1)   This is it. The summit to beat all summits. This is D-day for the eurozone crisis. You may think you have heard this before. You have. But now Standard & Poor’s have said so, too. So it must be true.

2)   “Bazooka”. First coined by British Prime Minister David Cameron. It is apparently what the eurozone needs. And a big one at that. It’s proved a rather useful term for journalists and politicians alike as it can hide a multitude of solutions. Or nothing at all. Watch out for its use at the summit.

3)   And for eurozone phraseologists, Bazooka seems to have taken over from “doing whatever it takes” to save the eurozone.  This was a similarly catchall/nothing phrase. However, given past form, it is no longer possible to use it with a straight face.

4)   Whereas Bazooka sauntered at a leisurely enough pace into the eurozone disaster lexicon, Merkozy was something of an overnight sensation. Bild newspaper helped us with the visuals. One small quibble. Technically, as a true reflection of the duo’s relationship, it should really be Merkely.

5)    Fiscal Compact. Not a (painful-sounding) medical procedure. But what the *European Central Bank wants in return for going on a spending spree.

6)   * Nobody is really allowed to talk about this institution, as otherwise its independence might be compromised. The omerta-type deal can be gotten around by expressing confidence in the fact that  the * will act in such and such way in a given set of circumstances. A la Sarkozy.

7) Eurozone “Ins and Outs”. The Ins say thank god we were in the eurozone when the crisis happened. The outs say thank god we weren’t. Some Outs remain keen to get in (and some were keen but are less so now). No Ins are allowed to talk about getting out. But one In was told in no uncertain terms it would become an Out if it persisted with its revolutionary ask-the-people chat. It is not legally clear how an In could revert to being an Out. This is self-fulfilling prophecy territory. So no one talks about it. All Outs want a seat at the In’s decision-making table. One Out, in particular, wants a seat at the table but only to make sure it can stop the Ins doing anything it doesn’t like. This makes the Gallic In very angry indeed. The Teutonic In is the only In that matters though.

8)) Treaty-making. Germany wants an exercise in EU treaty change that would involve all the Ins and Outs. France is much keener to see the Ins forge ahead and make their own little intergovernmental agreement together. In the absence of any common EU institution to enforce such an agreement’s rules, France may ultimately feel obliged to call the shots. For the rest, it is a case of deciding which is the lesser of two evils.

9) By quirk of circumstance, ok a court ruling, Ireland’s opinion matters in this treaty debate. It has a potent card to play. It’s called the “oh-oh-that-looks-like-a-referendum-triggering-transfer-of-power-to-the-EU-level” card. Oh the power of the people!

10) The summit will be an occasion to see Herman Van Rompuy again. Last seen at the October summit where he was tasked to look at ways to sort out the eurozone crisis. Including treaty change. Until Germany and France decided to do that for him. Now he will receive the Franco-German proposals on Wednesday, in time to make them look right for Thursday. He’s good for a crisis though. No histrionics. A haiku here and there. It will be nice to see him again.

11) The summit has make or break billing but that is relatively simple stuff. Thousands of journalists will remember with horror the byzantine deals agreed in July and October involving private sector involvement in Greece’s rescue plans. It was of some comfort to find out that EU officials did not understand them either.  This summit should be clear as day by comparison.

12) S&P’s is being given credit for spurring the EU into action. But it does not work alone. French President Sarkozy’s suggestion on Monday that eurozone states meet every month until the crisis is ended should surely prove sufficient enough threat to finally bring the single currency’s crisis to an end.