Ah, those crazy kids from Slovakia

It's been a while since Bratislava has seen so much action. The Slovakian Parliament, stuck in a domestic tug of war that up to now hasn't exactly made international headlines, today voted against expanding the euro-zone's bailout fund, which is considered a critical puzzle part in the effort to avoid a Greek default. And yes, there is a kind of Monty Python/Marx Brothers flavor to the whole thing. The 16 other euro-zone nations have all signed off on the plan. Only Slovakia is holdings things up. The good news is that today's down vote seems to be based more on parliamentary maneuvering than any lack of support for saving Europe. In fact, the nation's outgoing prime minister and the leader of the main opposition party say they're trying to figure out a way of resolving the mess. From the NYT:

If nothing else, the unwieldy process underscored how the entire $590 billion euro stability fund, approved by the 16 other members of the euro currency zone, could be held hostage to the domestic politics of one tiny country, in this case Slovakia. It showed as well how a measure intended to increase confidence in the euro zone could instead emerge as a telling example of the shortcomings of a system that relies on an unwieldy group of nations to make and execute difficult decisions. The vote on expanding the size and powers of the fund, known as the European Financial Stability Facility, followed a day of speeches, recesses and hastily organized meetings to find consensus. The free-market Freedom and Solidarity Party, one of the four parties in the coalition, had refused to back it, even after Prime Minister Radicova risked her position by connecting the bailout fund to a confidence vote in her government.

Question: Who had the bright idea of requiring all 17 countries in the euro-zone to sign off on something like this? Didn't it occur to anyone that one tiny nation could gum up the works for all of Europe? Goodness knows where this leaves the financial markets, which seem to get panicky each time German Chancellor Angela Merkel lets out a belch.