Angela Tea Party Merkel

August 14, 2012 By Hermann Observer in Hard Facts, Hate, Heconomy, Helections, Helplessness, High Art, Home Cooking, Humor, Hypocrisy, Hysteria Tags: Angela Merkel, Berlin, Economists, Economy, German, Germans, Germany, Hayek, Humor, Keynes, Romney, Ryan, Satire, Taxation, Taxes, Tea Party Leave a comment

“Wait a minute… This seems familiar to me. Romney and Ryan stole all this from Angela Merkel! That which the Tea Party wants to do is already being done by Merkel here, and for quite some time now: She wants to force other European states to save instead of just continuing to throw money at them.”

“With Ryan as vice-presidential candidate, the presidential election now has two clear and easily understandable alternatives: Obama wants to save the economy by going further into debt (financed through taxes) and pumping this into the economy. Romney and Ryan want to save the economy by lowering taxes (which should lead to more private investment) and forcing the state to save.”

Ich habe jedenfalls nie verstanden, warum die Deutschen die Tea Party nicht mögen. Logisch ist das nicht: Einerseits sind die meisten Deutschen erschrocken und verängstigt ob des schwindelerregenden amerikanischen Haushaltsdefizits und fest überzeugt, dass Amerika die Staatsschulden abbauen muss. Sonst würde es doch irgendwann zusammenbrechen oder von China aufgekauft. Gleichzeitig aber hassen sie die einzige politische Bewegung, die genau dafür kämpft – die Tea Party.

And now here’s some economist rap.

Friedman’s Prophecy

August 13, 2012 By Hermann Observer in Heconomy, Helplessness, Home Cooking, Hurt Feelings, Hysteria Tags: Berlin, Currency, Euro, Eurozone, German, Germans, Germany, Greece, Italy, Milton Friedman, Spain, The Euro Crisis, The Financial Crisis Leave a comment

I don’t believe in prophets. I’m very skeptical when it comes to economists of all flavors, too.

But when looking around at what’s going on here in Europe these days and considering how even the Spiegel itself now warns us about investors preparing for the euro collapse, I can’t help but wonder if Milton Friedman didn’t have a functioning crystal ball after all.

“There is no historical precedent for such an arrangement (the euro). It involves each country’s giving up power over its internal monetary policy to an entity not under its political control. Such a system has economic advantages and disadvantages, but I believe that its real Achilles heel will prove to be political; that a system under which the political and currency boundaries do not match is bound to prove unstable.”

Now I’ll Call Swiss Bankers Organized Criminals

August 12, 2012 By Hermann Observer in Habeas Corpus, Habitudes, Heconomy, Helplessness, Home Cooking, Hurt Feelings, Hypocrisy, Hysteria Tags: Berlin, German, Germans, Germany, Informants, Politics, Populism, SPD, Swiss Banks, Switzerland, Tax evasion, Taxation Leave a comment

Unable or unwilling to address the real reason why Germans (who can) move their money out of this country to countries where their money is treated better, SPD boss Sigmar Gabriel has now accused Swiss banking of “legalizing tax evasion.”

Maybe if the German state wouldn’t burn as much money as it does, those being milked might consider leaving it here. And maybe before accusing others of criminal intent, he might want to ask himself if the now regular practice of dealing in stolen goods (buying CDs with lists of German Swiss account holders from informers) is really the way Vater Staat (Father State) ought to behave. And maybe, just maybe, this guy ought to think about trying something different than this tired old primative populism of his. Maybe.

“Was mich ärgert ist, dass wir hier offensichtlich nicht in der Lage sind, mal eine Schwerpunktstaatsanwaltschaft zu gründen.”

Guilty Until Your Boyfriend Is Proven Guilty

August 10, 2012 By Hermann Observer in Habeas Corpus, Habitudes, Helplessness, History, Home Cooking, Hurt Feelings, Hypocrisy, Hysteria Tags: Berlin, Fairness, German, Germans, Germany, Guilt, Justice, London, Nadja Drygalla, Nazis, Olympics 2012, Psychology, Sports 1 Comment

Sports builds character or something. Guilty by association in Germany (or in this case London)? How ya figure?

Although she has never been associated with any far-right statements or actions, German Olympic rower Nadja Drygalla has a boyfriend who has. This is not vorgesehen (provided for) in Germany, however, and therefore she must now be made a public outcast.

If her boyfriend had been an open supporter of say, the Red Army Faction, no one in Germany would have cared. But hey, I don’t make the rules here. So deal with it, lady. It’s show (trial) time.

“It is the right impulse to be very cautious when it comes to extremism in Germany. But that also caused a number of overreactions in the past and the case of Ms. Drygalla is one of it.”

Another In-Depth Spiegel Analysis

August 9, 2012 By Hermann Observer in Habitudes, Hate, Helections, Higher Education, Home Cooking, Hypocrisy, Hysteria Tags: Berlin, Der Spiegel, German, Germans, Germany, Gleichschaltung, Humor, Journalism, Obama, Presidential Election, Propaganda, Reporting, Romney, Satire 2 Comments

And it goes like this: “Romney dumb” (meaning “Obama smart”).

When it comes to objective, thorough and even-handed journalism (and the American presidential campaign) few international tabloids can compare with the quality reporting reported by Spiegel reporters.

The latest scoop for the German nation: Mitt Romney said “sheik” instead of “sikh.”

OMG. This is an issue, I guess. And shocking, or something. And proves something, I suppose.

Geepers creepers, that would be almost as inappropriate as saying these sorry Spiegel reporters are full of “Schiet” instead of “Scheiße” (Schiet, albeit correct, is a much more vulgar term here, I think).

