Our 'Gears' Aren't Working Correctly Talk

 I had a question thrown at me today:

"Judging from the news services of late, there seems to be no end the amount of stupidity in the world. From the local average Joe to the high and mighty politicians. What started the insanity?"

Ten years ago, I would have answered in a different 'tone' and said simply that the 'times, they are achanging'  (Bob Dylan tune from 1965).

Today, there are probably a dozen 'gears' at work, and society is unable to function as we were....say prior to 2000.  

Problem #1: A lot of people  have exited the education system (mostly in the US, but to some degree in the UK/Europe) knowing less knowledge than they would have gained in the 1930s to 1980s.  Even if they have knowledge/wisdom, I would discount half the population existing as unable to take facts, situations as they are, and bundle-up a solution or 'path'.

I'm not saying they are stupid,  but they can't assemble enough to avoid stupidity.

Problem  #2: Some people believe science is SETTLED, PERIOD, END OF STORY.  I don't think Einstein today would be able to hear this phrase without falling on the floor in a fit of laughter.  We'd probably have to pick him up and assure him that this is the going philosophy.

Problem #3: Somehow, we've appointed idiots onto boards, or as CEOs....we've voted political 'juveniles'....to do things that they probably aren't capable of handling.  

Like running a beer operation, and just selling beer (nothing else).  

Or having a bank operation which performs the function of handling your money....safely.  

Or voting in political situations, and grasping what you voted for in simple form (like explaining it to a 12-year old kid).

Problem #4: We can't seem to remember history much.  If you tried to bring up the Roman Empire....95-percent of Americans wouldn't be able to cite more than 3 lines of information.  From the German side.....they might be get to 8 lines.  Hitler gets uttered a great deal......'bad-man' is usually the citation accompanying the mention.  Beyond that....the history knowledge is probably less than the cartoon character history of 'Charlie Brown', on Hitler.

Problem #5:  We want to believe things an awful lot, while at the same time....we don't want to believe other things....no matter how many facts you do lay on the topic.

Problem #6: We are confused.  We have more than three-hundred sources trying to tell us something, and half are citing marginal truths....limited facts....and a biased 'base'.

Problem #7: We get 'lectures' daily now....even from some Minister, some gas-station clerk, or PhD moron from CNN or BBC.  Your patience with lectures probably is half of what it was a decade ago.  With this....we seem to 'mute' more often now.  

Problem #8: Movies and TV shows seem developed to bring you to a life-conclusion.....not as entertainment.

Problem #9: We've been geared to pull for the bad guy.  Like that Walter White-guy from Breaking Bad.  Even if you threw 20 facts on the table that this Hunter Biden-guy probably needs to jail-time to clear up his past history.....'dad' convinces us that Hunter just isn't that bad.  

Problem #10: Life is more complicated today than fifty years ago.  Some folks meet someone who they think might be a 'winner'.....then immediately turn to do a credit-check on the person....meaning they don't really believe 'first impressions'.

I have a Audi A5, with more than 100 functions that I've yet to master (3 years into ownership).  I can actually instruct my car to call someone.....yet I can't think of a reason why driving....that I'd want to chat with my wife.

I have a fantastic Samsung TV....with more than 3,000 functions.  After 2 years of use....I've probably figured out 200 of the functions so far.   

Problem #11: The gender-pronoun business.....probably sets up the scenario where a third-of-society would rather not deal with such a person.  

A month ago, I had a news piece trying to convince me of a 8-year old kid having the status in life to make 'big' decisions....to me, this meant letting the kid have a driver's license, school corticate, and if he wanted to marry some gal....it must be alright. 

Problem #12: Approaching reality where I realize that my ancestors from just 100 years ago (1923) probably could grasp a situation in a better way, prioritize the resolution, and walk out of a mess.  

This 100-year reality check begs the question....have we really progressed like we think, or are we stuck in Twilight Zone reality at present?

If you wait two years....I'll probably have a different view by then.  

Three German News Stories

1.  Near the Nuremberg Airport yesterday (Sunday)....around 50 Last Generation activists started a protest on the main road leading into the airport.....carrying suitcases described as 'harmful C02 suitcases'.   

2.   Dutch authorities have ordered the burnt freighter to proceed.   It will end up in a nearby port, to have the cars removed.  Threat of sinking?  Still existing.  

3.  Survey done, reported via N-24, 11-percent of Germans lack the money to have a full and complete meal every two days.

Airport Story

 Yesterday, my regional airport (Frankfurt) gave out a warning....for the month of August....if you are arriving and exiting the airport, your bag transfer to the carousel area (pick-up)....will be a 'bit' longer.

Cause?  Well....they are prioritizing incoming folks, and transfer-folks (those getting on another flight and flying out of Frankfurt)....will rank higher than those exiting the airport.

What this really means?  Once you exit the plane (being a in-Europe flight situation).....you might as well head to a bar in the airport, and sip through a beer for the next sixty minutes.

The thing that I always liked about Frankfurt (before Covid)....you could fly in (say from the states), exit the plane, be out of border-control in 15 minutes, and have your bag off the carousel 15 minutes later.  It was an amazing well-oiled-machine that existed.  

Now?  You probably need to allot 90 to 120 minutes for your exit off the plane and out of the airport.  

Cause for this?  Summer of 2022 was a mess, with various travelers finding their bag never made it with the connecting flights out of Frankfurt...even if you had two hours of time between flights.  

Three German News Stories

 1.  WELT piece this AM....poll done and apparently most Germans don't want Merz (the CDU Party 'boss') to be the Chancellor candidate in the next election (fall 2025).  Guy favored?  CSU's Soder (from Bavaria)....the sister-party to CDU.  

2.  This burnt-freighter (with the cars) just sitting there now?  Yeah.  Plan is to 'tow' it to a port about 16 km away.  The tug folks aren't that sure about the plan....a weather front coming in shortly....so the ship is lingering right now.

3.  Some chatter in Poland about Wagner mercenaries near the border....possibly to cause trouble. 

Berlin City Park Story

 On the SE end of Berlin is Gorlitzer Park....which I would describe as 150 meters wide and maybe 700 meters long.  From the late 1800s, to around 1959....this was a railway station.  Then in the 1980s....it was supposed to be 'modeled' into a city park....which was opened in 1994.

What you can generally say from 1994 on (as a unified Berlin)....it became a drug-hub.  If you wanted drugs....if you wanted to partake in drugs....if you wanted find crime, this was the place.  Locals around the area know, and have been very bitter about what the city did.

Around 21 June....a group of guys came up on a couple....held the guy off, while the group raped the lady-friend.

Cops have been investigating and have arrested some folks. 

Well....in the city, there's now a fair amount of pressure....to end crime-design of the park.  Either tear it down and put up condos.....or bring in a fair number of cops and charge people with crimes.  

How it got this way?  More of less....the city prosecutors for the past three decades have decided to just look the other way, and let drug traffic continue.

The city council now in a bad position?   Literally everyone in the city has heard of the rape, and agree on what happened over three decades to the park.  

Germans in the War?

 It's hard to imagine this, but Focus laid out this story....that some Germans (almost all men it would appear) went off to Russia to enlist....to fight in the war against the Ukraine.

Number?  Well...they say 'dozens'.  

There are two numbers mentioned.....'61' is talked about as 'departed' and were identified in some German database as extreme right-wing.

The second number is '39'....who they (the authorities) have some proof that they went to fight in the war.  The rest?  They didn't really say they were going to fight.

Of the '39'....it should be noted that almost a dozen said they were going to fight against Russia.

What happens if they return?  There's a law in place since the ISIS business....to conduct some court activity and you probably end up in jail for a while.  Yeah, they really want to discourage civil war participation elsewhere....hoping to prevent you getting some weird idea to come back and start up a conflict here.

Of the '61' or '39'....the odds they will return alive?  Well....that's another piece to ponder.  I'd say at the 12th month of participation......it's probably a 50-percent chance or better that you won't be coming back....other than in a box.  

This worrying the Germans about the participation?  So far, they seem to only be monitoring it.  If you suddenly said 200 folks a month were leaving Germany for the war....yeah, that might freak out some folks.  

Five German News Stories

 1.  This past week, I was out and about in Wiesbaden/Mainz....last week of July...and it's  just shocking the dress/attire.  Everyone is dressed for fall weather....temperature in mid-day was around 16-to-18 C (61 to 64 F).  Drizzle or rain falling.

It's been this way since the 2nd week of July, and if you follow the next fourteen-day forecast....more of the same.  Light rain and cool temperatures expected through mid-August.  

Other than 4 serious days of heat (at 30 to 32 C.....which is not really that hot)....this has been the mildest summer in decades in central Germany.  

What changed?  The jet stream. 

That AC unit of mine?  It's been cranked up three days for the whole summer.  My neighbor's pool?  They probably had around 15 days of decent weather to use it.  

2.  That ship potentially sinking near the north coast of Germany/Netherlands?  Well....the fire seems to have finally gone out. 

There is disagreement about what to do now (attempt to bring it to a port is believed to be the next episode).  Cost of removing the burnt cars and dealing with the toxic issues?  You can figure this will go up to a billion Euro by the end.  Already there is talk of insurance going up in a massive way, if transporting E-cars.

Authorities now say there were 500 E-cars onboard this ship....not 25.  

As for towing into any German port?  Well....I would imagine every possible lawsuit will occur, and make this near impossible to occur.

