1. This RBB public TV scandal has been brewing all week. Yesterday, it came out that various 'bosses' in the ARD ('mother' over all the sub-networks) knew of the bonus system being run and were fairly critical....but never put a stop to it.
RBB's words? It was never a bonus-system....it was a goal system. If you accomplished the goals, you got an extra paycheck. Even I'll admit....it's one of the most unethical discussions that you could dream up.
What's likely to happen? I think when the Bundestag comes back from summer vacation and starts to talk over this....the public TV governor's board will have to react, and demand a full accounting of funds from each network.....including ARD and ZDF. This would likely take six months, and I think all of the networks will be shaking in fear of what might come out of such an audit.
2. There's a short bit from Focus this AM where some moments/evidence have occurred to show the Russians are reaching a point of limits on ammo in this Ukraine war business.
My BS-meter? Probably a '5'.
Typically, you have a procurement schedule and purchase as a government x-amount of ammo per quarter. With the Russians....you have to figure around 40-percent of what was spent....went as 'gift' money for various Oligarch characters. So the generals are probably shocked to find the ammo depots really having only sixty-percent of the expected ammo.
More production going on? Probably. But if you were near the bottom 10-percent of ammo reserves, you might be issuing orders to hold back on issuing more than 20 bullets per day. That kind of order won't sit well with Conscripts being told to push 'forward'.
3. By the end of the week....a number of draft heat/electricity regulations were on the table, and criticism had started up.
"Excessive flood of regulations" was a term used by the CDU Party in describing how they would affect people.
There's a point where people react in a negative way to excessive rules in life.
4. It was brought up yesterday.....trains carrying coal to power plants....will now have the right-of-way over passenger trains. So just a hint....if riding the German railway system.....it's pretty good odds that a five to ten minute delay on a 90-minute trip will start to become common.
5. Couple of months ago (Feb), the government was asked what they were paying for the Covid-warning App. The price? Around 70-million Euro.
Well....this week, they had to go and admit the cost has gone up another 20-million Euro.
Usefulness? The way the App works....you load it on the cellphone and it uses the tracking system. From your home to work, you might 'bump' into 300 people. If you are within two meters of a person (for a time period of roughly two minutes), and they test positive for Covid....then you get a 'warning' via the App.
I don't use it.....but my wife does. How many warnings has she received since day one (roughly 18 months)? Presently up to four warnings....which hypes her up for a good forty-eight hours, and creates a fair amount of aggravation. So far....NONE of the four have turned into Covid episodes for her. The one Covid that she did have....come from within the office area, where she would not carry the cellphone around with her.
On value or usefulness....it's a question mark if the App is worth anything, or the government getting 90-odd million Euro of use out of it.
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