No German Going-It-Alone Here

They have another word for it. It’s called Alleingang.

That means going-it-alone, of course. Although that is something Germans regularly claim they would never ever do. Apparently, only Germans are capable of believing such nonsense.

Olaf Scholz Is Undermining Western Unity on China – The German chancellor’s go-it-alone approach has alienated domestic, EU, and international partners.

The German chancellor sought to get ahead of the pack. Scholz argued it was time to speak directly with Xi after a three-year hiatus in such bilateral meetings due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The chancellor said he sought to confront issues in the Germany-China relationship precisely because it isn’t business as usual. In an op-ed in the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Scholz wrote that “as China changes, so must our approach to the country.”

Just Like In The Good Old USA

Opinion: Germans rally behind Merkel amid coronavirus crisis.

Corona

A recent poll shows that Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives have seen a spike in popularity as Germany battles the coronavirus pandemic. This illustrates that our democracy is stable, says DW’s Jens Thurau.

It’s the same in the US, right? Everyone in America rallies behind the President of the United States amid the coronvirus crisis there, don’t they?  It’s just what one does. Citizens forget party politics, petty personal hysterics and even the Trump Derangement Syndrome ITSELF at times of great need like these to support their government and solve a real problem. That’s just what Americans do. And that’s what’s happening in America right now, right? Right.

By the way, the same Germans who supposedly rally behind Frau Merkel still jump at every opportunity they can get – today – to continue bashing Donald Trump with as much vehemence as they can muster. So much for today’s Sunday School sermon, Deutsche Welle.

German Of The Day: Hartz IV Und Der Tag Gehört Dir

That means: Get on welfare (Hartz IV) and the day belongs to you.

Welfare

Jeden Tag Pizza und Bier – Pizza and beer every day!

In a verdict Tuesday, the Federal Constitutional Court found that monthslong slashes to welfare benefits known as Hartz IV for “breaches of duty” are unlawful.

Under current legislation, recipients of the benefit can have their payments reduced by 30% for a period of three months if they don’t fulfill certain conditions. The amount can also be cut further — by 60% — or even completely, if a job center adviser deems they have failed to cooperate. The rules are stricter for people under the age of 25.

“It hardly makes any sense to go to work.”

Latest Anti-Terror Tributes Frighten Islamist Terrorists Into Submission

Or at least that’s the plan, I assume.

Terror

If Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate lit up in the colors of the Union Jack didn’t get them to change their evil ways last night than that One Love Manchester concert certainly must have done the trick. Talk about your one-two knockout punch.

I mean, what else could we possibly undertake to stop Islamist terrorism in Europe? I can’t think of anything, either. Other than singing Imagine by John Lennon, perhaps (in unison, holding hands, of course). A new hash tag (#TerrorismIsBadDon’tDoIt)?We’ve done what we could, people. Let’s get on with our lives now.

EUROPE UNITES Berlin and Paris stand in solidarity with London as Brandenburg Gate lights up in Union Flag colours while the Eiffel Tower goes dark 24 hours after terror atrocity.

 

Poor But Sexy But Inter-State Fiscally Adjusted

Berlin is.

Waste

Here’s a new German word for you: Länderfinanzausgleich. In a nutshell, this means that wealthy German states like Bavaria and Hesse (so-called donor states) are obligated to subsidize poor but sometimes sexy German states like Berlin and Bremen (so-called recipient states) because, well, hell if I know why.

This is also known as “inter-state fiscal adjustment” here. You know, good old fashioned Umverteilung (redistribution of somebody else’s money) or subsidies, if you prefer.

Anyways, Bavaria and Hesse, for one (or two), are mad as hell and aren’t going to take it (or give it) anymore and are bringing an action before the German Verfassungsgericht (Supreme Court) claiming that this type of thing is constitutionally imbalanced and needs to be done away with – at least when it comes to Berlin because the Berlin city/state government consists of a worthless bunch of lazy and wasteful bums who are completely out of control when it comes to spending and would never think of stopping their spending if they aren’t forced to, which is, well, a pretty accurate analysis of the situation here.

This will probably go nowhere, however, because Germans are big fans of something they like to call Solidarität (no English equivalent that I can find other than maybe “supporting lazy and wasteful and sometimes sexy bums”).

“Das Gesamtsystem leidet unter einer zu weitgehenden Nivellierung der Länderfinanzkraft, die den politisch Verantwortlichen eines Landes das Eigeninteresse nimmt, Maßnahmen zur Stärkung der originären Steuerkraft zu ergreifen.”