompassing Europe or the world except in the rather megalomaniac imagination of the Commission Vice President.

As for the symbol of European identity (what, all 400 odd pages of it?) being received joyfully by peoples in various continents, one hopes Herr Verheugen did not mean that literally.

The thought of that document descending from space at some unsuspecting African or South-East Asian village to cause greater chaos than the tsunami ever did, fills one with dread.

Then again, maybe the Americans and the Australians can send their navy and air force to rescue anybody whose life is being destroyed by the new Constitution for Europe.