Haunted houses, still

One simply cannot make such news up. This particular Balkan Insight story reports on the high levels of political apathy in the Balkan region, and essentially concludes that Montenegro and Kosovo are the only optimists in a region of political and economic pessimists.

The European Union has barely grazed the region, but for Slovenia's May 2004 accession, and Croatia's current (and active) candidate status -- it will be part of the EU club in a couple years' time, by most accounts.

But Croatia is among those most pessimistic countries, which all have high levels of distrust in their political leaders, their economic situations, their future courses (including potential EU membership), and their living standards. This is hardly the kind of life-blood needed for change in the region, especially since those decisive, Brussels-based changes have barely been initiated.

But that is not all. The report also mentions this: "A clear majority across all countries thought the future of the region would be peaceful. Around one in four Serbs and Macedonians (22 per cent and 29 per cent respectively), however, felt there could be another war in the region."

Perhaps a bit of panic-mongering, here. But the makings of such volatility do still exist, even if beneath the surface. All in all, this is a murky portrait, and the proponents of EU enlargement, especially after the defeat of the Lisbon Treaty earlier this summer, have a lot of worked carved out for them.