Tag Archives: Language

Be more like Freddy

June 25, 2026 By in Habitudes, Helplessness, Hideology, Home Cooking Tags: , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

German of the day: Amerikabild

That means image of America.

The soccer fan who is shaking up Germany’s image of America – For years, Germans have viewed the U.S. primarily through headlines and mostly negative news: Donald Trump, polarization, gun violence, and culture wars. And now an unknown German soccer fan named “Freddy from Germany” comes along, posts on social media about his first visit to a “Waffle House,” expresses amazement at a massive gas station with more than a hundred pumps and a shooting range right in the middle of an outdoor store—and suddenly, millions of people are seeing a different side of America…

Perhaps this World Cup ultimately says more about Germany than it does about the United States.

German of the day: Preisgestaltung

June 19, 2026 By in Habitudes, Hard Facts, Heconomy, Helplessness, Home Cooking, Hurt Feelings Tags: , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

That means pricing policy.

U.S. Launches Trade Investigation Against Germany Over Drug Prices – Washington accuses Berlin of underpaying for innovative drugs. If the investigation yields corresponding results, punitive tariffs could even be imposed.

The U.S. has launched a trade investigation against Germany regarding drug pricing. According to several media reports, Washington intends to examine whether innovative drugs are systematically underpaid on the German market, causing U.S. patients to bear a comparatively high share of research and development costs.

German of the day: Skandalöse Lügen

June 16, 2026 By in Hard Facts, Home Cooking Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

That means scandalous lies.

Elon Musk is taking legal action against ZDF – Now Elon Musk (54) is striking back! The tech billionaire (in German, trillion is Billion – don’t ask) and SpaceX CEO has announced on his platform X that he is taking legal action against ZDF. This comes in response to a serious allegation made by the public broadcaster: In a program, Musk was linked to the riots in Northern Ireland and accused of calling for a “hunt for migrants.”

German of the day: Brötchen

June 13, 2026 By in Home Cooking Tags: , , , , , Leave a comment

That means pygmy hippopotamus.

Or bread roll. Take your pick.

A young pygmy hippopotamus at the Berlin Zoo is named Brötchen.

The newest addition to the Berlin pygmy hippopotamus family is named Brötchen. The Berlin Zoo announced this on Wednesday. “Naming animals after foods seems to be a popular internet trend right now,” explained zoo director Andreas Knieriem: “Strictly speaking, though, people in Berlin have known for decades that small, round snacks make excellent animal names: the female hippo Bulette was one of the absolute favorites at the Berlin Zoo until 2005.”

German of the day: Herablassend

June 9, 2026 By in Hard Facts, Helplessness, Hideology Tags: , , , , , , , Leave a comment

That means condescending.

After UN fiasco: Former African president harshly criticizes Baerbock – “condescending.”

On the sidelines of a summit of African leaders in Nairobi, Botswana’s former President Mokgweetsi Masisi spoke to Bild in strong terms: “Perhaps Ms. Baerbock should have focused on doing her job in German diplomacy instead of trying to dictate to Nigerians where to build their toilets and telling Africans how to deal with elephants.” Masisi added: “Perhaps Germany would then have received more votes from Africa for the UN seat.”

German of the day: Verbockt

June 6, 2026 By in Helplessness, Hard Facts, Helections, Hurt Feelings, Hideology Tags: , , , , , , Leave a comment

That means to bungle.

And that kind of sort of rhymes with Baerbock, which also means to bungle.

Verbaerbockt?

“Baerbock blew it” – CDU/CSU calls for an inquiry into the Green Party politician following the UN defeat – CSU foreign policy expert Stephan Mayer is calling for an investigation into Germany’s failure to secure a seat on the UN Security Council. Former Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock must answer questions before the Foreign Affairs Committee.

Following Germany’s failure to secure a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council, the CDU/CSU is stepping up pressure on former Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock. CSU foreign policy expert Stephan Mayer is calling for the Green Party politician to be questioned in the Bundestag, as reported by “Bild.”

“We must thoroughly investigate the causes of this embarrassing election defeat,” Mayer said. To that end, he added, “it is absolutely essential that Annalena Baerbock answer questions from the Bundestag’s Foreign Affairs Committee.” The former foreign minister must explain “how and when her office took specific steps to mobilize majorities in support of Germany’s bid for a non-permanent seat on the Security Council.”

German of the day: Armut

June 2, 2026 By in Hard Facts, Helplessness, Hideology, Home Cooking Tags: , , , , , , , Leave a comment

That means poverty.

Germany’s poverty rate rises to record high, welfare group says – Germany’s poverty rate rose to a record high of 16.1% in 2025, leaving around 13.3 million people classified as poor, according to a report published on Tuesday by the Paritätische, an umbrella group for charitable organizations.

The figure was up from 15.5% a year earlier and marked the highest level since comparable records began, the association said, citing official data released earlier this year.

The Night of the Living Dead Pants

May 25, 2026 By in High Art, History Tags: , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Tote Hose (dead pants) means “nothing going on” in German.

But nothing going on keeps going on. Rest in peace already.

The death of German punk? Die Toten Hosen go on one last thrash – Over 44 years, the Düsseldorf band has gone from hellraising to becoming a cherished fixture of the mainstream, closing off with their final album this week.