3.  AfD Party holding a weekend conference....their tenth anniversary of existence.

If you'd said ten years ago that they'd be near 20-percent on polling....most people would have laughed.  The original design and 'brand'?  Anti-Euro.....go back to the Deutsche Mark (DM).  

4.  Last night (Friday), in Augsburg....some mid-60s German guy went into an apartment building and shot five (two are dead).  No motivation given.  Guy was eventually arrested by the police.

5.  Reportedly, German airlines are tasking lawyers now to examine civil cases against the Last Generation activists....if they move ahead, this could get into the millions for damages.  48 flights were cancelled, and that will add up for compensation. 

Six German News Stories

 1. Last night, ZDF (public TV, Channel 2) ran a good documentary piece....but on fairly late (after 10 PM).  

Title?  "On the pulse with Christian Sievers - standstill and obsession with rules - is Germany wasting the future?"

44 minute piece....which talked a good bit about all these construction projects in Germany, which are weighed down by regulation and bickering....taking years and years to accomplish.  

Yeah, there are things they readily accomplished in the 1970s in record time, and today....you could attempt the same project and instead of 18 months.....it'd be five to seven years...at double or triple what the project should cost.

2.  There are now 142 court cases pending on the Last Generation activists.

3.  A town in Saxony-Anhalt has generated a harsh letter to the Chancellor.....the Mayor and city council say that they've reached their limit on taking in more migrants.  Issue?  They are mostly all SPD Party members, and the letter is addressed to Scholtz (the SPD Chancellor).

4.  Fire on that freighter (off German/Dutch coast) still continuing.  Lot of fear that the ship might sink now.  On major disaster scale....if it sinks?  I'd rate this as a 'five' on a scale of one-to-five.

5.  Berlin is apparently investigating around 100 regional drivers for issues in dealing with Last Generation activist blockades.  Yeah, the word 'violence' was used, and some of the drivers might be losing their license for a while.  All this is doing....is generating more public resentment of the environmental group.

6.  RBB (public TV for Berlin) talked a bit over more tent-cities to be built....to handle refugee numbers in the city.  

Putin's Army Guys Visiting North Korea

 There's been a Russian delegation visiting North Korea this week....basically looking for equipment and manpower.

What North Korea has to offer?  Well....it's mostly 1950s/1960s hardware....in decent condition.  Tanks possible?  Some sources suggest 4,000 tanks.  

I would imagine some kind of oil deal can be made....to buy a couple hundred tanks.  North Korea would turn around and market the oil in the region....for cash.

As for manpower?  I just can't see how the Russians would arrange this....taking say 10,000 North Korean men....likely losing the whole group in six months...never to return to North Korea.

Selling them for more oil tankers?  It's just hard to imagine how you'd write this agreement on paper.  

Would North Korea just limit it to 10,000?  Well....you could write a scenario where 100,000 North Koreans were drafted up and sold for a dozen oil tankers.  

Evacuation Plan 'B'?

 German Army mission in Mali (Africa) is supposed to end in May 2024.  Lot of chatter over this for past six months.  They don't want a screwed-up mess like the US had in Afghanistan.

Well....the general plan was that they'd DRIVE out (head south) to the border of Niger....cross, and then board cargo planes there to leave.  It's about 130 km from the Mali border....to the Niger capital city and the airport.

Things were settled...up until today.

Niger, if you didn't know....had a coup yesterday and shut down the border.  President?  Gone.....military guys running the country. 

Plan 'B'?  No one really says no.

Using the southern country of Burkina Faso?  NO.....lot of crime and terror business going on.

Using Guinea instead?  Well....a whole day added for convoy purposes. Senegal would be the same way.  Mauritania?  Fair amount of crime and terrorism.  

So this might be interesting to watch things unfold in the spring of 2024.

Five German News Stories

 1.  This freighter off the northern coast of Germany....on fire....has turned into the top topic.  Fire started via a E-car.

Fear?  There was speculation last night that at some point....the ship will sink, and trigger a catastrophic eco-disaster.  This brought up a whole segment about the odd factor of E-cars catching on fire (I see this noted in German newspapers at least once a month).

Under control?  No, still burning and some speculation that it could burn for three more days.

2.  Forsa did a survey for WELT....suggesting that a third of Germans now see the biggest problem....politicians and parties.  

I would suggest the 'Jesus-factor' at work, where the politicians have taken to news media to say they can solve all problem, and the message reaches a confusing state where people want to believe but can't seem to find 'trust'.

3.  More evacuations in Greece on several islands....because of fires.

4.  Lab results of hair found on trail....concludes the suspected 'lion-in-Brandenburg' was really a wild boar.  End of story....period.

5.  My regional (Wiesbaden) weather forecast for next 14 days?  Nothing above 24 C (75 F), and almost rain every single day.  My AC unit for this summer?  It's been turned on a total of 4 days.  

I would suggest this being the most moderate summer in decades.  Yesterday, I noted people mostly in slacks (no shorts), and wearing jackets.  Today, it's supposed to reach a max of 20 C (68 F).  

New German Product

 I was in a German grocery this past week, and stood by the smoothie case....where a new product was placed.....Tabasco smoothie. 

I contemplated this a good bit but refused to buy it.  Personally, I just can't imagine this being a sought-after product. 

Malaria in the Frankfurt region?

Well....what the airport folks at Frankfurt say....one of their employees (who hasn't traveled out of the country) has Malaria.  The belief is that a mosquito came out of some plane.....then infected the guy.

Odds?  You'd think it's one in a million.

Odds of additional folks  having infections?  Well....you just kinda wonder about that. 

Weather presently?  It's the oddest July ever....extremely mild weather....lot of cloud cover, and drizzle type rain the past two weeks....off and on.  Yesterday....a full seven hours of rainfall.  So  it's in the favor  of more mosquitoes being around.

Three German News Stories

 1.  Long Covid-chatter?  Finish study done and worth reviewing....via Focus article.  Probably not a shock, but they say that your DNA is part of issue....when you have Long Covid.

DNA item?  FOXP4 gene.  If you carry this...your odds of Long Covid are 1.6 times higher.

2.  Odd grocery 'test' to be conducted in Offenbach....'quiet-hour' opening.  For a 2-hour period each day....speakers will be off, and noise at the cash register will be lessened.  Apparently, they believe some Germans are ultra-sensitive to  noise, and this test will show if the idea is  benifical.   

3. Car freighter fire from yesterday....e-car caught on fire.  1 crew-member dead.

Trauma Chatter

 In my German language class business, and integration class episode....I came into contact with various non-Germans, and it proved to be a fairly interesting experience.

Among the various folks (well over 200 non-Germans)....there were at least two individuals that I'd quietly assess as having mental issues.  I'm not saying they were dangerous....just that they either showed bizarre behavior, a phobia-like condition, or PTSD-like symptoms (particularly from the Syrian civil war atmosphere).

Today, Focus brought up this issue.

The fact that most never get 'care'?  Well....yeah....that's probably a fact.

Between the war-like conditions of the old country....the miserable experience of getting to Germany....living in crappy refugee centers, or dealing with bureaucratic Germans.....you can end up with various mental trauma situations.

Personally, I don't think the German system back in 2014 or 2016....realized this impact and the amount of chaos that these migrants were dragging along.  The system also didn't really have a mechanism to handle this.  

These people just 'hanging-on' or using drugs/alcohol to compensate?  Yeah.  And if you were forecasting an era where problems would occur....this would be a trigger.  

Four German News Stories

 1.  Sunday evening, the 'boss' of the CDU Party (Merz) gave a big interview on ARD, and said in certain words that the CDU would NOT partner up at the national or state level with the AfD Party.  

What he left out was municipalities.  So this has gotten some criticism generated.

It's basically forcing the party into a corner now....going back to center-center  politics (Merkel's big game), and if you had some conservative positions....well....it's going to be hard to avoid the AfD Party.   

Uttering of comment 'Laschet version 2.0'?  This was the last CDU 'boss' who got dumped upon and left when support dwindled.  

2.  Primary news last night....German tourists being 'lifted' off several Greek islands because of fires.  Number?  They suggest 30,000 being removed, and their vacations ending early.  Both commercial and public TV ran long segments about this last night.

3.  New SPD Party topic?  Oddly enough, they want to forbid recruitment of temp employees under the age of 18.   It's a trend I've noticed lately at grocery stores  (shelf stackers) and bakery operations.  These aren't full-time jobs....more like the mini-job status.  

4.  Jan Alexander Casper wrote an interesting piece for WELT....noting the problems of German prisons now....where increasing numbers of people are convicted and sent off to.

Added burden these day?  A lot of those who show up....are actually mentally ill.  The prison system was not set up to function as a mental ward.  Good piece, worth reading....in today's WELT.

The 15-Minute 'City' Concept

 Lately, if you view Brit news, there's a lot of chatter over the city planning concept of 15-minute cities.

So the planning tool concept is that 'most daily necessities and services' (we are talking about work, schools, clinics, leisure and shopping).  The key point....you get there by walking or riding a bike (not using a car or public bus).

I've viewed the concept a good bit.  I'll admit....I've only been to the 'isle' around four times in my life and mostly ventured in rural areas (outside of London).  

Proving the point of this working?  I'm not that convinced that actual research has proven this point, and I'd question how one comes to the number '15'. 

Working in a German community?

Well....most German towns/villages have what I call a industriegebiet.  It's at the very end of a town, and this is usually where you might have 10 to 20 small companies.  It's zoned for industry and city councils don't over-regulate things.

