German of the day: Eskalationsfalle

That means escalation trap.

Berlin calls for strengthening defenses without falling into Putin’s “escalation trap” – The German Minister of Defense, Boris Pistorius, said Sunday that Germany must strengthen its defense capabilities, particularly against drones, while avoiding falling into what he called “the escalation trap” set by the Russian president Vladimir Putin.

During a defense exercise in Hamburg, the minister stressed the need for Berlin to invest in anti-drone and electronic jamming systems, as incursions into European airspace have increased since the start of the war in Ukraine.

“We must build strong defenses, but without responding precipitously to every provocation. This is exactly what Putin wants: a spiral of reactions that would lead to a direct confrontation,” Pistorius warned.

German of the day: Das waren Zeiten!

That means “those were the days!”

When everything still worked in Germany. Before German reunification.

5 facts about German Unity Day – On October 3, Germany celebrates the reunification of East and West. How did it come about — and how is it celebrated? How do Germans feel about reunification today?

Following the end of World War II in 1945, a defeated Germany was divided into four occupation zones, controlled by the Allied powers: the United States, France, Great Britain and the Soviet Union.

In 1949, two states emerged: the democratic Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) in the West, and the socialist German Democratic Republic (GDR) in the East, with the latter being under Soviet control. From that point on, Germany was divided…

German of the day: Drohnenschwarm

That means drone swarm.

Test reactions and agitate – According to security authorities, the recent drone flights in Schleswig-Holstein are not so much for espionage as for other purposes. The perpetrators presumably also want to send a warning...

Last week, drones flew over a power plant in Kiel, the university hospital, the Thyssenkrupp marine division’s factory premises, the state parliament in Kiel, and other buildings.

Jimmy Kimmel in German?

He’s certainly not funny in English. Go for it, Jimmy.

When can we book your flight?

Jimmy Kimmel says ‘Germany offered’ him a job as he slams Trump in show return – Late-night talk show Jimmy Kimmel Live! returned to ABC on September 23, almost a week after the network pulled it off the air last week.

“The guy in Germany offered me a job. Can you imagine?”

In his comments on the Sept. 15 episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Kimmel suggested that Tyler Robinson, the man accused of fatally shooting Charlie Kirk at his Turning Point USA event at Utah Valley University on September 10, was “one of” President Donald Trump’s MAGA, Make America Great Again, movement.

German of the day (2025): Hausverbot

That means house ban.

“Nothing personal, nor is this anti-Semitism, I just can’t stand you.”

“Jews are not allowed here!!!!”

German shop sign banning Jews sparks wide condemnation, police action – Flensburg store owner claims ban ‘not even antisemitism. I just can’t stand you’; Israeli envoy: ‘The 1930s are back’; German official slams sign as Jew hatred ‘in its purest form.’

That’s also how you learn to speak Klingon

Well it’s how I learned.

Ig Nobel prize for study showing that drunk Germans speak Dutch better than sober ones – Dutch Courage can help you speak a foreign language, according to a study by Dutch, English, and German researchers that was awarded an Ig Nobel prize on Thursday. They showed that alcohol consumption sometimes improves a person’s ability to speak a foreign language. “We made an important discovery. Drunk Germans usually pronounce Dutch better than sober Germans.”

German of the day: Verdreifachen

That means to triple.

Support for far-right triples in western German vote, early forecasts show – Support for Germany’s far right surged in local elections in the country’s most populous state on Sunday, sending a warning to conservative Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s four-month-old national coalition with the Social Democrats, early projections showed.

Initial forecasts from pollster infratest dimap for broadcaster ARD after voting ended for councils, districts and mayors in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia showed support for the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party had more than tripled to 16.5% from 2020.

German of the day: Verstörend

That means disturbing. Or in this case, beyond disturbing.

Germany’s reaction to Charlie Kirk’s killing was beyond disturbing – The country’s arrogant and blinkered media elite do not understand what democracy is.

The cold-blooded killing of campaigner Charlie Kirk on a university campus in Utah should have been a moment of shared grief for everyone. A young father who believed in and lived by a code of free speech and debate was gunned down in front of horrified students.

As we know, the reaction of certain sections of the Left in Britain and America was appalling. If they offered sympathy it was heavily caveated and, by applying labels like “far-Right”, they appeared to suggest he had brought it on himself.

Yet here in Germany, the response of the media class was even more disturbing. They seemed to revel in it.

German of the day: Falsche Nostalgie

That means false nostalgia.

Germany’s Merz warns against ‘false nostalgia’ over US alliance – The chancellor’s comments show European leaders are girding for a future in which the transatlantic alliance is no longer the bedrock on which the continent’s defense and economy stand.

“We must face the fact that our relationship with the U.S. is changing, The U.S. is reassessing its interests — and not just since yesterday. And so we in Europe must also adjust our interests, without false nostalgia.”