That means: There are other solutions. There are better alternatives.
And suddenly, inexplicably, despite the GROWING NUMBER of coronavirus infections, most German pandemic restrictions will now no longer be necessary. Makes one wonder if they were necessary in the first place. Hmmm.
German lawmakers vote to abolish most pandemic restrictions – Lawmakers in Germany have voted to abolish most of the country’s coronavirus pandemic restrictions despite a surge in infections, with almost 300,000 new daily cases reported
Or, German of the day: Unangenehm. That means that means unpleasant.
Zelensky’s Appeal in Berlin Meets a Realpolitik Wall – President Volodymyr Zelensky would be demanding, begging, and accusing. He would appeal to the conscience of Germany’s parliament deputies to do more than they had done so far. Knowing this, Chancellor Olaf Scholz and his ministers rejected attempts to add a debate on Ukraine to the agenda after Zelensky’s video appearance. Scholz, who had orchestrated nothing less than an about-face of German foreign policy weeks before, dodged the expected unpleasant grilling.
The government wanted to move on to the next item on the list, as though a speech by the embattled president of a neighboring country is just another item on the day’s agenda. Yes, there was a standing ovation—but it lasted just 60 seconds. Then Zelensky waved good-bye and ended the video transmission, leaving the applauding deputies standing and ashamed.
Is Germany’s moment of courage over before it even began?
Or should they try “Russian racist ideology” and “Russian death camps” first? “World War III” is getting a little tiresome, don’t you think? I just don’t know. It must be tough being a balanced and objective journalist these days.
How Far Is the Russian President Willing To Go? – The West has expressed shock over Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. But the Kremlin boss has been speaking openly for years about his vision of a Russian empire. This is the escalation he has been seeking for 20 years.
Thanks, Russia! Germany will now be selling tons of weapons to Germany for once.
Sensing a feeding frenzy, German arms makers jockey for position – Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s Feb. 27 proposal to ramp up defense expenditures by tens of billions of euros, spurred by Russia’s war on Ukraine, has defense officials in Berlin scrambling to identify spending opportunities that promise fast results, according to several company officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations.
Germany is in a quandary over its dependency on Russian energy?
Quandary: a state of perplexity or uncertainty, especially as to what to do; dilemma.
When 50% of your oil, gas and coal comes from Russia, that’s no quandary at all. That just means you’re screwed.
Germany in a quandary over Russian energy – Germany has rejected a complete ban on Russian gas and oil imports over Russia invading Ukraine, but voices are growing louder for Berlin to ditch its economic imperative to take a moral stand.
Hey, the Germans couldn’t have done it without Angela Merkel.
Factbox: How dependent is Germany on Russian gas?
Russia has warned it may shut off its main Nord Stream gas pipeline to Germany after Berlin halted approval of a second line across the Baltic Sea in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
And that it should be stopped immediately. And the rest of us need to know that they think war is bad and that we, the less-cultured, should think it is bad too. War ain’t got no culture, in other words.
I know!, the cultured say after brainstorming. We’ll hold a “Concert for Peace.” That’s never been tried before. We will also make paintings of doves holding olive branches. That ought to have the desired effect. Anti-war books are also in the process of being written. Once they are published and airlifted to those making war, and read by them, this will definitely stop the war, provided it hasn’t been stopped already by, I dunno, all the cultured people of the world holding hands together and singing “Imagine” while waving Ukrainian flags with “No war!” on them to “express solidarity” or “make a statement” or “set a sign” and bring an end to this awful, culture-less conflict.*
But be warned, you war mongers out there: If none of this works, the culture may escalate. And you don’t want that.
*Yes, it’s true. Cultured people can hold hands together and wave a flag at the same time.
In Germany. Not nearly as bad as it was a few days ago, in fact. Just like that. It’s magic or something. It’s fracking inexplicable!
Germany Goes Ahead With First LNG Terminal to Cut Dependence on Russian Gas – Germany unveiled more details Saturday on its plan to build its first liquefied natural-gas terminals as it seeks to wean itself off its dependence on Russian gas.
The terminals are the latest step in Berlin’s diversification efforts that have been urgently ramped up in recent days following Russia’s attack on Ukraine. Germany gets around 55% of its gas from Moscow and has long been resistant to diversifying away from cheap and plentiful Russian energy supplies.
Germany last week halted the $11 billion Nord Stream 2 project, which would have doubled the capacity of an existing pipeline traveling along a similar route. The government also announced plans for gas and coal storage and commissioned its gas market trading hub to buy LNG for 1.5 billion euros, or the equivalent of $1.64 billion, from outside Russia.
Uh, believe me. Germany is still sleeping. Sound asleep. And a giant is the last thing it is. Certainly not when it comes to its military.
Europe’s Sleeping Giant Awakens – Politics in Berlin has undergone a cataclysm that no one saw coming.
Scholz announced that Germany would end its dependence on Russian gas (no, they won’t), spend an additional 100 billion euros on its military (a lot but not nearly enough), and deliver hundreds of anti-tank weapons and Stinger missiles to Ukraine in order to help its overmatched military counter Russia’s all-out assault (nice symbolic gesture). Germany may also be forced to extend the life of its nuclear plants to fill the energy gap created by the halt to Russian gas supplies (ha, ha, ha).
“Freedom does not mean as much in Germany as it might in other places,” this person told me, speaking on the condition of anonymity in order to candidly discuss German political mores. “If the trade-off is between economic decline and an erosion of freedoms, Germany could well choose the latter.”
And would, of course. But Germany? Planet Germany? German Renewable Energy Disneyland itself? Do NOT place any bets on that one.
Explainer: Could Germany keep its nuclear plants running?
Of the 17 nuclear power plants Germany had at the time, only three remain in operation now: Isar 2, Emsland and Neckarwestheim 2, which are operated by German energy firms E.ON (EONGn.DE), RWE (RWEG.DE) and EnBW (EBKG.DE), respectively.
Under current plans, the plants, with combined capacity of 4,200 gigawatts (GW), will be shut down by the end of 2022.
Observing Hermann 