Clinics or hospitals?  They don't really fit into this scheme because if you were sick or in a bad health situation.....you won't be walking or riding a bike over to the facility.

Grocery operations?  A German town of 10,000 might have two to three operations, and it's rare that they'd all be in the center of town.  

Trying to get locals to agree to the 15-minute concept in Germany?  I just don't see this working.  They'd start asking pointed and blunt questions, and the city council would quickly note that 'sneaking' it by the public won't work.

How this started in the UK?  You had to have some simple 'brand' (message), with minimal people showing up for city council meetings, and a newspaper half-a-sleep.

Four German News Stories

 1.  Is there a push to advertise Berlin as the 2036 Olympics location?

Well....yeah.  They want to make a presentation that they've recovered from the 1936 Nazi era. 

If you asked me about opposition to this?  I think around one-third of the city population would say there are better things to invest money into and being a Olympics location should not be a priority. 

2.  Political polling?  ARD (public TV, Channel 1) checked national polling.  For the coalition (SPD-Green-FDP), if you held an election...their combined numbers would be roughly 38-percent (not enough to have a coalition with these three).  

3.  Lot of chatter starting up over border controls, and limiting entry into Germany.  I'll just say that if you went back to real enforcement....you'd probably have to go and hire over 20,000 folks for the job.  The odds that you'd have to hire a abundance of 'new' Germans for the job?  Well....yeah, that probably would be the outcome.

4.  There are now 840,000 RV motorhomes in Germany....with 100,000 added yearly.  Crisis stage for parking them?  Yeah.  Most people don't have ample room on their property for such a large vehicle.  So this is starting to be discussed how to handle an approaching crisis.

Is There A Heat Wave In Central Germany?

 NO.

Since April, I can count approximately five days that the temp rose to 32 C (89.6 F) or above.  

Unseasonable weather?  Yeah, in two aspects....it is absolutely moderate (cool) weather....and  it's been mostly a drought-like situation for the past 120 days.  More rainfall in the past two weeks?  Yeah, but if you added up what would be a normal summer rainfall count for my district (Wiesbaden)....I doubt if we've had more than 30-percent of the 'norm' for summer rain.

This morning, as the run rose....the temp was 10 C (50 F).  Presently, I've got most of the windows closed and it probably won't get above 22 C (71 F).

All of this heat chatter?  I'm not sure it's really valid.  

Here's the thing....there are around 45-odd days of summer left, and as I view the weather predictions for the next two weeks....it continues along this path....a brief shower or two, and max temperatures going up to around 27 F (80.6 F).  

This might be the most moderate summer in decades.

Daryl Dixon, Coming To France To Save Humanity?

 Well....the Walking Dead zombie show has decided to proceed on with the next version....where Daryl has somehow crossed the Atlantic, and has landed in a nun-operation where it's interpreted that the American has come to save French humanity.

I sat and watched the preview this AM, and it is a five-star preview.

Starting?  Apparently in September.

Yes, it's built like a Normandy landing scene, and one single American has arrived to take on evil zombies....in the interest of mankind.

A sort of Joan-of-Arc theme?  Well....yeah, that's precisely what I get out of the preview.  

Der Löwe, Der Es Nie Gab (The Lion Who Never Was)

 It's a fascinating topic...roughly 48 hours after suggesting some picture taken on a wooded trail between Brandenburg and Berlin....was of a female lion....the idea has been squashed completely, with the public told it was merely a wild boar.

There's hundreds of thousands of Euro having been spent on the search with overtime paid to the police.  The news and social media were heated-up....asking the question....where does this lion come from?

In some weird way, I'd suggest that a fair number of Germans (not a majority) wanted the lion story to be true.  

Hoax potential?  This has been on my mind, and I'd actually give it a 75-percent chance of being designed as a hoax, and that a real lion was used in some way for the path-photo.

A script waiting to be turned into a German comedy?  Well....I could see some guy sitting there now and writing this into a movie script.  Some private zoo lion who is friendly with people....walks away.  Some German kid befriending her.  A dozen fake big-game hunters brought in, and some gov't official proclaiming the lion 'protected' by 'rights'.  Some German Elmer Fudd-like hunter on the trail of the lion.  It literally begs for a movie.

Five German News Stories

 1.  Some hyped-up chatter from the CDU Party 'boss' saying yesterday....that the CDU were the 'original' alternate party (instead of the AfD). This drew criticism from the SPD, the Greens, and even the AfD Party.

2.  Because of all this search business for the non-existent lion in Berlin.....the building folks for the Economics Ministry ended up finding an Iguana in the garden around the building.  Another creature which shouldn't exist in Germany.  He/she got removed to a safe enclosure.

3.  WELT had a piece today talking over SPD/Green Party plans to make the combustion engine production even more unattractive to the German consumer.  

Yes, you have to wonder how those AfD folks get so many free gifts to interest voters in voting for them.

4.  N-TV had some segment this AM.....Russian logistics is having a problem providing ammo and weapons.  It was noted that in one Russian unit at the front....the 22 men had two rifles that were operational.  

5.  Chase on-line bank coming to Germany?  I read this in the AM business news.  I would question how they will be accepted (already a lot of German banks who have on-line services).  

Lion Hunt Ended?

 Well....after much analysis of the picture in the wooded area....the authorities around Berlin have decided that what this animal was.....was NOT a lion.  It was deemed a wild boar.

I sat and pondered upon this.

I've seen a handful of wild boar in my life and they definitely don't appear like this animal was in the picture.

Hoax material?  Well....it make you wonder.

Lion still out there?  It would be amusing in six weeks to find some lion lounging in a Berlin garden area.  

Eight German News Stories

 1.  I sat and looked at the 14-day forecast (Wiesbaden region).  Temperatures?  Nothing above 25 C (77 F)....light showers anticipated on eight of the days.  Most moderate summer I've seen for the region....ever.   I will admit...everything is awful dry and my yard is mostly dead at this point.  Just odd.

That AC unit I bought in 2018?  It just sits there.  I've cranked it up for about three days of the summer so far.  

2.  Yeah, about that loose female lion.....police in the Berlin region are saying they 'think' they are getting closer to discovering the whereabouts of the lion, but it's still free.  

The public is still being told not to be outdoors much.

3.  Political polling I noticed....Green Party at 13-percent....lowest position of past five years.

4.  German Health Minister went and did a critical social media message....saying the heat in Italy would make it a very undesirable place to visit in the future.  This triggered an angry response by the Italian Tourism Minister.  

5.  WELT story: around 20-percent of all Germans in a poll....admit they are somewhat polarized on various topics, and not able to see or agree with other people.  Oddly enough, a majority of these people are noted to be urban-folks, or highly intellectual.  

6.  Some chatter starting up that the SPD Party wants to make a compulsory social service in Germany.  It's not in the agreement for the coalition, so it's a question if the FDP and Greens would agree to this. 

Basic idea....if you forced this upon young people....they'd be more connected to society.  Potential to be challenged in court?  Yeah.

7.  Just odd....on this lion episode in Berlin.....the 'boss' of the Remmo crime clan has publicly said he wants the lion safely caught, and there is some suggestion (whether true or not) that he's asked his people to help in the search.  The guy is actually noted for being pro-big-cat.

8.  Another German mandate coming around.....forced upon grocery operations to use HALF as much plastic wrapping for products sold by 2027.  

I would just offer that you see a lot of products (Apples for example) sold in a plastic bundle of six.  Lately, I've noted they switched to a paper bundle (probably will draw negative attention as well).   

Looking Ahead at 2025?

 German national election for the fall of 2025, and the likely Chancellor-candidates?

First, lets just go and admit that the general public isn't that pepped-up over Scholz (SPD Party), and this will be a correction type election.

So from the SPD Party?  I'll generally predict that the new Defense Minister (Pistorius) is the most likely person to emerge as their new candidate.  

From the Green Party?  I think Habeck will be the primary candidate, but there's going to be a lesser thrill over him, than occurred in 2021.

From the CDU/CSU Party?  I project four candidates: (1) Merz (current party boss), (2) Wust (current Premier President of NRW state), (3) Spahn (former Health Minister), and Soder (current Bavarian Premier President).  

From the FDP?  Lindner.  

AfD?  Anyone's guess.

At the current pace, I think the CDU/CSU ought to come near 32-percent (assuming Merz is the candidate) and likely win.  

Lion Chatter

 Man, whole lot of lion chatter going on in the Berlin-Brandenburg region.

What police are say?  Don't go walking in the woods around the region.  If possible....just stay indoors.

Use of drones?  That started up around two hours ago.

100-percent belief that this is a female lion?  Well....no.  There's been one single person sighting....from a distance.  There's a grainy photo....from a camera at night.  One expert still suggests it might be a 'big' dog of some type.

So it's mostly police looking around, and a vet or two ready with tranquilizer guns to handle the situation (if they find the 'cat').

Exciting?  Well...it's taken the attention of the N-TV news folks.  

Four German News Stories

 1.  My local weather for 5 AM tomorrow?  11 C (51 F).  Max for tomorrow?  20 C (68 F).  All this hot stuff around the Med?  It's there...not here in the central Germany region. I'd say it's the most moderate summer of the past 20 years.  Drought-wise?  Yesterday came a brief rain (about 20 minutes).....which was the 3rd time of any amount of rainfall in the past 120 days.  It is exceptionally dry....that much I will admit.  

