Ober sticht Unter. The Ober beats the Unter. The saying comes from card games played with German-suited cards, such as Schafkopf, where the Ober is the higher court card. In everyday use it means that the higher-ranking person wins, whatever the argument. It is usually said with resignation or as a complaint, when rank has decided something that the reasons should have decided.
A Speech Made of Half-Sentences
In his television series Loriot, broadcast by Radio Bremen from 1976 to 1978, the humorist Loriot parodied speeches in the Bundestag. His speaker produces half-sentences that never end. Politik bedeutet, und davon sollte man ausgehen, das ist doch – ohne darum herum zu reden – in Anbetracht der Situation … Politics means, and one should assume this, that is surely, without talking around it, in view of the situation … Hier und heute stellen sich die Fragen, und ich glaube, Sie stimmen mit mir überein, wenn ich sage: Letzten Endes … Here and today the questions arise, and I believe you agree with me when I say: in the end …
Talking With Nothing Inside
die Worthülse — a word husk, a phrase with nothing inside.
heiße Luft — hot air.
schwafeln — to waffle, to talk at length and say nothing.
der Phrasendrescher — a phrase thresher, someone who threshes stock phrases.
die Sonntagsrede — a Sunday speech, fine words with no consequences.
der Wichtigtuer — someone who makes himself important.
mitreden können — to know enough to join in. Da kann ich nicht mitreden means: I don’t know enough about that to say anything.
The Presiding Judge Votes Last
When a German court deliberates, the Courts Constitution Act fixes the order of the vote. Professional judges vote by seniority in office, and the junior votes before the senior. Die Schöffen stimmen vor den Richtern. The lay judges vote before the professional judges. Zuletzt stimmt der Vorsitzende. The presiding judge votes last. The official information sheet for lay judges tells them that they hold judicial office with the same vote as the professional judges.
Graded for Speaking Up
In North Rhine-Westphalia, the school law bases every grade on two areas. One is written work. The other is Sonstige Leistungen im Unterricht, other performance in class, which pupils call mündliche Mitarbeit, oral participation. The law says both must be given appropriate weight. The state’s curriculum for German at grammar schools assesses die Qualität, die Quantität und die Kontinuität der Beiträge, the quality, the quantity and the continuity of the contributions. One school’s grading rules add a warning: Besonders zu beachten ist die Unterscheidung zwischen der quantitativen und der qualitativen Mitarbeit. The difference between quantity and quality of participation needs special attention.