German Of The Day: Kehrtwendung

That means u-turn.

In U-Turn, Germany Will Send Weapons to Ukraine – Germany will send weapons to Ukraine including antiaircraft missiles and tank-busting rockets in a reversal of earlier policy, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said Saturday.

The U-turn was triggered by the Russian invasion, which Mr. Scholz said marked a turning point. “It is our duty to support Ukraine to the best of our ability in defending against Putin’s invading army,” Mr. Scholz said in a statement. “That is why we are delivering 1,000 antitank weapons and 500 Stinger missiles to our friends in Ukraine.”

German Of The Day: Luftraum

That means airspace.

As in: Time To Acknowledge Ukrainian Airspace Is As Dangerous As 1961 Berlin.

The tools are different, and the location has changed, but NATO and Russian President Vladimir Putin are engaged in a repeat of an epic October 27, 1961, Cold War standoff, when combat-ready American and Soviet tanks faced off in Berlin. Back then, the Soviets were reneging on Post World War II agreements that guaranteed the wartime allies unfettered access to East Berlin, and America successfully sent tanks to the border crossings to maintain those rights.

Today, the Ukraine border is a modern-day Checkpoint Charlie, and, instead of tanks, American reconnaissance platforms are confronting Russian anti-aircraft missile batteries and fighter aircraft. And, rather than backing out of post-World War II access agreements, Russia is set to renege on a guarantee of Ukraine’s sovereignty.

German Of The Day: Freedom Day

That means Freedom Day. And they’re celebrating Freedom Day – in Sweden.

Remember Sweden? The country that never had any COVID19 lockdowns or suffered from accute mask or vaccination psychosis? You know, the country that was never in the news? Of course you don’t remember Sweden. You’re not supposed to.

We never divided the people – No lockdown, hardly any rules: Professor explains why the path has been successful.

“Hopefully, research will soon show which actions were good and which were bad. Many decisions were made by politicians who wanted to demonstrate decisiveness. But health authorities also often had no knowledge base for their decisions. I think Sweden could have done a better job in the first weeks of the pandemic. For example, when it came to letting people come to work who had just arrived from abroad. But I’m glad we were never in a lockdown.”

German Of The Day: Enttäuschend

That means disappointing.

Olaf Scholz goes to Washington. Hope he’s not too disappointed with all the disappointment there.

The German government’s actions to date with respect to Ukraine have been disappointing at best. All of us in NATO are doing what we can to help Ukraine. And I think many of us believe that a country of Germany’s importance and capabilities could and should do a lot. Especially at a time that will be so important for the future of the European security order. I hope the German Government will decide to do the right thing.

German Of The Day: Cyber-Attacke

That means cyberattack.

An oil storage and a supply firm? Why would anybody attack oil storage and supply firms in Germany these days? And who could have possibly done it?

Germany: 2 oil storage and supply firms hit by cyberattack – Two companies involved in storing and supplying oil and other materials said Tuesday they have been hit by a cyberattack that has impacted operations in Germany.

Oiltanking GmbH Group and Mabanaft Group on Saturday discovered what they called a “cyber incident affecting our IT systems” and launched an investigation together with external specialists, the companies said in an emailed statement. They did not elaborate on the nature of the incident or address who might be responsible, and said they are working to understand its “full scope.”

German Of The Day: Peinlich

That means embarrassing or embarrassingly.

Here’s an example: Peinlich stolpert Biden durch seine Pressekonferenz. Meaning: Biden stumbles embarrassingly through his press conference.

A year after his inauguration, the U.S. president is glossing over his mediocre record. On the eve of a possible Russian invasion of Ukraine, of all times, he makes a serious verbal mistake.

German Of The Day: Impfpflicht

That means mandatory vaccination. And those signs down there read “for free vaccination decisions” and “no to mandatory vaccination.”

Tens of thousands of people are protesting against the latest restrictive COVID measures in German cities all over the country. And it’s fun to watch the state media squirm. They’re clearly finding it more and more difficult labelling these people wackos.

In Hamburg, some 13,700 people attended a demonstration against the restrictions, police said.

Under the banner, “Stop the corona dictatorship,” 4,000 protested in Düsseldorf.

Around 5,000 people rallied in Frankfurt, according to the police.

German Of The Day: Spaziergängen

That means walks.

Over 35,000 German “walkers” protested against the government’s anti-Covid measures in German cities last night. This appears to be embarrassing for Germany’s state news channels because they are doing their damndest to ignore this.

Mehr als 35 000 Menschen sind am Montag in zahlreichen deutschen Städten gegen die staatlichen Corona-Maßnahmen auf die Straße gegangen – oft bei nicht genehmigten “Spaziergängen”.

In a related story: “Sheep are such likeable animals — maybe they can get the message over better.”

German Of The Day: Strafanzeigen

That means criminal charges. You know, like the charges made against those demonstrating against the government’s anti-Covid measures in Munich last night?

There were some 5,000 there alone. Word is, the German police have just about had it and don’t have the personnel to handle all the demonstrations in the German cities that are now taking place.

New Year’s Eve might get a little crazy this year.

Polizei stoppt 5000 Demonstranten in München – Zwei Dutzend Strafanzeigen.