2.  N-Tv had a piece this AM.....apparently some camera set up in the woods between Brandenburg and Berlin....had a picture of what appears to be a female lion taken in the past couple of days.  Police have put out some type of warning.  

They've checked circus companies and zoos.....so far, no one admits losing a lion.  My humble guess is that someone has a private and unlicensed lion situation, and she got out....so they don't want to admit the situation.

Footnote: some local Berlin driver saw a lion 'munching' on a wild boar....which started this effort to photograph the creature.

3.  It's not a five-star emergency yet, but both beer companies and bottled-water companies are starting to complain about a glass bottle shortage going on.

What you have going on....glass-bottle companies, because of cost to manufacture....cut back on production.  At the time, consumer companies thought they had an adequate number to 'get by'.  Well....this only works if people wrap up a case of glass products, and turn them in ASAP to the local beverage shop or grocery.  Most Germans will sit and wait until they have four or five custons in the basement....then haul them to turn in.  

What the pricing went to....to trigger this?  140-percent up from the 2021 price to make a bottle.

4.  Intense discussion going on about having national rules on temperature situations in schools....where it's too hot, and they have to release students.

For the discussion.....you won't find any classrooms around the country with AC units.

Some PhD folks have done a study and say the ideal learning temperature is 21C.

States all have a differing view of this....some say as the temp hit 27 C....you have to offer classroom instruction outside (I would assume under trees).  

LNG Story

 It's one of those odd stories. 

Rugen Island, for those who aren't familiar with it....is marginally an island.  It's placed about about 40 miles west of the Poland-Germany border, and connects to the homeland with a one kilometer bridge.

What the main industry is for the island?  Tourism, some fishing vessels, and a small port.

There's been activity around Rugen over the past year.....the German government settled on the idea of having a liquid natural gas (LNG) port there.

Locals?  Lately, they've been pretty peeved and they want some attention to the coalition government....meaning they are going somewhat negative about both the Greens, and the SPD Party.

All of this getting public and commercial TV news attention?  Absolutely.

The fact that the LNG ports have to be 'somewhere' and that Hamburg is 'coughing-up' space for two of them?  Yeah.  

A danger to tourism?  All you need is one ship to blow up and folks will freak out. 

Explaining House Bans and Numbers

 In German culture....a 'house ban' means the bouncer or guards kicked you out and you can't come back.  In public pool chatter....it means for the current season....you won't get back in.  Fresh new year next year?  Yep, and a chance to get back on the good-boy list.

So Berlin was asked by the public....what's the public pool numbers for house bans?

Answer....for 2023?  So far, Eighty, and according to their best guess....at the present pace, it'll end up around one-hundred-and-sixty by the end.

So naturally, you'd ask for 2022.....what was the house ban number?  Well...133.. For 2021?  79.  For 2020?  71.  For 2019 (before Covid)?  432.  For 2018?  572.

It's an odd trend line (info from RBB).  

Lot more house bans for 2018/2019....but almost  near 2021 levels?  Yeah.

I would suggest that a lot of this chatter before 2023....didn't get noted on social media or in the regional news.  More cop involvement?  No one says that (oddly).

More group brawls?  No one says that.

More Berlin city bad boy behavior?  Well....you don't get national numbers or Bavarian numbers, or Bremen numbers, or anything else to compare to.

In fact, they can't even tell you if these are all male house bans, or if a few young ladies brawled as well.  

It just makes you wonder if people latched onto the brawls and pool protection as some national trend (when it isn't).  

Attack Story

 First, before I get into this attack on German police from yesterday at Nuremberg....let me say with pretty high confidence....from all of the top forty train stations in Germany....there's a drug agenda going on and various people are 'looped-up' on something....around the clock at these stations.  

As an American, I was attracted to German stations (something that we really don't have much in the US), and it used to be a big deal for me to go off to some German city and observe 'old-fashioned' stations.  So I've seen a lot of stuff around stations and the past 20 years have been a negative trend.  

So, to the story from yesterday...around 6:25 PM, police were called to the main station.  Crazy guy on the loose.

Cops arrived and found this Middle-Eastern guy (later identified as Syrian, 28 years old) in what appears to be a dazed condition, insulting people, making threats, and he quickly focused himself upon the police with a broken beer bottle.

Police cautioned the guy, but he still approached, and ended stabbing one of the officers with the bottle.  

Yeah, he did utter the 'A-A' phrase, but I doubt if he really was in that terror sort mind.

A 2nd and 3rd police crew soon arrived and put the guy on the ground.

All of this drew negative attention, and insults by others got thrown at the cops.

What'll happen?  Pretty serious charge will occur....attempted manslaughter.  I would imagine the guy will be sent off for drug tests and probably a 30-day mental eval.

So before you get to some terror suggestion....between drugs and booze....a lot of people do stupid things in Germany these days, and the suggestion of fundamentalism probably doesn't work in most of these cases.  In this case, a lot of the more experienced police would have pulled a weapon out and shot the guy as he approached.  So he was kinda lucky.  

If convicted?  Well...he could get up to ten years.  

Opinions Study

 I sat and looked through a piece from a Frankfurt newspaper.  Topic?  People of a particular political persuasion.....more focused on rejecting opinions that are different from their own.

So the question is....who did the study?  Well...the Dresden Technical University.  What they drilled down into....if you said you were of the SPD or Green Party 'types'.....you had a pretty strong view of your beliefs, and discussions going beyond your 'boundary' just wasn't going to happen. 

So the other side of this study....showed that people on the right side of the spectrum....were at least willing to listen to the discussion and engage.  They didn't say if the 'right' guy changed his position....just that he was willing to hear an argument.

I sat and pondered over this....at least in terms of censoring or controlling the news and social media situation.

In respect to the left side....they'd rather not get any fake news or propaganda chatter mixed into their reality....which they believe.  The fact that they might see fake news or propaganda everywhere?  Yeah, that is a central problem.

Did the research crew jump into propaganda or lecture, or fake news?  No....they simply sat and asked enough to determine that one group wants limited chatter, and the other wants unlimited chatter.

Shocking anyone?  I'm not buying into this being big news.  

Three Odd Stories

 1.  Focus ran a piece this AM and talked about the 15-odd-million E-cars that Germany anticipates will be built over the next seven years, and how interest has kinda hit some peak.

Yeah, in some way....there's a suggestion that unless the gov't figures out some gimmick (like lower sales taxes)...there's going to be a lot of E-cars sitting on 'for sale' lots.

2.  RBB (public TV  from Berlin) talks this AM about a fair amount of 'invented' Covid test results (from the 2020 to 2022 era)....where corruption existed in the city Covid tests.

Where did the profits from the invented results flow to?  Well....Turkey. 

In one case alone, they've tracked down the guy responsible and figure he moved around 10-million Euro from fake Covid testing.

More out there?  Probably, but it'll take a massive amount of investigation, and I'd doubt that they ever get the money back.

3.  What's this talk of a Berlin City repeat on the 2021 federal election?

Well....in a nutshell, the city of Berlin ran a pretty crappy 2021 city and federal election.  Lawsuits came up and the city was eventually forced to repeat the city election (different results this time around).

So the Constitutional Court is being dragged into another lawsuit.  The deal.....if the court said that the city election was 'fu**ed-up'.....then logic would hold that the national election held in the city was also 'fu**ed-up'.

Opening a can of worms?  OH YEAH.

If the court did say another federal election had to occur....2 years after the 2021 election?  I'd suggest that the results at this point would be a shift from Green Party and SPD votes.....to CDU and AfD votes.  

How eager would the court be?  I'm guessing that almost all of them would like to find a logical way to avoid another election attempt.

How did the 2021 national election in Berlin get so screwed up?  

I'd go to two  central issues.  A major marathon was held on this Sunday election day....disrupting traffic to a great degree.  Second issue....the polling volunteers who signed up to get a higher priority for the Covid vax deal....didn't show up....so they were missing a fair number of poll 'helpers'.

Wages Chatter

 I sat and browsed through a Wall Street Journal report....which suggests that via wages....Europeans have generally done worse off than Americans....over a 15-year period.

These reports always come with a mixed view situation.

I tend to agree salary structure in most countries are not at the US level....but if you viewed 'standards of living'....you'd have a different view.

I certainly can compare California with Bavaria, then say that Bavaria is a heck of a lot better, in terms of controlling crime, infrastructure, and having less poverty.

I'd generally say the same for comparing California with France or Spain.

The problem, if there were one, is that taxes in Europe eat up a fair amount of income levels, by the time you count property taxes, gas tax, the VAT, income tax, and the cost of health insurance.  In this moment, you are simply hoping that competent people take your tax money, and use it in a smart fashion (avoiding building 'bridges to nowhere').

The fact that a lot of what these Europeans would purchase (beyond the grocery) is Chinese-made?  Yeah, this trend is one that might consume a long conversation.  

Five German News Stories

 1.  N-TV had a piece this AM.....polling done in the UK says a majority of Brits want to re-enter the EU.  Before you get excited....you need to note that this number is 51-percent....so just discussing the topic and having another election....you might not win it.  

I would also imagine that 10-percent of this group wants a 'condition' or two if such an engagement was to be handled....like getting their 'payment' back or having some special trade clause, or refugees to be handled in some special way.

My gut-feeling....it's as divided today as it was when BREXIT occurred. 

