Tag Archives: Berlin

Raus already!

January 27, 2010 By in Hypocrisy Tags: , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

You just knew there had to be a rest of the story about yesterday’s post.

Very peculiar, this German Haltung (position) about sending more troops to Afghanistan. A few weeks ago the Germans were very loud and touchy about not being pushed to commit sending additional troops before the London Conference takes place.

Now – strangely two days before the London Conference begins – Germany makes a big announcement about deciding to send an additional 850 personnel after all. Less sophisticated types like myself might think that they’re speaking with a forked tongue, you know, placing everybody else before vollendete Tatsachen (a fait accompli).

Oh yeah, and the punch line here: At the same time that they announce a troop increase they also announce that they’ll begin bringing everybody home the following year.

That way everybody’s happy, I guess. Nope, no losers here. Who says you can’t please (fool?) all of the people all of the time? Even the Taliban will be pleased to hear about this one.

Afghanistan: Mehr Soldaten – und dann raus

Berlin comes in first place again!

January 18, 2010 By in Hard Facts Tags: , , , , , , , Leave a comment

When it comes to having the most folks on welfare (Hartz IV) in Germany, that is. Which puts them in last place amoung the other German states, I guess. But still.

Nearly 200 out of 1000 Berliners receive payments from the state to get by, more or less. And it’s lonely up here at the top too, I mean bottom. But somebody’s got to do it. I mean be here.

Knapp 20 Prozent der Berlinerinnen und Berliner seien auf staatliche Unterstützung angewiesen, schreiben die Autoren der Studie „Die Bundesländer im Standortwettbewerb 2010“

Fruit sellers go home!

October 2, 2009 By in Home Cooking Tags: 2 Comments

Bashing Berlin? That’s easy. Especially if you’re a real insider who’s on the outside now. Thilo Sarrazin (SPD), the city’s former finance minister now working for the German Central Bank in Frankfurt, has said in an interview that Berlin is 1) not productive enough 2) has too many immigrants and 3) is being held back by its leftist mentality. Well, two out of three ain’t bad (I’m on the immigrants’ side for some strange reason).

Einen Koffer in Berlin habe ich nicht mehr.

“In Berlin there is a bigger problem than elsewhere of an underclass that does not take part in the normal economic cycle. A large number of Arabs and Turks in this city, whose numbers have grown thanks to the wrong policies, have no productive function except selling fruit and vegetables. I would strike a completely different tone. Anyone who can do something and strives for something with us is welcome. The rest should go elsewhere.”

It’s a good thing he went elsewhere before he did this interview is all I can say. And what the hell’s wrong with selling fruit, huh? I don’t see anything wrong with selling fruit. Unless your name is Klaus Wowereit or something, I mean.*

* Inappropriate/incorrect joke warning:  Klaus Wowereit is Berlin’s openly gay mayor who’s about to be the next big thang in what used to be the SPD, get it?

Sarrazin hält die Berliner für eher plebejisch und kleinbürgerlich. Die Bundesbank distanzierte sich von Sarrazins Äußerungen.