That Didn’t Take Long

July 12, 2012 By Hermann Observer in Habeas Corpus, Health, Helplessness, Hurt Feelings, Hypocrisy, Hysteria Tags: Berlin, Church and State, Circumcision, Courts, German, Germans, Germany, Government, Jews, Judges, Law, Muslems, Religion, Ritual, State, The Judicial System, Tradition Leave a comment

“We urge the Jewish community in Germany and circumcisers to continue to perform circumcisions and not to wait for a change in the law.”

A German court’s ban on circumcising baby boys has provoked a rare show of unity between Jews, Muslims and Christians who see it as a threat to religious freedom, while doctors warn it could increase health risks by forcing the practice underground.

Die Positionen zur Beschneidung waren bei Anne Will unversöhnlich, am härtesten stritten ein Rabbiner und ein Strafrechtler.

The Protective Hand

July 8, 2012 By Hermann Observer in Habeas Corpus, Habitudes, Hate, Helplessness, Home Cooking, Hypocrisy Tags: Anarchists, Anarchy, Berlin, Communism, German, Germans, Germany, Justice, Left-Wing Terror, RAF, Revolution, Terrorism, Terrorists, The Judicial System, Trials Leave a comment

You’ve heard of the invisible hand being everywhere in the free market system, right? Well if you’re a left-wing terrorist in Germany you can count on having a protective hand taking care of you, too. When it comes to the German justice system, I mean.

Four years for being an accessory to murder? Deduct the trial time, which they already have, and RAF terrorist Verena Becker will be out on the street in no time (the safe German street, now that the RAF isn’t active there anymore).

What can I say? The German judicial system has ein Herz für linke Terroristen (left-wing terrorists). They are the ones who are always the Opfer (the victims). The system made them that way or something. That’s why this article confirms “that the sentence was relatively light, but that’s a good thing.” Why that’s a good thing is still not clear to me. But I’m not German.

Germany’s Federal Interior Ministry insists that portions of the BfV files on Becker will remain confidential, as will passages in the documents related to when she was pardoned in 1989 by then German President Richard von Weizsäcker. All of this incomprehensible secretiveness has only contributed to fostering more speculation.

Michael Buback, the son of the murdered prosecutor, added some emotional moments to the trial. In a statement before the court, the chemistry professor from Göttingen admitted to feeling “attacked, insulted and disparaged” by federal prosecutors. What’s more, he accused investigators of having held a “protective hand” over Becker.

172 Economists Can’t Be Wrong

July 6, 2012 By Hermann Observer in Heconomy, Helplessness, Hurt Feelings, Hypocrisy, Hysteria Tags: Banking, Berlin, Debt, Economics, Economists, Economy, German, Germans, Germany, The Euro, The Euro Crisis, The Euro Zone 1 Comment

Right? Right.

We have to approach this differently, folks. Pick an economist. Pick five. Find one that has ever been right. When it comes to dire warnings about the future, I mean.

Sure, I don’t like the idea of Angela Merkel deciding “to agree to allow eurozone bail-out funds to support sinner states” either, but if 172 economists are all hot and bothered about it, then maybe it wasn’t such a bad decision after all.

“First of all, this is about better banking supervision, and one can only say that that is urgently necessary.”

Inferiority Superiority Complex

July 3, 2012 By Hermann Observer in Habitudes, Heconomy, Helplessness, Home Cooking, Hurt Feelings, Hypocrisy, Hysteria Tags: Berlin, Economics, Exports, German, Germans, Germany, Greece, Humor, Imports, Psychology, Satire, The EU, The Euro, The Euro Zone Leave a comment

North, south. Inferiority, superiority. It’s all the same to me.

Germans export more to their European partners than they consume, benefiting from this asymmetrical situation even as they expect everyone else to be exporters and savers like them.

The Party Is Already Over?

July 1, 2012 By Hermann Observer in Hard Facts, Helections, Helplessness, High Art, Hurt Feelings, Hustle (Hoax), Hypocrisy Tags: Berlin, German, Germans, Germany, Humor, Pirates, Political Parties, Politics, Protest, Satire, The Pirate Party Leave a comment

For the Pirate Party in Germany, I mean?

Sheesh. Even I thought it would take them longer than this to roll over and die. But the latest Emnid poll shows that their popularity (or lack of it?) has rapidly dropped to the lowest level since March (8 percent compared to their all-time high of 12 percent).