2.  Joachim Gauck, former President of Germany....was on the Markus Lanz public forum show (ZDF) last night.  Various questions came up, and he uttered some line that some East Germans (his old homeland area being former DDR)....'live in a intermediate realm' politically.

The meaning?  A state within a state.

It would require a drink or two, but you are thinking of your regional landscape as having a slightly different view from the national landscape.  

Yeah, I'd agree with Gauck.....but it's generally always been this way in Germany with state-by-state mentality.  

3.  The 'boss' of the Bundesbank gave an interview and suggested that the bank scenario of a collapse is now possible because of the way social media affects the general public.

4.  I noticed that Russia raised the age of maximum enlistment for  'senior' officers.....up to 70 years old.  Basically, if you'd retired back at age sixty a couple of years ago in Russia as a 1-star general....it's now possible for them to drag you back for a couple more years.

5.  This 'promise' by the SPD Party in the last election that they'd be pushing the construction yearly of 400,000 home 'units' (apartments/houses)?  

Well...over the next year, the gov't now figures around 177,000 units will be built.  This is a noticeable failure.  I'll just say it's a hard thing to promise.....with housing projects not really being a national trend.  

End of Things?

 I read a brief piece off Focus this PM....more or less going to the topic of the 'end of civilization'.  The discussion....mankind ends by 2100.

Blah-blah-blah.....

I should say....the research folks simply added up the numbers and said there is a 'risk' of extinction by 2100.

So, at the end of this....five chief issues will kill us: artificial intelligence (AI), a serious regular pandemic, nuclear war, a serious man-made pandemic, or some type of natural disaster.

To be honest, up until three years ago....AI was a fantasy thing, and hardly mentioned except on Star Trek or Stargate episodes.

I could see a man-made pandemic arriving...where either the virus itself, or the vax situation kills off humanity. 

I think with German society.....most would ask if it's only 75 years away....is there a necessity to pay the TV-media tax and could we just skip it?  

Three Odd Things

 1.  Poll done by RTL-TV....asking Germans if they were satisfied about opposition efforts by the CDU-CSU Party.  65-percent said 'NO'....Merz wasn't up to the task.  I should note that 68-percent of Germans aren't that happy with the SPD Chancellor (Scholz).

2.  Telsa talking about doubling output at the plant just south of Berlin?  Yeah....they want to bring the staff up to 22,000 eventually.

3.  The N-TV travel 'expert' was asked....if you go on a vacation to Spain or Italy, and the heat gets up to 45 C.....can you get a refund on your trip?  No is the answer.  If they were unable to get you there, or the AC unit in the hotel failed....that would be different.  

Five German News Stories

1.  Locally to where I live (in the city of Mainz)....they had some kind of city-bus brawl around 9:20 PM last night.  What the cops say....young guy (27) got into a argument with another young guy (17), and this led to the 17-year old pulling a knife and stabbing the legs of the older guy.  Bus driver alerted cops, and the 17-year old was arrested.  Older guy apparently OK, but he's in the hospital recovering.  

What the fight was about?  Unknown.  Summer heat affect?  Well...for the past five days....it's been amazingly cool for July days.  I would add that evening bus rides (typically in Mainz), you never see the buses more than half-full. 

2.  Protests going on in the Baltic Sea region...over the build-up of the liquid natural gas (LNG) terminals.  Mayor of the local town tried to see the Chancellor and Habeck (Economics Minister) yesterday....neither gave face-time.

The LNG operations?  They are supposed to be finished and fully operational by the end of the year.  Locally there, it's drawn a lot of negative attention.  Decision has hurt both the SPD and Green Party.

3.  Lot of chatter over the gang-rape of the German tourist gal by the five Germans on the island of Mallorca (Spain).  Spain has a different view of this type of crime, and just being a suspect....you stay in jail.  On Spanish law?  If convicted....minimum of five years in prison...on up to ten.  

4.  Car news....Renault Twizy e-car will end production later this year (12 years of producing them).  

The Twizy, if you ever saw it....was like a go-cart.  Top speed was 80 kph for the max-version and 45 kph for the 'lite' version.  My negative against it....you could only drive it on city streets and local highways (was not built for autobahn use).  

5.  German doctors are now recommending mid-afternoon siestas (like you do in Spain) because of the heat situation.  

To be honest, at least in my valley, it's been the most moderate summer in twenty years.  I've turned the home AC unit on (has to be 32 C for me to take this action) a total of five days so far.  Looking at the weather status for remainder of July....it's not supposed to hit 30 C or more.  I will admit, drought situation does still continue and 5-percent of the leaves on my cherry tree are dead now.  

Another Berlin Pool Brawl

 This AM, I noticed another public pool fight occur over the weekend in Berlin.

This started between two guys, and escalated to around a dozen.  One guy was knocked out.

What the cops say....to restore order....eight police vehicles (16 police) were required.

Politically, these pool brawls are attracting social media attention and public demands to ensure 'peace'.

Some folks are saying more police action....but the police don't want to be 'pool-guards'.  Hiring private security?  You'd end up with 'pool-bouncers' and accusations of special treatment for some folks. 

My suggestion?  It is a male issue....between ages 15 and 25 mostly.....I'd just set up a new fee-to-enter deal....triple the cost for the immature crowd.  If that's not enough.....I'd triple it a second time. 

Six German News Stories

 1.  Several days ago in Spain....in a tourist area where Germans frequent.....five Germans were accused of raping some German female tourist.  Spanish police reaction?  Arrest of the five and being held.

Naturally, this made it into the German papers (it's a top 10 topic).  So about 72 hours passed before the Spanish papers said (not the German news media) that all five 'Germans' arrested are of a migrant background.  I've yet to see this talked much about via German TV news or newspapers (with the exception of BILD).  

2.  Focus talked about a economic survey which should alarm folks.  Roughly one-quarter of all German business operations are considering giving up.  Reason?  Taxes, finding trained/capable employees, and bureaucratic requirements/paperwork.

You can walk around my local town (Wiesbaden, 283k residents), and see one-hundred-plus 'help-wanted' signs.  I see them on the interior of buses and trains now....where the bus/train companies are begging for people to apply.  You see them bakeries.  You see police 'help-wanted' posters.  You see cafes begging for table-help. 

3.  McDonalds Germany announced some things changing in the future.  The bun size?  Well....it's going to shorten (in heighten) by some margin while the patty will remain the same.  Cheese to be used?  Some different type which melts 'easier'.  

4.  WELT had a piece on Sunday....talking over Hamburg's central train station, and how it was regarded as one of the more dangerous stations in Germany (for theft and assaults).

5.  WELT piece....on the Italian version of 'Last Generation' activists....called 'Ultima Generazione' has been noted collecting personal data on the Italian kids who are in Italy's Friday's For The Future group.  What it appears like?  Profiling who would be future members for U-G.  Odd tactic, and something that you tended to see in 1930s Germany.  

6.  Over the weekend, there were a panel of German doctors who came up and said that around a quarter of all surgery done in Germany....ought to be a one-day outpatient situation....thus saving healthcare insurance companies around 10-billion Euro a year.  

I'll just say from personal observations....no one ever goes in for a one-day or even two-day situation.  Even for a minor deal....you probably can expect three to five days of hospital time.

Five German News Stories

 1.  What is this whole thing going on with left-politician Sahra Wagenknecht?

Wagenknecht for two decades....has been a familiar face with the Linke Party (far left).  About three years ago....she was out of the leadership role of the party and went into a 'pondering-stage'...while still be attached to the Linke Party.

What Wagenknecht came to....is that various people want fundamental changes to occur, and the changes aren't exactly liberal sort standard.  

So she dragged up this idea that the Linke Party needed to 'morph' slightly into something else, and you started to get the idea that she wanted use the model that Macon of France had.....to create a party around one-person....one-idea.  This is where a majority of the Linke  Party moved away from her concept.

In the past six months....with the AfD Party taking over a lot of polls....especially in the eastern part of Germany....Wagenknecht is now seen as having a opportunity to create one single party, with people from the left and right....dissolving the threat of the AfD Party.  

It's an odd political situation to develop, and I won't say that it'll go far.

2.  There's a long piece in WELT this AM, written by Hannes Stein....explaining to the typical German that the US is slowly dissolving into a Yugoslavia-like situation where different 'states'/regions can't function in a unified manner.  Worth a read.

3.  The CDU Party General-Secretary gave a interview on Saturday, and basically said of the public pool brawl-situation existing around the country.....that the people responsible for the fights (typically in the afternoons)....ought to be already brought forward to a court-room by that evening.  Yeah, he's suggesting an immediate sentence...actual jail-time (probably going past a couple of weeks).

I'll just say if you had video evidence of the brawl....it could be a fairly short case. . But anyone suggesting a brawl action involving eight people could be done in an hour of court-time...are fooling themselves.  

You might be better off to limit entry to young men (age 15 to 25) at public pool, or just demand they pay a higher entry fee (say 20 Euro).  They should be the ones paying for the 'bouncers' at the pool.

4. WELT reports from this week's episode at the Dusseldorf airport....48 flights had to be cancelled because of the Last Generation activists blocking the ramp/runway.  The legal claims here?  If you look at the airport operation, the airlines themselves, and the tourists/travels hurt by this.....it'll go into the tens of millions.  This might be an interesting court episode to watch develop.

5.  WELT statistic....22-percent of Germans can't afford a one-week trip....anywhere...for a vacation.

What Do I Think The End of Last Generation Activism Will Look Like?