Knapp drei Monate vor der US-Präsidentenwahl liegt Amtsinhaber Barack Obama in Umfragen weiter deutlich vor Romney.

Occupy Camp Frankfurt Was Not For Nothing

August 7, 2012 By Hermann Observer in Habitudes, Heconomy, Helplessness, Higher Education, Hurt Feelings, Hustle (Hoax), Hypochondria, Hypocrisy, Hysteria Tags: Anti-Capitalism, Berlin, Capitalism, Demonstrations, Frankfurt, German, Germans, Germany, Humor, Occupy Frankfurt, Protest, Satire, The Occupy Movement 1 Comment

Or so we are told. The movement has now merely become “invisible.”

Not even the most vehement anti-capitalist protesters can believe, I mean live, in this Dreck (crap) forever.

That is why German Police have now put up barricades around Camp Occupy (next to the European Central Bank headquarters) and are helping to carry out the last remaining activists for reintegration into that heartless, bourgeois world of showers, warm meals/beds and regular working hours (or at least that is their sincere hope).

But the movement will live on or something, albeit in a new “invisible” form. And I only find this appropriate as the movement’s arguments have been invisible from day one.

297 Tage existierte dieser utopische Zwergstaat im Zentrum der deutschen Finanzindustrie.

German Journalists Concerned About Disinformation?

August 6, 2012 By Hermann Observer in Habitudes, Helplessness, Higher Education, Home Cooking, Hurt Feelings, Hypochondria, Hypocrisy Tags: Assad, Berlin, Der Spiegel, German, Germans, Germany, Guilt, Journalism, Propaganda, Psychology, Syria 1 Comment

Since when? This is classic German mind gymnastics for me. Take something simple and make it complicated. Then add a dash of sinister anti-American consipiracy theory (or anti-Western, if you prefer), a clove of institutionalised German peacenik guilt complex, hand-wring thoroughly and then serve warm.

Mr. Todenhöfer faulted Mr. Reuter and other Western journalists for what he called their willingness to accept the rebel (Syrian) narrative, with its uncorroborated casualty reports, unverified videos of destruction and anonymous witnesses to atrocities by soldiers and thuggish militiamen. “I criticize their disinformation campaigns and their dreadful ‘massacre marketing,’ ” he said.

He has castigated Western press coverage of the Syrian conflict, calling it unfairly hostile to Mr. Assad and overly sympathetic to his enemies.

“Mr. Assad still holds the authority among the majority of the population.”

Pirates Shocked That Pirates Won’t Pay

August 5, 2012 By Hermann Observer in Habitudes, Heconomy, Helections, Helplessness, High Art, Home Cooking, Humor, Hurt Feelings, Hypocrisy Tags: Berlin, Finances, German, Germans, Germany, Humor, Pirates, Political Parties, Politics, Satire, The Pirate Party 2 Comments

Is this any way for a marauding mob of pilfering plunderers and freeloading freebooters to behave?

Worried about financial bottlenecks during upcoming election campaigns, Pirate party boss Bernd Schlömer has threatened to admonish dilinquent party members. Many (42 percent) have failed to pay their annual membership fee of 48 euros.

Nach Angaben von Schlömer haben rund 42 Prozent der mehr als 33.000 Mitglieder ihren Jahresbeitrag von 48 Euro noch nicht bezahlt.

So Much For That Shootout

August 3, 2012 By Hermann Observer in Habitudes, Heconomy, Helplessness, Home Cooking, Hurt Feelings, Hysteria Tags: Berlin, Central Banks, Draghi, ECB, EU, Euro Crisis, Financial crisis, German, Germans, Germany, Humor, Italy, Merkel, Monetary Policy, Satire, Spain, The Euro, The Euro Zone Leave a comment

I still don’t know who Gary Cooper was here, but Mario Draghi just went from “I will do whatever it takes to preserve the euro” (and buy up Spanish and Italian bonds) to “the ECB may consider” doing so at a later date.

Needless to say, the markets were not amused. Cherchez la femme, I’d say (and it ain’t Grace Kelly).

What’s the hold up? Germany, perhaps. During a press conference afterwards, ECB vice-president Vítor Constâncio noted that only one member of the ECB was adamantly opposed to bond purchases. This seems to be a reference to Germany’s Bundesbank, which had vigorously opposed a central-bank bailout of Spain and Italy. And even though the Bundesbank doesn’t have a direct veto over ECB actions, it seems Germany, as the richest country in the euro zone, still has plenty of sway.

“For all the criticism of Merkel, she distinguishes herself from politicians on both sides of the Atlantic in that she has a plan.”

40 Percent Feel Discriminated Against?

August 2, 2012 By Hermann Observer in Habitudes, Hard Facts, Hate, Health, Helplessness, Home Cooking, Humor, Hurt Feelings, Hypochondria, Hypocrisy, Hysteria Tags: Ausländer, Berlin, Discrimination, Foreigners, German, Germans, Germany, Hostility, Humor, Immigration, Integration, Racism, Satire, Society, Studies, Xenophobia 1 Comment

A new study showing that 40 percent of foreigners living in Germany feel discriminated against in everyday life has left numerous German social scientists completely puzzled.

“This was quite a surprise for most of us,” one expert noted, wishing to remain anonymous. “As everybody out there knows, this percentage should really be a whole lot higher. It’s like 60 or 70 percent easy, I’d say. Those dumb foreigners clearly don’t know what the hell is going on, as usual.”

“Meine Erfahrung ist, dass hochqualifizierte Menschen mit ausländischen Wurzeln teilweise befürchten, in normalen Bewerbungsverfahren ausgegrenzt zu werden.”

Observing Hermann

“Was interessiert mich mein Geschwätz von gestern?”

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