蜜芽传媒

Pascale Harter introduces personal insights, from 蜜芽传媒 correspondents and writers from around the world. In this edition:

"Do we need Europe - or does it need us more?"
The metaphorical courtship between Turkey and the EU has been one of the region's great running dramas for decades now. A lot has changed since the EU first began flirting with the idea of Turkish membership, and Ankara said it would do anything to hook up with Brussels. Now Greece might be getting a divorce from the Eurozone - so for Turkey, joining the club has lost at least one attraction: the lure of stepping on its historic rival's toes.

Then there's the EU itself, mortgaged up to the hilt, maintenance payments the kids'll be paying off long after they've left college. And all the time, as Europe's looking more doddering and confused, Turkey's cutting a dash on the dancefloor. And the Arab world has started to look on admiringly. So now who wants who exactly? Our correspondent Jonathan Head thought it over.

Amish life: "We're just pilgrims passing through"
The Amish communities of the US are well-known - and instantly recognisable - for their creed of simplicity and humility in all things, from their buildings to their dress to their attitude to technology. But in a country (and a century) where modern gadgets and more open values are everywhere, it's not easy to stick to the rules of the sect while still 'in this world'. David Belton took us to upstate New York, where Amish norms have run up against a no less rigid set of rules - the state's building code, and its insistence on including fire alarms.