This is my list of ten things that you might tend to notice of Germans over the next decade (in 2030), as the C02 crisis falls into play, and taxation becomes part of everyday life:
1. You go and visit a German friend in the midst of January, and note that the house temperature has now been set at 18-degrees C (64 degrees F). You notice that they are bundled up while sipping your coffee with them. You ask if this is the norm, and they admit they've had to adjust the house temperature. Then they kinda admit that nightly temperature has been lowered as well....to 17-degrees C (62 degrees F). You gaze at the cat, who is just shaking his head.
2. You call for a pizza delivery order. The 16 Euro extra large pizza of 2019 is now priced at 21 Euro, with a one-Euro delivery 'fee' tagged on. You ask about this one Euro fee, and it's part of the C02 situation, with ingredients more costly as well.
3. Your German friend who was nearing retirement age now has to admit that they may have to work an extra year (maybe two), because they have to buy a e-car for their retirement years, and it's going to cost an extra 20,000 Euro on top of what a normal gas car costs.
4. Anger and resentment in your village has boiled over because one particular neighbor (during a heat wave) has installed a significantly sized AC unit. The village has one group who are advocating an AC-hook-up tax, and the group are suggesting a state law to specially tax AC-freaks.
5. Some news team finds a couple (late 30s, no kids) who both work (in different directions) and together, they are traveling 900 km per week, and their tax by 2030 amounts to 3,200 Euro. Both continually whine about the cost, and are continually told that they need to buy e-cars to get out of the tax.
6. You have a German friend who has spent a month planning this trip. Because of the added tax on airline tickets and fuel, this guy has found the perfect way to reach Thailand. He'll use a Bahn discount ticket to reach Prague, and then board the plane for 25-percent less than it would cost out of Frankfurt. Added time? Two entire travel days for the rail part of this journey.
7. A group of politically-active Germans now watch and ask state-level and national-level politicians about their cars, their travel, and their airline cost. Politicians find themselves in continual trouble as normally accepted trips come up and they have to decline them or face public pressure.
8. You start to notice that from your German neighbors....almost half of them have added a fireplace to their house, and heat 50-percent of the house via wood, rather than heavily taxed C02 natural gas or oil. Some environmentally-inclined neighbor are furious about the tactic and want the mayor to bring up some special tax on fireplaces in the town.
9. Your German neighbor kid (13 years old) whines and complains about the heat in the classroom of the local school in mid-January....that pro-environmental kids have put pressure on the school to heat the room only to about 16C (60 F). The kid's parents are trying to coach the school staff to bring the heat up, but are met by various pro-environmental kids trying to reinforce 'saving the plantet'.
10. You have a German neighbor nearing retirement, and he's put the house up for sale, and moving to a non-C02-crisis country....Greece. He's discovered that the 3,000 Euro that he's paying year for him and the wife....would be better spent there and it's more agreeable with his future plans.
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