Author: KosovoThanksYou

Today is 100 days since the Republic of Kosova was born. Although at times the climate was rough, until now it has been smooth sailing. The newborn state of Europe which has to date been recognized by 41 countries, is acquiring international support and has faced difficulties only to overcome them.

These 100 days have proven the pessimists wrong. Some claimed our independence to be a precedent, yet this has failed to materialize. Others predicted the failure of law and order and rule of chaos. Again, this too has been far from the reality on the ground.

For a country that is 100 days old, with a people that have gone through a lot, but who show such enthusiasm for change, progress and future, we can say confidently that Republic of Kosova is on the right track.

Problems exist. The state is being built bit by bit. It is a hard and daunting task. But in the face of this all, we can be sure that the next 100 days will only bring improvements.

The Economist last year published a study about democracies in 167 countries (2007). The Economist Index of Democracy focuses mainly on five categories: free and fair election process, civil liberties, functioning of government, political participation and political culture. According to the study almost half of the World’s countries can be considered democracies, but only 28 qualify as “full democracies”.

Kosova has been formally recognized by 20 out of 28 “full democracy” countries.

The Economist Intelligence Unit’s index of democracy

We are glad that on the latest report of the Secretary-General on the UNMIK (March 28, 2008), the map of Kosova has been updated. For the first time the label “Province of Kosovo” has been updated to just “Kosovo”, as well as the Kosova border with Serbia has been more emphasized. We are aware that all the borders are not labeled as international, but it is still a sign that UN is accepting a new reality.
Map Comparison

We are glad that Albania and Croatia were invited to NATO and Macedonia will follow their path soon. We also wish Mr. Haradinaj (Kosova’s former PM) a safe return home.

(April Fools day, don’t take it seriously)

Einstein: “Precedent? That is relative when it comes to Kosova”

Sir Isaac Newton: “A second apple fell on my head when I heard about Kosova. It makes perfect sense now”

Archimedes: “I was running and yelling Eureka. Then I saw someone already thought of it, independence was the only way”

Amelia Earhart: “Happy to know that Kosova can fly alone”

Confucius: “a happy people, leads to a happy state”

Leonardo Da Vinci: “oh look, they cracked the code”

Copernicus: “…maybe I was wrong. It is not the Sun”

Benjamin Franklin: “Euros? I just wish they used the Benjamins (dollars), that would be cool”

Mendeleev: “I always knew there is a place for the KS element in my table”

Marie Curie: “I wish I could give Kosova the gift of Kosovanium”

Steve Jobs: “I present to you, a state, a democracy, and European: iKosova”

Bill Gates: “I might have been wrong about how much RAM people will need in the future, but I always said, Kosova will be a-okey. I hear they have some excellent .NET programmers”

Sergei Brin to Larry Page (Google guys): “Why isn’t Google Maps updated already?”

Linus Torvalds: “Kosova will be an _open_ society, and one that uses open source and Linux. I hear they have some _excellent_ programmers

Pink Floyd: “Wish we were there”

Darth Vader: “it is no precedent, the situation in Kosova is completely different from that of rebel planets”

Yoda: “Thaçi, the Force is strong with that one. Great things I see for Kosova. Bright is the future of the republic. Kosova, may the Force be with you”

Nicola Tesla: “I am drooling when I think of all the electricity that will be produced by this small country ”

Steven Spielberg: “I can see a movie coming…”

Martin Scorsese: “I can see a movie coming…”

Quentin Tarantino: “…I need the soundtrack before the movie. But yes, I can see a movie coming…”

Enjoy April Fools day…we are.
Best wishes from Kosova and beyond…

Updated the colors of the regions (mostly islands) that belong to the previously colored countries. (Most of them may not be seen due to the map size)

• UK: Turks and Caicos Islands, Cayman Islands, UK Virgin Islands, Falkland Islands, South Georgia
• US: Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands
• France: French Polynesia, New Caledonia, Kerguelen Islands, Mayotte
• Netherlands: Netherlands Antilles
• Portugal: Azores

Also, due to some technical issues, Today (March 28, 2008) some countries/territories appeared/disappeared unexpectedly.