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How the Thirty Years war affected Germany

The Thirty Years War (1618-1648) was a brutal conflict that saw most major European powers use Germany as a battleground to sort out their assorted dynastic, religious, economic and territorial issues. The toll this took on the country was massive, and reverberated for long after; let’s take a look at some of the damage it did.

The Thirty Years War has earned a reputation for being a particularly nasty conflict: unlike most wars of the day, and arguably no wars until the 20th century, it saw massive civilian casualties, with parts of Germany losing more than half of their population. It’s estimated that of a German population of about 20 million in 1600, by 1650 only about 13 million were alive.

Americans make less of a distinction between their core team and teams in ever wider organisational concentric circles. They believe that information fundamentally belongs to the entire company.

Thirty Years War

This episode of Ten Minute History (like a documentary, only shorter) covers the outbreak of the Bohemian Revolt which was what would eventually spiral out of control into the Thirty Years’ War.

The revolt was crushed fairly quickly but sparked intervention by Denmark, who didn’t do too well, and later Sweden who did very well. Both of these were aided by France who decided to get directly involved in 1635.

By 1648 the Holy Roman Empire lay in ruins, with Austria and Spain struggling to pay for the war and rebuild the Habsburg Empire. This war saw the rise of Sweden and France but most importantly saw the foundations of modern diplomacy built.

A half-century after ‘Mister Rogers’ debut, 5 facts about neighbors in U.S.

2019 – More than 50 years after the first episode of “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood,” Fred Rogers, the creator and host of the popular children’s TV show, is being memorialized on the silver screen. A forthcoming Hollywood movie, in addition to a documentary last year, are bringing renewed attention to Rogers and his familiar refrain, “Won’t you be my neighbor?”

A Pew Research Center survey in 2018 explored several aspects of community life in the United States, including neighborly relations. Amid fresh interest in Rogers and his show, here are five facts about how Americans interact with their neighbors, based on the Center’s survey:

Why Volunteerism Is an Essential American Value

The commitment to volunteerism has been a hallmark of American civic life since the country’s founding. It was Benjamin Franklin who formed the first volunteer fire department in 1736, and many American militias during the Revolutionary War were comprised of volunteers. Some of the most well-known American charitable organizations, such as the YMCA and the American Red Cross, were founded in the 19th century.

Many American youth today are exposed to volunteering through religious youth groups or scouting organizations, and many large companies arrange volunteering opportunities for their employees. Nearly every church, school, or local community center has volunteers who feed the poor, teach, tend to the sick and elderly, support political causes, coach kids, or rescue animals, among numerous other causes. Not only does volunteering allow people to help others through direct action, but it fosters an incredible sense of community as well.

Alexis de Tocqueville on American volunteerism

“Americans use associations to give fêtes, to found seminaries, to build inns, to raise churches, to distribute books, to send missionaries to the antipodes; in this manner they create hospitals, prisons, schools. Finally, if it is a question of bringing to light a truth or developing a sentiment with the support of a great example, they associate.”

Kleinstaaterei

Klein means small. Staaterei means states or statehood.

Kleinstaaterei is a generally pejorative German-language catchphrase for what is perceived as a particularly pronounced federal structure, particularly in relation to territorialization and federalism in Germany. As early as the beginning of the 18th century, early Enlightenment literature criticized German small-stateism and publicly expressed the wish for a nation state.

Volunteerism and US Civil Society

Everyone in the public and nonprofit sectors has a role to play in fostering volunteerism, and engagement can pay dividends for all.

As a former public sector leader now working in the social sector, I have witnessed the tremendous impact volunteerism has on American society—on both the people providing social services and the people receiving them.

These altruistic interactions often serve a broader purpose: They bond together neighbors and communities in a common cause, and enable us to see and appreciate each other’s humanity.

When we recognize the humanity in each other, we lay the foundations of understanding, empathy, and compassion. These then form the building blocks of a healthy civil society in which citizens are more likely to focus on what unites us than what divides us.

History of Volunteerism in America

The history of volunteerism in America is rich and complex. As long as the United States has been a nation, it has focused on helping and improving the lives of others, and this has produced a culture that deeply values volunteer opportunities.

Event organizers despair of the German small state

The jungle of corona measures meant that tours had to be canceled. Here federalism shows its deterrent face.

There was great hope that everything would change with the vaccinations against the corona virus, that cultural life could start again, that normality would return and that everyday corona life would become a case for the history books. But Germany is still a long way from that.

The theaters are playing again, the local cultural actors can also be seen again and get their performances, but the nationwide event business is not really getting off the ground. Just recently, Die Ärzte, Peter Maffay and Nena canceled their planned tours almost simultaneously: One of the reasons for this was the different corona rules in the federal states.