Don’t burp your house

February 3, 2026 By in Habitudes, Hard Facts, Home Cooking Tags: , , Leave a comment

It’s no fun. Believe me. Don’t do it.

Germans do it with sub-zero temperatures outside. People with any sense don’t do it at all.

‘House burping’ is a cold reality in Germany. Americans are warming to it.

The often mandated German practice of airing out homes no matter the season has strained and even ended relationships, but it’s gotten a boost on U.S. social media.

After moving to Berlin from Honolulu, Wyatt Gordon was surprised when his new German roommate marched into his bedroom at 8 a.m. and threw open the windows.

It turned out that his cohabitant, Laura, maintained a strict ventilation regime. Three times a day, at precise times, all the windows in the apartment needed to be opened. It didn’t matter whether it was the dead of winter or a weekend morning, or if Gordon had company. Rules were rules.

Berliners won’t even notice

February 2, 2026 By in Hard Facts, Helplessness, Hideology Tags: , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Public transport is always at a standstill here.

Tens of Thousands of Transport Workers Walk off Job in Germany – Commuters across Germany faced ‌freezing ​temperatures and empty platforms on ‌Monday as tens of thousands of public transport workers ​walked off the job in a strike called by trade union Verdi, shutting down ‍bus and tram services in ​most cities.

Verdi, which represents nearly 100,000 transport workers, called the strike after ​talks with ⁠municipal and state employers over working conditions stalled last week.

Afghan embassy and consulate staff in Germany now applying for asylum

February 1, 2026 By in Hard Facts, Helplessness, Hideology, Home Cooking, Hurt Feelings Tags: , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Now that Germany is accrediting radical Islamist Taliban terrorists as new staff members.

Germany: Afghanistan’s consulates pose threat to refugees – Afghanistan’s consulates in Germany are being taken over by Taliban officials, putting Afghani people at the mercy of the regime they fled.

The Taliban are sending more officials to staff its consulates in Germany, leaving many Afghans who fled the Taliban regime with a dilemma when trying to get passports and other documents. This is according to a statement released by the Association of Afghan Organizations in Germany (VAFO) in January.

“Without valid passports, they cannot secure their residence, extend their employment contracts, and in some cases cannot even complete basic administrative procedures,” the statement read. “The de facto expectation that passport matters will be handled through Taliban structures fails to recognize the reality of those affected.”

The next 20,000 jobs gone

January 31, 2026 By in Heconomy, Helplessness, Home Cooking, Hard Facts, Hideology Tags: , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Could it be our ridiculously high energy costs? Nah.

Germany’s industrial engine sputters as Bosch axes 20,000 jobs – Rising unemployment rate piles pressure on Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s government.

German industrial giant Bosch on Friday confirmed plans to cut 20,000 jobs after profits nearly halved last year, underlining the mounting strain on Germany’s once-dominant manufacturing sector and increasing the pressure on politicians in Berlin to find a solution.

Official data released Friday also showed Germany’s unemployment rate, unadjusted for seasonal factors, rising to 6.6 percent — the highest level in twelve years. The number of unemployed people surpassed three million in January.

German humor at its best

January 30, 2026 By in Hard Facts, Helplessness, Hideology, Home Cooking, Humor Tags: , , , , , , Leave a comment

German media and sensitivities. It’s a long and troubled history.

Greenland police fine German satire show for US flag stunt – A German public broadcaster has been fined while filming a show in Greenland after a satirist sought to raise a US flag in public. The incident unfolded amid heightened sensitivity over statements from the US president…

“At no point during filming was it intended that the satire was aimed at Greenlanders,” the broadcaster stated. “The editorial team expresses its regret to the people of Greenland should this impression have been created.”

“It is not funny. It is immensely harmful.”

“Below-average wind speeds” are to blame

January 29, 2026 By in Hard Facts, Helplessness, Hi-tech, Hideology, Home Cooking Tags: , , , , , , , , , 1 Comment

Not the lame-ass technology itself.

Alright, move on, nothing to see here, disperse…

Germany’s stretch of weak wind output set to drag on into 2026 – Europe’s largest wind power producer – Germany – remains in the grips of a years-long bout of sub-par wind electricity production due to below-average wind speeds at turbine level.

Total German wind-powered electricity output fell by around 4% in 2025 from the year before, and followed a less than 1% annual expansion in 2024, despite steady annual increases to Germany’s total wind generation capacity for over a decade.

How does Germany deport people?

January 28, 2026 By in Habitudes, Hard Facts, Helplessness, Hideology, Home Cooking Tags: , , , , , , , Leave a comment

By not deporting them.

A few thousand, tops. While an average of 250,000 flow in each and every year.

It’s a joke. But fewer and fewer Germans are laughing.

How does Germany deport people? – Germany does not have masked ICE officers or an equivalent agency, but both Chancellor Friedrich Merz and his predecessor have done all they can to accelerate deportations. Here’s how the process works…

German of the day: Kopfgeld

January 27, 2026 By in Hard Facts, Helplessness, Hideology Tags: , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

That means “head money,” as in bounty.

Bounty offered over Berlin power grid attack – German authorities have offered a €1 million bounty for tips related to this month’s massive Berlin blackout.

German authorities have issued a €1 million ($1.1 million) reward for information leading to the arrest of those responsible for an attack on electricity infrastructure in Berlin.

The arson attack on January 3 targeted high-voltage cables. It left some 45,000 households in south-western Berlin without electricity and heating during sub-zero temperatures earlier this month. It took more than four days to reconnect all residents back to the grid, making it the longest power outage in the city since the Second World War.

Berlin needs more cops…

January 26, 2026 By in Hard Facts, Helplessness, Hideology, Home Cooking Tags: , , , , , , Leave a comment

Who can actually speak German.

Many police applicants in Berlin fail due to insufficient German language skills – The Berlin police cannot find enough suitable applicants. This was stated by Police President Barbara Slowik Meisel on Monday in the Interior Committee of the House of Representatives.

“We have a very significant problem with German language skills, regardless of nationality,” said Slowik Meisel. “I don’t want to bash schools, but there is a problem with the level of education that young people are leaving school with.” Many applicants fail the computer tests, and 80 percent of the time this is due to their German language skills.

Germany not Bored of Peace yet

January 24, 2026 By in Helplessness, Hideology, Home Cooking Tags: , , , , Leave a comment

Get it? Bored instead of Board?

Merz says Germany won’t join Trump’s ‘Board of Peace’ – German Chancellor Merz said the current form of US President Trump’s “Board of Peace” prevented Germany from joining for “constitutional reasons.” But Merz said he was open to “new formats” of cooperation with the US.