But hey, what can you expect from a party with an ex-boss who advises voters not to vote for them anymore.

Auf die Frage „Sollen wir die Piraten wählen?“ würde er inzwischen mit „Nö, lassen Sie es lieber bleiben“ antworten. Er sei von der Bilanz der Fraktion „immens enttäuscht.“

Germany vs. Italy

June 28, 2012 By Hermann Observer in Humor, Hurt Feelings, Hypochondria, Hypocrisy, Hysteria Tags: Dives, Euro 2012, Flopping, Football, Germany, Humor, Italy, Schwalben, Soccer, Sports Leave a comment

Let the Schwalben (diving) begin!

I say… It’ll be Germany 3 : Italy 1. Either points or dives, I’m not sure yet.

Circumcision Decision Causing Division

June 27, 2012 By Hermann Observer in High Art, Higher Education, Home Cooking, Humor, Hurt Feelings, Hypochondria, Hypocrisy, Hysteria Tags: Berlin, Circumcision, Courts, German, Germans, Germany, Humor, Jews, Law, Limericks, Muslims, Religion, Ritual, Satire, Tradition 5 Comments

And may need a revision.

Leaders of Germany’s Jewish and Muslim communities have criticized a court ruling they fear could make circumcision a punishable offense in the country.

Talk about having short vision.

German courts need more tight supervision.

There was no provision for all the derision now caused by that little incision.

“This is an unprecedented and dramatic intrusion on the right to self-determination of religious communities.”

Our Debt Still Doesn’t Stink

June 25, 2012 By Hermann Observer in Habitudes, Hard Facts, Heconomy, Helections, Helplessness, Home Cooking, Hurt Feelings, Hypocrisy Tags: Berlin, Big Government, Debt, Europe, German, Germans, Germany, Greece, The EU, The Euro Crisis, The Euro Zone, The Financial Crisis Leave a comment

German government debt keeps climbing relentlessly higher and reached an all-time high during the first three months of this year. The federal, state and local governments then reached a debt to the tune of 2 trillion euros.

That was 2.1 percent or 42.3 billion euros higher (deeper?) than in the previous year’s quarter, reported the Federal Office of Statistics in Wiesbaden on Monday.

Now if only Greece and Co. could learn to control their government spending like the Germans do. Oh, wait. They already have. Or do. Or whatever.

Deutschlands Staatsschulden auf Rekordhoch gestiegen

No Flag Waving Here

June 19, 2012 By Hermann Observer in Habeas Corpus, Habitudes, History, Home Cooking, Hurt Feelings, Hypocrisy, Hysteria Tags: Berlin, EM 2012, Flags, Football, German, Germans, Germany, Humor, Satire, Soccer, Sports 2 Comments

Flag waving still leaves a bad taste in many a German mouth, I guess. Especially if the flag in question is 220 square meters in size.

EM 2012 nor not, Berlin officials have refused to let a Turkish store owner mount a huge German flag above his storefront in Neukölln. Ordnung muß sein (order must prevail) again already. “It was not connected properly and covered up a few windows.”

Go Germany!

“Die Entscheidung lag im Ermessen der Beamten vor Ort.”

“Smile and Wave”

June 18, 2012 By Hermann Observer in Helplessness, High Art, Home Cooking, Hurt Feelings, Hypocrisy, Hysteria Tags: Afghanistan, Armies, Berlin, Bundeswar, Comics, German, Germans, Germany, Graphic Novels, Humor, ISAF, Military, Politics, Satire Leave a comment

What a perfect title for a graphic novel about the Bundeswehr‘s mission in Afghanistan.

German illustrator Arne Jysch has completed his first graphic novel. Congratulations. I’m sure it’s fantasy comic material at it’s finest (in some scenes German soldiers are actually seen doing some fighting, for instance).

“The advantage of fiction is that you can combine real experiences that different people have had (in other armies?) and mix them all up,” he explains.

Jysch has never been to Afghanistan.

PS: I read recently that German soldiers in Afghanistan, being frustrated about having to be German soldiers in Afghanistan, have their own definition for ISAF: I saw Americans fighting.

Observing Hermann

“Was interessiert mich mein Geschwätz von gestern?”

Category Archives: Hypocrisy