Are these people stupid?

Jez W, Leeds,

It is wonderful to see the open borders in EU. It is a great step in the right direction and i hope eventually the whole world would follow and be borderless. Thought of 'Imagine' by John Lennon.
Matthew, Long Island- NY, USA

Matthew Francis, Long Island, NY, USA

This is a return to the situation that existed prior to World War I, before the nationalistic fratricidal madness that plunged Europe into war and hate. It is a practical and symbolic step that should be welcomed by everyone. What a pity Britain is not taking part.

Ben, San Francisco,

Good luck Europe. It is a bold step.
I shudder to think what might happen here in
South Africa if we did the same.

Andrew R,Durban,South Africa.

Andrew Rem, Durban, South Africa

I applaud Europeans for being such open minded civilized visionaries they are. Let this one big family attitude be example to those conservative backward jungles like USA with their stupid individualistic approach and survival of the fittest laws.

Karel T., anytown, Czech Republic

The barbed wire was, today, torn down all over a continent. This is the most important day of freedom for Europeans since the fall of the Berlin Wall. Towns torn in two by the Second, or sometimes the First World War, such as the German/Polish towns of Guben/Gubin or the Italian/Slovene towns of Gorizia/Nova Gorica are re-united. Even recently created borders, such as those between the Baltic States, were today removed. Switzerland will join Schengen next year, thus only leaving the UK, Ireland and the Russian oblast of Kaliningrad outside this zone of freedom. Let us rejoice in such an immense achievement and lament the fact that the British have barely been informed about it (no mention on the BBC or ITN news broadcasts today).

Alex, London, United Europe

Is the Times showing its ugly right-wing xenophobic tail? I sent a comment questioning the rabid xenophobia in the comments with actual arguments and facts, and it doesn't get posted. But, in the meantime, yet another bigoted and xenophobic comment is posted.

Dear Murdoch censor, I'm sure you will be richly rewarded for your diligent (dare I say Eichmannian?) efforts, but at what price to your soul?

Mike Wolf, Durham,

One would hope European countries would check for passports and visa's at the frontier of the EU, as well as, airports and ports of call. In the US everyone travels across state lines but the borders are supposed to be protected and secure. Well US borders are not secure, and there is drug trafficing and rampant illegal immigration. The US also has a large border like the EU now and it's vertually impossible to put a fence throughout.
The same issue the US has will be the same and more in the borderless EU. Good Luck

neil byrne, San Francisco, Ca. USA

To the narrow-minded people who argue for closed borders: According to your arguments, the more borders the better, since it's supposed to reduce crime... Well then, how about border controls between England, Wales and Scotland? Or why not between every county? We can choose to be all very safe in a police state (but then again, some people here probably would like that, and would support it -- until one day finding the hard way, too late and with very unpleasant consequences, that it's not such a good idea).

Also, about every reputable economic study I've seen shows that immigrant pays more into the social welfare system than they take out -- you'd have to be pretty dumb to expect otherwise: it's an overall younger population, with most people already of working-age, so we get the same taxes with fewer health, education and pension expenses.

Mike Wolf, Durham,

These politicians appear to be deliberately confusing :-

the abiity of law-abiding people to freely move between EU member states (this is good)

and

the downgrading of internal security checks within the EU to curtail the movement of criminals and terrorists (this is not good).

The reason, I believe, that UK and Eire did not join the Schengen Accord was because of their lack of trust in the ability or commitment of some states to maintain secure borders and that, being islands, they were more at risk from illegal entry.

This must be a great day for those who have no regard for freedom, democracy and the rule of law.

Why not put up a big sign saying "Welcome terrorists and criminals"?

R Bingham, Lauzun, France

As an immigrant twice over - half Irish and half Lithuanian - I can hardly count as a die-hard British nationalist. Yet there are a few points of caution and common sense to take into account here.

The first is that the British welfare state has been paid for by the British tax-payer, and the NHS, education and pensions should be available to those who have paid for them. Under what kind of contributory system are we to make them available to immigrants who have paid nothing towards them?

The second is the problem of integration into the British legal system. We do not have a written constitution, and common law has been built up over many centuries through the exercise of common sense and mutual respect in our judicial system. New immigrants from Easter Europe, on the other hand, have grown up in a culture of evading and circumventing a dictatorial system of state control. Old habits die hard, and the problem of law-abiding integration will have to be sorted out.

Edmund Burke, Kingston upon Thames, England

Since the left took power ten years ago we have effectively had no borders to the UK, so to say we have not signed up to this is meaningless.

D Case, Newquay,

If there wasn't such 'things' as criminals it would be a great surge forward towards peace, but criminals and terrorists will undoubtedly always exist. In my opinion all countries should be autonomous otherwise the whole world will eventually be the same...how boring! If the UK opens its border then god help England.

John R. O'Neon, Folkestone, England