 I'll predict one of three scenarios occurring in Germany....to note the end-path of the environmentalist 'game':

1.  An ambulance crew with a dying guy will come into a intersection blocked off....with the patient in the back dead before they reach the hospital, and resulting in an attempted-manslaughter-type charge on the five or six people glued to the pavement.  From that point on, prosecutors around the country will see the protest under a different light.

2.  Eventually, some trucker loses his 'cool' and assaults several activists glued to the ground.  In court, with video shown....the judge goes the opposite direction and drops the charges....letting the injured  protest folks know they were 'asking' for it.

3.  Stalled people end up in civil court and charging the protest crowd anywhere from one-thousand to ten-thousand Euro in 'damages' for stalling them from an appointment or flight.

In the end....the protest folks will have huge debts owed to the court system, and no ability to pay it off.  

Three German News Stories

 1.  I noticed that Berlin public pools have announced a new policy....you have to show a ID card (can be the national ID or a student ID)....to gain entry.  This came up because of the numerous brawls/assaults over this summer period.

In addition....if you read through newspapers....they are adding security cameras at entry/exit points.  

'Pool-bouncers' being added?  Yeah....they've gone to some service and found guys to enforce civil behavior.  

What's really driving all of this?  Lot of juvenile-behavior being seen with 15-to-30 year old men.  Once you have some insult felt....an assault starts up, and then you have ten to twenty young men 'pushing-back'.  

2.  It kinda came up that the German gov't went to build this heat-pump law.....using non-gov't 'help'.  Yeah, it was contracted out to a commercial company.  Cost factor?  Several million Euro.

Drawing attention?  Yeah.  I can't say this has been done before, but it's being noticed and public questions are being focused at how this was written.  

3.  Swedish police have 'approved' a Torah/Bible 'burning'.  The protest group want to send a message.  

Pool Rules Changed

 The Wiesbaden city council....my local district....came out yesterday and hyped up that the public pools....as of today (Friday) can be a topless situation....for men and women.

If you read the literature....it's  bold comment....men and women equal.

Will this be a big deal?  Well....I'm guessing that 90-percent of women will continue to wear a top.  

Attracting young non-German males to eyeball things?  Yeah, that probably will be presented as a problem....sooner or later. 

Crime Story

 Back around six months ago....I essayed over a 'killing' in Germany.  What you had was a Palestinian guy....who'd killed  two Germans on a regional traind and wounded five others (with a knife).  Cops got to the guy....detained him, and his case in court is supposed to start up in court.  This was all in Brokstedt (about an hour north of Hamburg).  

So this guy has been held in the local jail...waiting, up until this week. Then things 'changed'.

Curiously, he is absolutely classified as 'dangerous'.

So, what changed....well....he's in a real correctional facility now because he made a threat to the local jail-keeper, and then set his cell on fire (last month).  

Nutcase?  Back in January, if you read through everything, this was a guy who just kinda wandered around, and was aimless.  Drug treatment program?  This got brought up.....so he's had a drug habit.  

Ending up in a mental institute?  I might bet on that.

An Electrical Story

 For about 18 months in Germany.....there's been this 'craze' going on about balcony solar panels.  You basically go to a do-it-yourself shop or a grocery, and you buy a box with a panel (easily hung on the typical balcony) and the cabling which goes to a 'converter' box.....which you plug into your apartment power.

If I drive around Wiesbaden and observe apartment building....I'd suggest well over 1,000 apartments having the solar panels in use.

So....today via Focus....an electrician went and bought the package and took the 'converter' box apart.

There is no protective relay system in the converter box.  Meaning?  Well....legally, it can't be sold or installed.

The protection certificate which should be there in the box to cover the panel/converter sold?  Nothing.

The lack of a built-in circuit breaker?  Well....it should not have been sold in this fashion.

The guy doesn't complain about the quality of the panel or the general operation of the converter....just that it wouldn't be acceptable 'as is'.

All of them sold this way?  You can't say that....the one he took apart came from one single grocery store, and reflects only that brand.

All of this to trigger some government reaction?  You just wonder about how this will be handled.  As a minimum, I'm guessing the apartment owners will want some reassurance, and there's probably some 100-Euro fee involved here....for a guy to come in....note the product and sign off on 'safety'.  

On the funny side?  Well...it just goes that you don't necessarily go to a grocery to buy non-grocery items.  But Germans might be convinced it's Ok. 

Three Odd Things I Noticed This Week

 First, a German lipstick company had a new ad that appeared on commercial German TV...featuring a thin-model lady, a hefty-lady, and a feminine-looking guy.  

The idea was....they were branding to sell to virtually anyone....even guys.

A new German trend?  Well....you just don't know.  If you were asking me personally....there might be three-thousand guys across Germany who might be drawn to something like this.  

Second, there's this one TV analyst for N-TV who was interviewed and made an odd 'judgement'.  He said something to the effect that Russian Army is one single defeat away from staging another coup.....with or without Prigozhin's help.  

Basically, whatever positive charm that the war had for 2022....it's gone, and people are just waiting for one crucial problem.

Third, last night on the late ARD (Channel 1, public TV) news....they interviewed a Last Generation activist.  

There were a couple of pointed questions and I'll give some credit to the ARD journalist.  

At some point, the journalist pointed out that from the general population....there wasn't any shift to the 'cause' going on, and the activist gave the general 'chatter'....this demonstration business is the only way to get people's attention.

At some point, I wanted to mute the TV (I couldn't because the wife held the remote control).  As much as the journalist did work to give the message or 'brand' across....it's just not going to sell to the typical working-class German.  In some ways, it just felt like propaganda or a 'lecture'. 

Two Things

 1.  RTL (commercial German TV) did a poll with Germans and how they feel about the Chancellor.  64-percent said they weren't happy....only around 34-percent they were happy.

Oddly, if you go back to March of 2022....it was around 60-percent happy with Scholz....so the trend is pretty harsh and negative.

Scandals?  None.  Fumbling around on speeches?  No.  Sick or ill?  No.  If you were looking for leadership skills or convincing the public of things....there's most of the negativity that you can direct toward Scholz.  

It doesn't change anything, but I would imagine the SPD Party is reviewing options for 2025's national election.  Scholz is probably going to moved out in that election.

2.  There's a 'fund' at the EU for Covid-recovery....of about 700-billion Euro.  There was supposed to be a open and transparent way of seeing how the money was spent.  I watched N-TV news this AM, and this matter came up.  So far....the committee at the EU has not published a listing of the spent money, and some folks are now asking questions.  

Obviously, money is being spent...somewhere.

The EU even wrote a rule....twice a year, they were supposed to publish a list of the top hundred expenditures.  

Why avoiding the transparency?  Anyone's guess....one might assume that there's some questions and they'd prefer not to admit that.

I did notice....one of the folks spending the money....located in Italy, wanted to modernize soccer stadiums around the country.  I suspect if you asked everyone....most countries had soccer stadiums, swimming pools, and city parks getting a big chunk of money.

Five German News Stories

 1.  Odd piece by ARD (public TV, Channel 1) on increasing numbers of German juveniles checking into clinics.....mostly for depression or mental illness.

For 2021....around 81,000 German kids (10 to 17) checked in for some reason.  Out of this group....roughly 12-percent of this group came in for alcohol-related problems (deemed alcoholics at a early age).

In my period living around Kaiserslautern, we had some 14-year old local kid who ended up being shipped off for about 90 days to 'clean-up' and detox....he was drinking a serious amount of alcohol weekly.  

2.  The Kinder-Eggs chocolate company....Ferrero....announced a salmonella outbreak and shut down the factory.   

3.  Last Generation activists are saying big protest is planned for today (Friday) across Germany.

4.  About an hour's drive SE of Berlin is the Spreewald area.  Some story developing where two of the local teachers are leaving the area....saying that students in the school are demonstrating right-wing extremism, homophobia and sexism.  Drawing a lot of national attention.  

5.  WELT had two significant pieces today....talking about violence/brawls at public pools across Germany.

Something that does appear to attract attention...most of the 'problem-folks' are young men of a migration background.  

Some pools have reacted and even closed....to lessen tension.  Some politicians are more police action (increased numbers) to counter the problem.  I noted that the chief of the German police union said 'no'....this was their function to be pool-guards.  

In the end, I suspect a number of the highly urbanized areas will start to make pool-ID's and people that end up on the bad-boy-list...won't get entry into a public pool.  

But this makes you wonder....does this problem exist generally in society, and is not just a pool violence issue?

About Those Flights

 My wife (German in nature) and I got into a discussion over the Last Generation activist business today at Dusseldorf and Hamburg....cancelling a total of 12 flights scheduled, by gluing themselves to the ramp/runway area.

The thing she pointed out.....it messes up the 200-to-300 tourists on each plane leaving, and screws up another group at the receiving end who would have left....adding up to 4,800 tourists minimum and the crews of twelve planes.

Just on damages?  She figured up near one million Euro per plane.  The fact that travel companies might get into this, along with personal lawyers for tourists?  

The problem I see....once the activists are dragged into the court, they might be rather shocked that no one agrees with them, and the cost factor is a thousand times more than they thought.    

My view is that if I drove two hours to reach the airport, and wasted three hours in processing and boarding....to have the flight cancelled....my patience would be challenged.  The activists aren't seeing the tail-end of this....rather than convincing people of something....they've gotten a fair segment very negative.  

