After having walked through the Brandenburg Gate I went along the American Embassy. The two guards were smiling. That was nice. The German policemen a few metres down the road were not. Maybe there was a reason for it.
I had almost arrived at the Adlon Palais when I looked at the other side of the [...]
Whenever I come to Berlin I have to walk through the Brandenburg Gate. And when I walk through that Gate I remember Ronald Reagan`s famous speech that marked the beginning of the end of the Cold War in which he asked:
Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate.
Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!
And now this Gate is [...]
Wow! That really cheered me up. This week I was invited to an Aspen event featuring Ulrich W. Sahm. He spoke on “The Middle East in Turmoil - Israel in the Eye of the Storm”. I`d really wish he was not only ntv-Israel correspondent, but also reporting on ARD and ZDF. I assure you, [...]
In his article “Merkels doppelte Wende” on the Axis of Good, June 30, 2011, Kevin Zdiara compares Angela Merkel`s radical change of mind regarding atomic energy and her relation with Israel. At first sight two totally separate issues, but he sees a very strong similarity:
Keine zwei Themen könnten auf den ersten Blick unterschiedlicher anmuten und [...]
CDU has lost her soul and Angela Merkel has transformed her party into ideological nothingness, says Alexander Gauland in DIE WELT (page 2, June 24, 2011) in his article „Meine Abrechnung mit der CDU“:
(…) Angela Merkel hat es geschafft, aus einer Partei mit konservativen, liberalen und sozialen Inhalten ein ideologisches Nichts zu zaubern, eine [...]
“Goodby Nato” is an article written by Michael Stürmer in DIE WELT, June 15, p. 3 in which he harshly criticises Germany for not being a reliable partner. I`d wish he was wrong, but I suspect he is right:
(…) Wie sollen Streitkräfteplanung oder Europas gemeinsame Sicherheits- und Verteidigungspolitik aussehen, wenn keiner weiß, nicht einmal die [...]
I don`t know, I really don`t know where Germany is heading these days. But if Germany is really governed by opinion polls, as I suspect, this is a very scaring question.
Back in 2003 an EU poll said that 59 % of Europeans saw Israel as the biggest threat to world peace. In second place, after [...]
I told you so! Peer Steinbrück IS the alternative! He was not even listed on ZDF`s popularity list (ZDF Politbarometer) and now that he is back he immediately jumped to No. 1! Which makes him the most popular politician in Germany. A slap in the face to all politicians currently in power. Remains to see [...]
Sigh, we Germans are not to be envied when learning English. At school we are being taught British English. Now this is what happened to me when talking to a friend from the U.S.:
He asked:
“What did you have for lunch, Karin?”
“A takeaway meal.”
“A takeaway?”
“Yes. I did not cook, but instead went to a Thai takeaway.”
“Oh.” [...]
It is ironical that Angela Merkel should receive the Medal of Freedom today. A few years ago I would have been enthused, not any more.
I thought she would promote freedom and market-economy in Germany. That is one of the reasons why I voted for her. And during her first term a lot was forgiven because [...]