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.

German Solar Energy Industry Tanks, German Tanks Don’t

June 17, 2012 By Hermann Observer in Habitudes, Hard Facts, Heconomy, Hi-tech, History, Home Cooking, Hurt Feelings, Hypocrisy, Hysteria Tags: Arms exports, China, Energy, Energy Turnaround, Exports, German, Germans, Germany, Humor, Imports, Renewable energy, Satire, Saudi Arabia, Solar energy, Weapons Exports Leave a comment

Unable to compete in the global market without the subsidy drug, state-ordained “energy turnaround” or not, Germany’s solar energy industry is getting eaten alive by cheap Chinese imports as we speak, so-to-speak.

“Ah, screw it,” German industrialists elsewhere in the country say to that. “We’ll just keep making a killing producing what we’ve always produced best: War technology. Tanks, Saudi Arabia!”

“But it’s not like we don’t continue to support the Arab Spring or anything,” another tankful German industrialist added ruefully.

German paper says Saudis want 600-800 tanks.

Speaking Of Presidents… You Call This Being “Increasingly Disillusioned” With Obama?

June 13, 2012 By Hermann Observer in Habitudes, Hard Facts, Helections, Helplessness, History, Home Cooking, Hypocrisy, Hysteria Tags: Berlin, Blind Obedience, Disillusion, Europe, Europeans, German, Germans, Germany, Gleichschaltung, Humor, Media Control, Obama, Polls, Satire, Surveys 1 Comment

Well, there’s disillusion and there’s disillusion.

A new survey indicates that German disillusionment with the US president is “widespread.” Wow, like what a surprise or something. Even the Germans catch on eventually.

But wait, please look a little closer. The real news story has to do with the numbers behind this so-called disillusionment. “Disillusionment with Obama” over here means:

Nevertheless, they (the Germans) still have overwhelming confidence in Obama’s overall international leadership. In fact, at 87 percent, Germans are the most supportive in Europe… And nine out of 10 Germans want to see Obama re-elected.

Huh? OK. Unbelievable as usual. It never ceases to amaze me. In a nation so openly sensitive to the concept of Gleichschaltung (enforced political conformity, as in the Third Reich kind), how can you get more gleichgeschaltet than that?

In retrospect, hopes for an Obama presidency were unrealistically high, especially among Europeans.

Observing Hermann

“Was interessiert mich mein Geschwätz von gestern?”

Category Archives: Hypocrisy