A Little Drug Story

 The Royal United Service Institute (a think-tank in London) announced today.....based on analysis and discovery....Russia has gone to a new strategy in the past couple of months.

Drugs/chemicals are issued out....triggering soldiers to have less inhibitions.

The hint?  You end up in a mixed-up situation and are more likely "to fight no matter the odds" are. 

I sat and pondered this.  Throughout WW II....the Nazis were issuing various drugs. By the end, I would imagine virtually everyone who'd survived five years of the war.....had a drug dependency problem and was dumped into a cold-turkey situation as Germany gave up the war.

When you add up the limited training that the Russians provide....once you get into a stressful situation and no real awareness of the best way ahead.....you freak-out a bit and do stupid stuff.  To be honest, when if you were on some meth and put into a stressful situation....you will still do stupid stuff to get killed, but at least as the commander orders you to do X and Y.....you probably will die trying accomplish that.

What happens at the end of the war?  Will these folks be told to go cold-turkey?  Yeah....probably.  

The odds that our coup-guy....Prigozhin....was doped up when he did all that BS?  Well...now that you mention it.....yeah, it's possibly he had some great meth experience going on.    

What Is This BBC Scandal Business Of The Past Week All About?

 Well...some parents of this 21-year old Brit guy....finally went to a newspaper and alerted them that X-nightly newsman working for the BBC.....for 3 years....had sponsored (paid) their son for 'something-physical'.  

The amount that probably went to the young gentleman?  21,000 Pounds.

At some point, because they'd tried to get the BBC interested in 'stopping'....(that failed)....they saw no choice but to hand the story over to a newspaper.

Where the money came from?  This hired BBC guy was making in the range of 400,000 pounds a year.  

Since Monday, I've probably watched 20 minutes a day of this coverage and social media commentary.

To be honest, I don't really give a damn....if the 60-year old new-guy wants to go and have protected/un-protected sex with the young gentleman....as long as he's 17 or older when this starts.....I won't say much.  The fact that the money went for a crack habit?  Well....if you walk around central London, I would imagine more than 10,000 folks minimum....have a habit.

If the older guy used office funds for this....from his BBC charge card?  I might laugh over his ethical problem, and force the guy to pay the money back.

As scandals go?  Well.....Germany might crank up one decent three-star scandal a month.  The Brits?  They have two or three constantly running, and a new one developed every single Monday.  If things get real slow....that Harry and Meghan crew in the US get a call, and get asked to loosen up another scandal of some type.  

Social Media BS

I was a bit skeptical while reviewing this 'Der Standard' story in the AM today.

Basically, it's a suggestion that popped up in the EU  (I'm surprised Germany itself did suggest it).

The idea is.....the minute you have a riot or any kind of social 'mess'.....you'd turn to X-director for the EU...some 'commissioner'....then he'd turn to Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Tiktok, etc.....telling them to cut things off for say 24 hours.  

I pondered over this.  Having been in Panama when the unrest occurred in the 1980s....I know how social unrest and riots go.

First, I'd ask how long you'd shut down things?  24 hours?  48 hours?  72 hours?

Would you do it for purely one country....like the riots started in Amsterdam....would the cut-off only affect them, or would you drag in all the EU for their one mess?

Then, I'd ask once the matter is over and you turned the system 'back on'....what if all the video of the events then gets seen by the public a week later?  What if you started having massive public anger about the lack of information?

Finally, I come to this one odd thing....once you shut down the social media folks....the only thing providing public information....is the public/commercial news folks.  Would the public trust the story that they tell?  I'm not convinced of that. 

If you'd had social media on 9 November 1938....for Kristallnacht?  With this rule....you would have shut down social media entirely for about a week.  Would people today....believe a modern day Kristallnacht....with only public TV news?  I doubt it.

The other end of this?  I think people from the past month in France are shaking their heads because social media just inflamed public sentiment.  

The easiest fix to this mess?  I'd just rig the internet to speed to drop by 90-percent....so a 30-second video would take you five minutes to download.  After watching one or two videos at a massively slow speed....folks would go back dating Apps, or video-gaming.   

Q-and-A

 1.  Is Prigozhin, the Russian coup-guy, still alive?

No one has seen the guy in two weeks, and even in Germany....the journalists seem pretty convinced Putin had the guy 'whacked'.  

2.  Is Germany in a drought cycle?

I think you could go back to a decade ago and suggest that central Germany now has a drought-cycle which has developed.  You get decent rains in March/April....then it ends until late September.  I'd generally say for the past 120 days in my region (Wiesbaden), there's been two light rainfalls (quarter-inch each time) and one 'gusher' (30-minute half-inch situation).

Fronts that do come over?  Mostly heavy cloud cover, with a temperature drop.  

3.  Last Generation activists going to block planes leaving?

Well....this AM in Hamburg and Dusseldorf....roughly a dozen flights were suspended/cancelled.  If you were looking at hostile and angry Germans.....you just created several thousand....this included the crowd on these planes leaving, and the crowd at destinations who expected their plane to arrive and they could board to return to Germany.

At the present pace, I'd say roughly a quarter of German society will have a very solid negative opinion about the Last Generation folks by this time in 2024.  

Pretty Stupid

 Late yesterday, I was watching on-the-scene German video of a duo (both young ladies) who'd attached themselves to some pavement to halt traffic....drawing the cops.  In the end, the German police chiseled out the piece holding the two ladies, and removed them from the scene. 

What I noticed though....this wasn't a pure glue situation (like you traditionally expect).

This was a concrete and epoxy resin mix.

On mixing this situation with skin?  I'd give it a 50-50 possibility that skin infection will occur and there probably is the some risk of some fingers being amputated.

On the stupid scale?  One-to-ten?  I'd give this idea a '8'. 

Do they even grasp the mix risk?  I'm not sure about that.  They both seemed happy and cheerful about the act.....still having their hands encased in this concrete 'glove'.  

Three German News Stories

 1.  Focus had a piece this AM....talking over 'worry' in Berlin about these public swimming pool assaults/brawls. It's reached a point where the city political folks want an explanation....why such behavior?

At some point, they kinda noted in a racist way....most of the participants are either Turkish or Arab background, and there's some macho attitudes being displayed.

The problem now is that almost every weekend...some event ends up in the news, and it's deemed a 'political/social' problem.  

2.  That approval by Turkey for Sweden to enter NATO?  Well....it's not said that Turkey doesn't want the approval to really occur until mid-fall.  

3.  New poll show AfD Party growth (now figured at 22-percent).  CDU is at 26-percent.  SPD at 18-percent.  If you had an election today....the SPD-led coalition would marginally get 40-percent.  Numbers frustrating the political landscape.

Three Odd Things

 1.  Germany's Minister of the Interior is opening what will be called a 'safe sport' contact point (in Berlin).

Now, you will ask....what exactly is this?  Well....if you were in some type of sports (juvenile or adult-related) and there ws some type of sexual, psychological or physical violence performed against you.....you'd call up these federal folks to get involved in your situation.

Some study has come out....to say such things now occur.  

Potentially triggering a big mess?  You have to wonder....if some pro-soccer guys or gals got around to reporting things....would the Interior Ministry get all into pro-sports?

2.  I sat and viewed a ARD (public TV, Channel 1) segment.....basically no one (not political or journalistic) can come up with a way to hinder the AfD Party (the right wing folks).  

In a way, it's amusing.

To describe how we got to this point?  A coalition government was formed with left-of-center folks, the Green Party, and a right-of-center party controlling the budget.  

You can write down fifty 'acts' or promises that the coalition has cemented as a 'must-do' situation, and generally say the vast majority of these have either failed or gotten negative public attention.  

The issue can be clearly defined....after x-number of 'Jesus-moments' that miracles failed to occur, your track-record is observed by the public.  The coalition needs to lower their goals to a level where it's fairly easy to get something done.  

3.  Prepare yourself a German version of Afghanistan's US evacuation.  It appears that the exit of the German military from Mali will occur in the middle of the night, and it won't shock me if they drive out to some neighboring country.  

What Happens To Russia At The 'End'?

 Since January of this year, I've eyeballed the Russian economy a good bit.  The problem is....you have to discount much of what the government says because of the faked-up nature of economy numbers.

The same is true for battlefield deaths, the number of people who left Russia, and the gains/losses.  

What you can gain by viewing photos and video?  A lot of the tanks you do see....are manufactured from the 1960s era.  Virtually 90-percent of I've seen over the past four months.....are pretty old equipment.  Occasionally, you will see some items from the 1980s/1970s....but it's pretty rare.

Russians have engaged in vacation travel, but it seems like most are car-driven trips.....not flights.

At the 'end'.....I suspect three things will exist:

1.  I don't think the Russian economy will regain it's spot or status....it'll slip to number forty to fifty.  

2.  I don't think at the 'end' that the banking sector will find stability for at least ten years.  Cyber currency will be the key thing that they buy into....avoiding the Ruble.

3.  Finally, rebuilding the military?  At present....with the economy wrecked-up....I don't see Russia reaching a level of the 2020 status....for at least thirty years (meaning maybe around 2050).

Putin's legend status?  Well....I suspect within ten years after he leaves....he'll be a non-mentioned guy.  No statues....no memorials.  

Six German News Stories

 1.  Yesterday (Tuesday)....the NFL tickets for the fall game in Frankfurt (2nd game) went on sale, and sold out in about 10 minutes flat.  For the two games, I think they could have easily sold around half-a-million seats each. 

