1. Ok, this is a weird police story.
German police patrol out at night...comes to a forest area parking lot in the area of Salzhemmendorf (far north Germany). Here's a guy....acting kind of suspicious.
They want to see his trunk....which he cooperates and opens it. They find two large plastic bags. I know what you are assuming...cannabis or weed. But no...it's wild garlic.
The German admits...he came from Gelsenkirchen to get wild garlic.
So the cops inform him of the state law for this....the 'hand bouquet rule'. It basically says....you can only take what would fit into your hands. Beyond that....it's illegal. Course, they see the two bags and believe the guy is a commercial cook.
The charge here? Possible violation of the Federal Nature Conservation Act (a misdemeanor). All because of public property.
2. The Economics Minister (Habeck, Green Party) and the Finance Minister (Lindner, FDP Party) are having talks. They are trying to invent some tax credit for companies to stimulate growth...but to accomplish this....they want to increase the sales tax (the VAT). The rumor is that the VAT would go up 1.3 cents....to make this possible.
Presently, the VAT is at 19-percent. Most EU members have a VAT of 20 to 22 percent.....so they believe going up will be acceptable to the public.
3. Some story came up....I give it a BS-factor of '5' (1-to-10).....saying that via WELT....Chancellor Scholz halted some agenda that would allowed Ursula von der Leyen (present President of the EU and former German Defense Minister) from becoming the future NATO Secretary General. I should add...von der Leyen was a CDU Party 'player'.
The story goes....that the SPD Party wants former Dutch PM Mark Rutte for the NATO 'boss' job.
4. WELT piece: Around 48,000 German attempts were made in 2023 to deport failed asylum seekers. Out of the 48,000.....two-thirds of the attempts failed....meaning less than 16,000 were successfully deported.
This is just another example of people view the policy of the federal government as mostly failed. But fixing this? It's anyone's guess where it'll lead onto.
5. Last night in Den Hague, Netherlands....riot started up....cars burned, bus set on fire, and at least one police car heavily damaged. Groups? Well....it's the pro-Eritrean (for the dictator-government) versus the anti-Eritrean (against the dictator-government) groups. Cops in the middle.
Same issue brewing in Germany with the two groups existing. Some belief that the pro-Eritrean group is financed in some way by the dictator government.
6. Chancellor Scholz has set an agenda up...no nuke weapons development by the EU. A lot of his talk is based over history.
7. Germany estimates for 2023....for 'black work' (meaning work done under the table, often by illegals)....the amount in this market is near 463-billion Euro. This is effort done to avoid social taxes, and government regulation. I should add...this is a ball-park number....there is no factual way to prove the 463 number.
8. German Minister of Defense (Pistorius) made a speech yesterday (Sat)....saying that he expects decades of Russian 'threats' to Europe.
Curious note, Pistorius also said that NATO 2-percent goal (of the GDP) for spending defense? He says that might not be ENOUGH. So he's hinting, Germany might have to go to 2.5 to 3 percent.
They marginally met the 2-percent goal for 2024...spending money that the revenue pot did NOT have, so I seriously doubt this idea goes far.
9. The new Union of Values Party had their first 'big' meeting...onboard a Rhine cruise ship yesterday. They intend to fill a void (or remake the political spectrum) between the AfD Party and the CDU/CSU Party.
Humble guess.....for the fall of 2025 federal election, I might guess them getting in the 5-to-7 percent range. If you were in the AfD Party and felt some 'shame'....well, this group is legit, and at least a full-step or two right-of-center...something that the CDU-CSU folks can't brag about.
10. Free Voter Party having it's big meeting this weekend. Key chatter? No unity or agreement with AfD politics. However, the Free Voter Party wants enforcement of asylum laws....to include deportation of failed applicants. On national polling, they probably won't go past 3.5-percent. They might also attract AfD disgruntled voters.
11. VW is building up production in Mexico....1-billion dollar set to flow in for their project. Since they packed up in China....this makes sense.
12. Final part of German cannabis legislation to be ironed-out. Key item on the list? How much can you smoke and still drive a car? Generally, in almost every accident that occurs in the future....I can see where the German police arrive and demand everyone do a THC test.
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