Bono has written a lengthy essay that seems to serve as a preview of the primary themes and ideas that U2 will address as the Experience + Innocence tour plays across Europe over the next couple months.

The essay, which appears in the German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ), suggests that the second leg of the tour will address civic issues in Europe in much the same way that the first leg addresses them in the United States.

"Europe is the theatre of powerful, emotional, clashing forces that will shape our future," Bono writes. "I say our future, because there is no way to deny that we are all in this boat together, in seas churned up by extreme weather and extremist politics."

He begins the essay by telling readers that the tour begins this week in Berlin and "we've just had one of our more provocative ideas: during the show we're going to wave a big, bright, blue EU flag." If you followed the first leg of the tour, you shouldn't have any trouble connecting that visual to the giant US flag that the band unfurled during "American Soul."

Stay tuned ... opening night is Friday in Berlin.