When I was a little kid, about 5 years old in kindergarten, occasionally the teacher would have to send a note home to my parents. Because I was a little goofy kid who spent most of the time daydreaming, the teacher would pin the note to my jacket. I was, in effect, a walking bulletin board. But hey, I was only 5.

Today Prime Minister Victor Ponta had a note “pinned to his jacket”, sent home from Brussels after a meeting with EU Commission President Jose Barroso. Ponta’s note was a short list from the EU outlining exactly what it means to be a democracy. Pretty sad and pathetic.

The note can be read here in Romanian but here’s my translation in English:

1. Respect the independence of the judicial system
2. Re-establish the jurisdiction of the Constitutional Court
3. Assure that all rulings of the court are respected
4. Nominate an ombudsman (Avocatul Poporului) that is agreeable to all political parties
5. Ensure and establish a transparent procedure for naming the Attorney General and director of the Anti-Corruption Directorate (DNA)
6. Make sure integrity is a political priority

Christ! Three of those can be boiled down to “leave the courts alone and listen to them when they render a verdict.” This is especially sad and pathetic because Ponta actually used to be a prosecutor (his higher education, however plagiarized and falsified, has all been involving the law). You’d think that first year students in law school would know the first three.

Oh well… just another day in the crazy country I call home.