No, Germany doesn’t get hit by earthquakes. But it regularly gets hit by seismic waves of extreme and indulgent panic like the one that has just rolled over the country shortly after the monster quake hit Japan.

That is why Angela Merkel has wasted no time in going back on her government’s decision to extend the life of Germany’s nuclear power stations (they’ll think it through again for three months = forever?). Regional elections are coming up in a few weeks and with everyone panicked out of their minds as they are, sicher ist sicher (better to be safe than sorry).

The German Chancellor, who indicated that some plants could be closed faster than expected, said that “everything will be put under review.”