Thursday, May 12, 2022

Q-and-A: 12 May 2022

 1.  Odds of a Russian invasion into the Baltic states, Romania, Bulgaria or Poland?  

Pretty much to a zero now.  Putin can move on, unless he control the bulk of Ukraine, which he doesn't appear capable of achieving (in fact, by late-June, I'd his goals drop by 50-percent).  

2.  The necessity now of Finland/Sweden joining NATO?

A month ago.....the landscape for invasion looked pretty low but the Russians weren't sending the right 'message'.  So both countries took the threat-messages in a negative way.  For Russia, it was a stupid mistake and they really didn't need the two flipping over.  

The never-in-a-million years opinion that they'd never join?  Funny how that went away so quick.

3.  These German rules about the distance from newly placed wind-generators and urbanized areas....being challenged by the SPD-Green-FDP government?

Well....to some degree.  State by state, there are rules in place now.  Example, in Bavaria....if you want to put up a generator (windmill), whatever the height is.....multiply that by 10, and that's the distance it must be from nearest house.  

Not all states have these rules but most are discussing adding the rules, and the federal government wants to hinder/halt that idea of limits.

This necessity of putting the wind generators in the proximity of housing?  I've never understood this.  There ought to be lots of rural areas with no humans around and you could place a wind-generator without complaints (hint, lot of area like that in the Pfalz).

4.  Stern TV, off RTL commercial network running an experiment show?  What's the deal?

Well....there's going to be a lead-in fakish TV drama where some crime occurs, and the cops need to torture some guy in a hurry to save some victim from dying.  

As soon as the TV drama ends.....a live show starts up with a moderator and asking the public if they'd approve torture in this type case.  

Now, I will say this.....had this been ARD/ZDF (public TV)....the majority of viewers (probably 75-percent) would say 'NO' to police torture.  However, this is commercial TV, and intellectual viewers aren't necessarily watching (regular people are).

I would take a guess that 65-percent of regular-working-class Germans would approve of some pain dished out to a guy in this type of situation.  German Police will generally say they aren't into this type of 'business'.  

This being 'entertainment-value'?  Don't BS me on that statement.

5.  Bratwurst up in price?

Last night, off the MEX-show on HR (public TV for Hessen), they ran a segment on the pricing at wurst shops around Hessen.

Regionally, a Brat-with-brotchen, now runs 3.30 Euro ($3.45).  Same Brat with pommes (fries), now at 5.80 Euro ($6.06).  Cheeseburger (alone) at 6.90 Euro ($7.15).

In simple terms....everything (even mayonnaise) has gone up.  Pricing for 2022 about 20-percent higher over last summer.  

If you figure the regular mid-day stop for a working guy, Brat, fries, and drink....it's up around 7 Euro now ($7.31).  Americans who were around in the 1980s, can remember the same menu for lunch....in DM's....at 5 DM ($2.50).  

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