Speaking of German cars…

Americans sure like buying them – again. Germans aren’t all that interested in them anymore, though (no more cash-for-clunkers).

Orders abroad are up 22 percent in May compared to a year earlier – with China and the United States providing the demand. We’ve been through this before, haven’t we (and again and again)?

“Die Bedeutung des US-Marktes nimmt wieder zu.”

Lena for president?

Why not? The job’s available now and everybody likes her enough.

And then there’s that touchy question about the enormous cost for next year’s Eurovision to be held here in Germany. It could be taken over by the state, see? You know, like a broadcasting bailout?

Each year the winning county is required to host the following year’s grand finale.

This is Germany

Huh?

Germany’s President Horst Koehler has thrown in the towel for getting heat about having said this:

“In my view, however, I think our society is on the right path to fully understanding that a country of our size, export-oriented as it is, and therefore dependent upon foreign trade… In a country like ours we must also know that in doubt, in an emergency, military intervention will also be necessary to protect our interests. To keep free trade routes open, for instance, to prevent regional instability, for example, these are things that would otherwise have a definite negative effect upon our trade, our jobs and our income. Everything should be open for discussion here, and I believe that we are making good progress to that end.”

My, how scandalous. How could the pacifist citizens of the world’s third largest weapons exporting nation possibly take such shocking and unsavoury presidential provocations like this sitting down? They couldn’t take it sitting down, of course, so Horst had to step down.

This is just too ridiculous for me. Somebody please tell me what I missed here.

Wir sind Papst again!

No, this is even better than having a German Pope.

Lena delivered and brought home the Eurovision 2010 crown – or whatever the hell it is Eurovision winners get when they, uh, win.

Knock yourselves out or something already!

PS: I don’t want to spoil your cornflakes or anything, Germany – she’s a cutie pie, really – but there’s something slightly wrong with her english/Englisch. I’m just sayin’, OK?

Divided we stand

But at least divided we stand together, in “broad agreement.”

It goes like this: Tim Geithner is all for imposing more conservative rules on financial institutions too, Germany, as long as they’re not too conservative. Germany’s Wolfgang Schäuble, on the other hand, wants kind-of-sort-of the same thing, he says, as long as it’s more conservative than not too conservative and, above all else, international. And as long as it’s German unilateral at the same time too, of course.

Other than that though, they couldn’t agree on much of anything.

“We have a lot in common. We are going to have slightly different approaches. I don’t think we’ll know what separates us until we get to the next stage.”

Germany vs. Europe?

Well welcome to the club, Germany. Like what took you so long?

Now, at the worst possible moment, Germany is turning to nationalist illusions. Europe’s past economic successes are now viewed as German successes.

Europe’s current deep problems are everyone else’s except Germany’s. That is neither realistic nor sustainable. But German politicians and commentators are callously and self-destructively feeding these ideas.