When is there a "national emergency" in Europe?

It isn't when the birth rate falls below the replacement level, when the best and brightest are fleeing in search of work or when the financial crisis begins to rock the European Union; it isn't when European youth are turning to decadence and becoming increasingly disinterested in the fate of their communities and nations; it isn't when studies show that the immigrant population in Europe will become the majority population in just ten years, no. It is when an Auschwitz relic goes missing, of course.
from "Poland declares state of emergency after 'Arbeit Macht Frei' stolen from Auschwitz," by Kate Connolly, The Guardian

A state of emergency was announced in Poland today involving tightened border controls and random police checks as a nationwide hunt was launched for the infamous bronze sign to the former German Nazi death camp Auschwitz after it was stolen.

The discovery this morning that the sign had been wrenched from the top of the entrance gate posts prompted international reactions of outrage from Washington to London and urgent calls for its return (more).