Theodore Roosevelt supposedly said: “In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing and the worst thing you can do is nothing.”
politics
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.
Federalism in Germany: Small states are annoying! Glad we have them!
December 2018. 16 school systems, 16 police forces, 16 constitutional courts: German federalism often seems inefficient and outdated, most recently with the digital pact. A look at history shows what makes small states so valuable – at least when they don’t degenerate.
It seems bizarre: the federal government wants to give the states five billion euros to digitize schools – and only then should the Basic Law be changed. The mediation committee is called, a coalition is in dispute – and all because Germany is a federal state.
The constitutionally enshrined division of Germany into federal states was born out of historical experience, has grown over a long time and also shows some signs of use, almost 70 years after the Basic Law came into force.
Why Schäuble sees too many Germans going it alone
Wolfgang Schäuble has been a member of the Bundestag for exactly 50 years, making him the sole record holder. For the anniversary, the CDU politician will basically be with Markus Lanz. He criticizes Germany’s “know-it-all” on many issues, which means that Germany is met with a lack of understanding from many international partners and allies.
As an example, Schäuble cites the discussion about the “One Love” armband at the World Cup in Qatar. This moral exaggeration does not fit the federal government’s gas deal with Qatar. Germany needs this relationship right now. And don’t stick to what other countries would like to dictate.
But even in the debate about the raid in the “Reichsbürger” milieu, an internal contradiction becomes clear. Such a successful search is only possible thanks to a certain level of surveillance of suspects, for example by wiretapping communications. Here Germany must find the right balance between freedom and security. And between security and morality.
It is similar for Schäuble in energy policy. Germany has been going its own difficult path here since Nord Stream 1. But with Nord Stream 2 at the latest, they have moved far too far away from the other Europeans and the Americans.
In Germany, a tendency to know-it-all is spreading. That could be politically dangerous
NZZ. December 2022. Germans don’t tend towards extremism – actually. But in the political and media sphere, know-it-alls and paternalism are increasingly noticeable. Contempt for the normal is a cause for concern.
For a long time, modern Germany was not a country to worry about from a democratic point of view. According to a study by the Allensbach Institute for Public Opinion from this year, 25 percent of Germans place themselves exactly in the middle of the democratic opinion spectrum; 36 percent slightly to the left, 29 percent slightly to the right of this center. That’s 90 percent between center-left and center-right. Actually calming.
Schäuble: Criticism of German know-it-alls
Wolfgang Schäuble (CDU) sees German politics as increasingly isolated. The senior president and record holder in the Bundestag urges moral restraint.
50 years in the Bundestag. A number that invites you to become fundamental. And that’s exactly what Wolfgang Schäuble did in conversation with Markus Lanz. “We are world leaders when it comes to moral know-it-alls,” he said on Wednesday evening about the attitude of German politics and society these days.
George Carlin
New York Times. May 11, 2022. One of America’s greatest stand-up comics. A satirist in the deepest sense. George Carlin. Always critical of his homeland. Its short-comings. Its deceits. For many a true patriotic American.
Scholz “stepping on the brakes”
The Guardian: Coalition partners accuse Olaf Scholz of failing to live up to promises as major Russian offensive looms
Germany’s chancellor is under growing pressure to authorise the delivery of heavy weaponry to help Ukraine defend itself against Russia’s looming eastern offensive, with Olaf Scholz’s coalition partners accusing him of failing to live up to his promises.
“I can only speculate why the chancellor is stepping on the brakes like this. I can see no logical reason for it. But with his actions, the chancellor is not only damaging the situation in Ukraine, but he is also massively damaging Germany’s reputation in Europe and the world.” Anton Hofreiter – leader figure of the Green Party.
Scholz indecision
(Bloomberg) — German Chancellor Olaf Scholz faces intense pressure from members of his ruling coalition to step up deliveries of heavy weapons such as tanks and fighter jets to help Ukraine fight Russian troops. After initiating an historic reversal in Germany’s previously frugal defense policy in the early stages of the war, Scholz has since appeared hesitant to go beyond initial supplies.
1990. Bush. Gorbatschow.
Robert Zoellick, former Deputy Secretary of State under President George H. Bush, addresses Putin’s claim that the West broke a promise it made in the 1990s not to expand NATO.
This is about the topic Agreements, and the American logic. Listen carefully beginning at around 2:30, especially at 3:56, where Zoellick reveals crystal clear the American logic: “Nothing’s really final until you put the words on paper.”
This video was posted on YouTube on February 1, 2022. It is not clear when it was recorded. Russia had amassed conventional forces surrounding Ukraine. The invasion began on February 24.
