This time.
Russian, Belarusian ambassadors not invited to German parliament’s WWII memorial event – The German parliament has kept the ambassadors of Russia and Belarus off its guest list for a special sitting on May 8 marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War Two in Europe, a spokesperson for the legislature said on Thursday.
To want to hug Olaf Scholz.
Man fined after hugging German Chancellor Olaf Scholz – A court in Frankfurt handed a hefty fine to a disoriented driver who hugged Chancellor Olaf Scholz on an airport runway. The individual said he had been partying for two days before mistakenly joining a motorcade.
Brilliant. This is better than free lunch!
Why didn’t anyone ever think of this before?
Free money for all: Germany’s basic income experiment – One of the world’s most extensive studies on unconditional basic income was held in Germany. What does the experiment reveal?
… It is seen as a redistribution of wealth through taxes. In the activists’ calculation, Germany’s top earners — 10% of the population — would end up contributing a part of their income to everyone else. They estimate that 83% of the population would thereby have access to more money. The remaining 7% mid-earners would be unaffected by the redistribution scheme.
In times of rising populism, the basic income activists believe that this is a way to combat the population’s dissatisfaction due to wealth inequality.
But I had no idea that 3 million Germans have never been able to connect.
Nearly 3 million Germans have never used the internet – For most people, using the internet is an essential part of daily life, but not for the estimated 4% of Germans who have not once gone online.
This is why we are going to create a new ‘super–high-tech ministry’ for research, technology, and aerospace.
Germany to create ‘super–high-tech ministry’ for research, technology, and aerospace – New governing coalition also plans to woo scientists from abroad and make it easier for universities to collaborate with the military on defense research.
The announcement is one of several nods to science in the 144-page agreement, unveiled on 9 April following weeks of negotiations between the center-right Christian Democrats (CDU) and its sister party, the Christian Social Union in Bavaria (CSU)—who together won the most seats in February’s federal elections—and the center-left Social Democrats. The agreement is expected to be formally approved by the three parties by early May, paving the way for CDU leader Friedrich Merz to be elected chancellor.
And with whom?
Ukraine will be able to keep fighting, say Britain and Germany – Germany and Britain sent a message to Russia on Friday that Ukraine will be able to keep up its fight thanks to Western support, even as the U.S. pushed ahead with talks with Moscow.
The European powers for the first time co-led a meeting of the so-called Ramstein group of some 50 countries that give military support to Ukraine after Washington gave up the chair, and said they could not detect any signs that Vladimir Putin was ready for peace.
As they met, U.S. President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff flew into Russia for what looked likely to be talks with the Russian president.
In Berlin. Every day now (they forget to mention the one in Berlin Steglitz this morning).
Knifeman on the run after Berlin tram passenger seriously injured in stabbing – The victim was attacked around 2.30am on the M2 tram at Karl-Liebknecht-Straße in the city’s Mitte district…
“Knife violence is a city-wide problem, and many young men in particular seem to have one in their pockets.”
That means rally.
Dow surges 2,300 points for biggest rally in 5 years after Trump pauses some tariffs – Stocks surged Wednesday after President Donald Trump announced a pause in some of the ‘reciprocal’ tariffs, causing a market that’s been under extreme pressure for the last week to explode higher.
The S&P 500 skyrocketed 7.6%, on pace for its biggest one-day gain in five years. The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 2,423 points, or 6.4%, also its biggest gain since 2020. The Nasdaq Composite jumped 9.8%.
A Nazi salute. Ingenious!
In Berlin, too. I bet that one has never been tried before.
Anti-Musk protester temporarily arrested in Berlin for poster with Nazi salute – Authorities temporarily arrested a protester for displaying a poster that featured Elon Musk performing a Hitler salute alongside Nazi figures.
And it was just starting to get fun, too.
EU offers USA deal on free trade – The EU has proposed to US President Trump that all tariffs on industrial goods be abolished on both sides. We are ready to negotiate, said Commission President von der Leyen.
Observing Hermann 