Author Archives: Hermann Observer

To Russia With Love

March 30, 2015 By in Hard Facts, Heconomy, Helplessness, Hideology, Home Cooking, Hurt Feelings, Hypocrisy Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , 3 Comments

I mean with debt. Go with God, Greece, but go (to Russia for more dough). I’m sure they’ll make you an offer you can’t refuse.

Russia

Greece’s energy minister is visiting Russia today after calling for a confrontation with a “Germanised Europe” in the country’s stalling bailout negotiations.

The visit comes less than a fortnight before Greek prime minister Alexis Tsipras is due to visit Russian president Vladimir Putin, the date of which was reportedly brought forward because of Greece’s financial disputes with the European Union.

“Today, it becomes even more evident to me that the pathway of the country away from the crisis goes through tough confrontation, if not collision, with the Germanized Europe.”

It’s Not That We’re Too Strong

March 29, 2015 By in Hard Facts, Heconomy, Helplessness, Home Cooking, Humor, Hurt Feelings, Hypocrisy Tags: , , , , , , , , , , 1 Comment

The rest of you guys out there in Europe are just too weak. Like start doing more push-ups or something.

Germany

German dominance is in part a consequence of others’ retreat. That may be why complaints have been muted. “If the Italians don’t bring pasta and the French don’t bring pâté,” says a diplomat, “you can’t complain about Mrs Merkel’s cabbage soup.

PS: And speaking of getting stronger, you folks over at the FDP should learn to smile a little already. Polls indicate that you’re back over that magical 5 percent line and could get back in the saddle again – if elections were to be held today.

So Much For That Ongoing Illness

March 27, 2015 By in Hard Facts, Helplessness, Hurt Feelings Tags: , , , , , , 6 Comments

The copilot of the Germanwings plane that crashed into the French Alps appears to have hidden evidence of an illness from his employers, German prosecutors said after authorities found a torn-up sick note while searching his homes.

Germanwings

All of this disturbs me in more ways than one, as I’m sure it does you. If it is true that “Lufthansa has one of the most complete and exhaustive selection processes that there is,” what does that say about the rest of the airlines out there? This is just like those psycho shooters who do their thing in countries with stringent gun control laws (Breivik in Norway, the Dunblane school massacre in Scotland, etc.). You have to try to improve “the system,” of course, but do you really think it’s possible to stop people like this in the end?

Other medical documents found in police searches suggested an ongoing illness and appropriate medical treatment.

Psychosis Is A Waking Nightmare

March 26, 2015 By in Helplessness, Hi-tech, Home Cooking, Hurt Feelings Tags: , , , , , , 6 Comments

And this guy’s just reached out and grabbed us.

Andreas Lubitz

He had to have been mad, right? Because if this was just another 28-year-old narcissist having a really bad day then heaven help us all. There is no end to those out there.

Der Copilot des Germanwings-Airbus soll einem Medienbericht zufolge in seiner Ausbildungszeit psychische Probleme gehabt haben.

Remember When Spain Was Down And Out?

March 25, 2015 By in Heconomy, Hi-tech, Higher Education, Home Cooking Tags: , , , , , , 2 Comments

Mercedes Benz seems happy enough building cars there now, for instance. Then you’ve got the current Greek government…

Spain

The European Central Bank is predicting that Spain will be one of the economic drivers of Europe in 2015. Powered by a cheap euro and low interest, economic growth is predicted to rise by 2.3 percent this year. The Spanish government is expecting one million additional jobs for 2014 and 2015.

Along with Portugal and Ireland, Spain represents an example of how an economic crisis can be turned into an opportunity. These countries’ experiences show that a nation can recover its economic competitiveness through painful reform, even in a monetary union.

As a result, Spain — especially in the eyes of liberal economists — represents the counterpoint to Greece, which has gotten entangled in its national battle against economic relegation and is losing ever more time with its recriminations against the rest of the euro group.

German-Greek Tensions Ease After First WWII Reparations Payment Rolls In

March 22, 2015 By in Habitudes, Heconomy, Helplessness, High Art, Home Cooking, Humor, Hurt Feelings, Hysteria Tags: , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

European politicians everywhere breathed a collective sigh of relief as a mentally challenged German couple holidaying in Greece made the first ever private WWII reparations payment of $935 to Greece to make up for their government’s bad and nasty attitude.

Übermacht

Spokesmen for Brussels and Berlin were quick to point out that this shows how private people with good intentions can also “burn up money like nobody’s business” and how “like you shouldn’t always point your finger just at us when we squander away our dough. Your dough, that is. You’re pretty good at this, too.”

“They made their calculations and said each German owed 875 euros for what Greece had to pay during World War II.”