If I were to gauge NFL interest in Germany....compared to the 1980s....it's a massive difference.  I'd take a guess that you ask 25-percent of young German guys to name the teams in cities like Tampa Bay, Chicago, or DC, and they'd be able to do it. 

The rumor of the NFL expanding?  For  several years, there's been chatter going on, and I suspect some analysis exists for two teams to exist in Germany (I think Munich and Frankfurt could easily support teams now).  

2.  N-TV had a segment yesterday....describing hodophobia (fear of traveling).  Yes, there are apparently Germans who have an extreme fear over any kind travel.

3.  Some rural area about 40 miles (driving) East of Frankfurt....had a field fire to start.....360 of those big round bales went up in the flames.

4.  Hessen police pulled over some car in the Weiterstadt area....saying after the vehicle inspection, it was something straight off the movie 'Fast-and-Furious'.  Forty-eight vehicle violations were noted in the end. Engine was assessed as being able to handle 400 hp.  

5.  Major storm activity in the Saarland yesterday.....tornado damaged thirty houses in one village.

6. From the Nord Stream I/II explosion activity....German police have traced samples of the type used to the boat identified in the activity.  

Three Odd Things

 1.  Focus brought up today....chatter going on within the SPD Party and forming up strategy for the 2025 election.  There is some belief that Scholz (current Chancellor)....will NOT be the SPD Party candidate.  Who?  Well....the Defense Minister....Pistorius.  

Early to discuss 2025 election strategy?  By the middle of 2024....parties need to start lining up their Chancellor candidate, and it's apparent that few party members are  that happy with Scholz.

2.  There are a couple hundred 'Caracal' jeep-vehicles being procured by the German Army....as a new airborne 'drop' vehicle.  Mostly a open-vehicle....with no plating.

3.  Volcanic eruptions going on in Iceland.  

Six German News Stories: 11 July 2023

 1.  Tickets for the first NFL game in Frankfurt for this fall....sold out in roughly an hour.  Tickets were priced at 75 to 225 Euro each, and on-sell platforms....some of the better seats are already selling at 1,500 Euro.

Based on comments, I'd say that they could have sold half-a-million tickets, but were limited to around 50k.  

Second game tickets?  Scheduled to sell today at some point....probably will gone in an hour as well.

2.  I noticed out of Drenthe, Netherlands....some sheep-ranch guy had to shoot a wolf, who'd bitten the guy while he was trying to protect his sheep.  Naturally, the pro-wolf folks have complained to the police about this provocative act.

3.  There was a regional train on a run in the Brandenburg region.....when 'heat' overcame operations.  What passengers say....at some point....the train just stopped. Electricity cut off.....the AC unit (with temperatures above 30 C) stopped working.

They eventually had to manually open the doors and allow people to 'escape'.

4.  'Funk', the streaming video service by public TV in Germany.....went out and did a documentary-news piece called 'what is left' (trying to describe leftist politics).

This came after the 1st piece which was entitled 'what is right', and got a lot of criticism over depicting both the CDU and AfD in the same landscape.

Focus had a long piece on the topic....worth reading.  

I'll just say that the term 'left-of-center' and 'right-of-center' gets used a lot, and you could measure up the bulk of the Merkel era as 'center-center' politically....so this Funk description of the political landscape is marginal.

(footnote: 'Funk', the network, is designed for 14-to-29 year old Germans)

5.  Erdogan of Turkey gave some 'green' light for Sweden's entry into NATO late yesterday.  

6.  For 2022, Germany had 8,173 heat-related deaths.  I should note in the descriptive material....what they are now saying that heat over several weeks....puts strain on the body.  

So you could (using this medical condition) have a three-week long period of say 32 C (or more temperatures), and die in the 4th week when it rebounds to 27 C temperatures.  The doctor would then write into the death certificate that the heat contributed to their eventual death. 

I won't question how this is done but if you used the same logic in the 1920s or 1930s....the death count would be significant and just as high as today (if not more so).  

Three Odd Things

 1.  It came out this morning that for Turkey to approve Sweden's entry into NATO.....the EU has to approve Turkey being a EU member.

Odds of this passing?  I'd say nearly impossible.

2.  Just an odd story from the Neustadt region.  Cops were doing a vehicle check, and here was a drunk 16-year-old German kid.....driving a car with 2 prostitutes' as  passengers.  

Cops ended up driving the kid to the station, and calling his parents.  I'm guessing there were a few questions asked.

3.  Dutch PM (Rutte) has said 'enough' and will be leaving the PM office, and politics in general....as this new election approaches.  

Five German News Stories

 1.  Race from yesterday at Nuremburg 'ring'.....ended up with some Last Generation activists making a break on the track.

Cops and security eventually handled the problem.  Humble opinion....you would be taking a huge amount of risk for your life.  

2. Berlin public pool reached a stage Sunday late afternoon....cops had to be called over a brawl at the pool.

3.  'Heat-stunted' is a comment that comes to mind.  Over the past two months....lot of hype by the German Health Ministry and the two public TV networks (ARD/ZDF).  

Yes, summer has arrived and this massive threat of HEAT has been drilled down into....discussed each day.  You get the impression over the past hundred years....it's never been 36, 37 or 38 degrees C in Germany.  

It's generally always been this hot, and worse.  If you ask any German over the age of sixty....they will give you ten different methods of cooling off, or handling the heat.  The Ministry and networks seem to have forgotten past history.

My advice?  Stay out of the sun as much as possible.  Drink plenty of fluids (not beer or wine).  Mix lemon and cucumber slices in the water.  Close your windows/shutters around 10 AM on a really hot day, and reopen around 8 PM.  Don't stand around and wait for the government or public TV to save you.  Nothing new here.....same old crap for past 10,000 years.  

4.  Lot of commentary now existing over the Giessen festival for the Eritrean people.  Some pointing out that the folks who organized the fest (running it)....are connected back to the dictatorship in Eritrea.  German authorities are likely to investigate this angle.  

5.  Biden offering a 'deal' for Turkey to accept Sweden into NATO....involves selling at some reduced rate....fighter jets.  People are skeptical of the deal working.  

Two Observations

 1.  Giessen.  2nd day of Eritrean festival.  Less violence today.  Mayor is calling for an investigation over yesterday. 

It is rather odd....for all the police 'mounted' and the 'worry'....there were no right-wing 'thugs'.  This was one Eritrean group versus another Eritrean group.  From what I can figure, there is the suggestion that the organizers of this festival were pro-Eritrea and some of the music was paid for by the gov't there (the word dictatorship gets used a good bit).

Repeat of last year?  Yeah, and I'm guessing whoever supported this festival will have a hard time getting the city to approve it for 2024.  

2.  Germany is hinting it won't support the adding of Ukraine to NATO.  

Seven German News Stories

 1.  Looking at Focus this AM....poll done over happiness in Germany with the political coalition of the SPD-Greens-FDP parties.  Two out of three Germans say they are unhappy. 

A big deal?  Well....it means whenever the coalition comes up with a new legislative package...it's really up to public TV to hype the idea, and lately....even the journalists can't sell the 'brand' or message.  

I won't say that the coalition is under a threat to fall apart (like the Netherlands did on Friday)....but it's not helpful for state elections over the next 18 months.  Next scheduled federal election?  Fall of 2025.  

In both the Bavaria and Hessen state elections in roughly 100 days....none of the three parties are expected to do that well.  

2.  Green Party calling for migrant recruitment into the German police....to help battle mafia crime.

3.  Giessen after-action situation from the Eritrean festival?  Originally, folks were thinking there would be far-right-wing types showing up.  I watched about an hour of video between the German news teams, Twitter and YouTube.....it's just odd, you didn't see a single German in the mix unless you counted the emergency crews, firemen, or police.  

The protest crowd?  Probably about 300 Eritrean folks. They were protesting against the Eritrean festival (figure around 2,000 folks attending it).  Yeah, pretty weird.

Heat affecting the situation?  It was fairly hot yesterday (say in the 35 to 37 C range), and that triggered a number of heat problems....requiring the ambulance folks. 

Based on city action, there were around 1,000 police from the region to keep order.

4.  Odd event at a Hamburg hospital.  Some crime clan member was bad off in the hospital, and clan members showed up 'after-hours'.  Nurse tried to prevent entry and got roughed-up pretty bad.  Cops now investigating.

5.  Yesterday was the 500th day of the Ukraine-Russia war.  Still nowhere near an end.

6.    Some knife attack on a tram in Dresden.  Victim and attacker....both Somali.  What the cops say is that some disagreement came up while on the tram, and a attack occurred (older guy dead, 40, was victim).  

7.  Just something odd I came to notice yesterday.  Prior to 2016....public TV news in Germany (ARD, ZDF, and all the minor networks) went as far as possible to avoid reporting any demonstrations, attacks, or riots involving non-Germans.  Someone pointed out to me that a 'handbook' existed for TV journalists at the time...suggested to avoid the topic whenever possible.

After the 31 December 2015 New Year's Eve episode in Koln...where all of the public networks tried their best not to mention the events of the evening....a massive 'falling-out' with the public occurred.  Over the next couple of months, the public TV news folks were 'motivated' to generally report these events as they occurred.  

A good example was the Giessen demonstration yesterday.  There was a brief 60 second video.....couple of facts, and some on-the-scene analysis by their reporter.  Prior to 2016....you wouldn't have seen or heard about this unless you went to newspapers or commercial news.