Time for the mind

Let's be honest: What is actually still all the fuss around the Stuttgart Hauptbahnhof? Demonstrates, strike, besatzt, fighting, complaining and angry was nevertheless now beleibe enough. Can we conduct ourselves civilized again, we finally remember, especially since Christmas is around the corner?

Tomorrow is Carnival, nonsense, referendum, with the then yes - or no? - Finally, you'll be fine. Incidentally, Baden-Württemberg is matched throughout. Not only in the Swabian capital. Did you know? Since the Baden are already happy to beat their arch-enemies cheat ...

But that's not the only Ver (w) straying into the matter; my colleague Magnus Wolf Goeller has been left out in detail about the linguistic capers .

And anyway: Read this story »

Tents under the Euro symbol: Occupy makes it possible (photo: cellar compartment)

Frankfurt am Main. The other night I went on a sight-seeing tour of the local "Occupy Camp". Moment, you do not know what the Occupy movement? Seriously? Then you are not alone. I had this awakening phenomenon recently even a sociology (!) - Explain student. She read a equal in power, and then said flatly: "Does not sound really revolutionary about." Revolutionary. Should this be about?

Back to my tour of the camp. Everywhere labeled flyers and posters, with a variety of more or less wise sayings and slogans of all ideological persuasions. A friendly Occupyler itself significant as an anarchist, spoke to me and chatted right out of the preserves. Read this story »

Not at more insidious, but most obviously the belt-tightening in the Bundestag. No, unfortunately not what MPs salaries terms - the so-called diets take notwithstanding any economic situation to. Strangled is rather the thought and freedom of action of our elected officials, and for ever bolder in. These efforts go by the major parties - and their exuberant hubris.

That faction leader and other party officials scold those that differ for voting on the specified line, as happened when it comes to health care reform or the Mazedonieneinsatz the Bundeswehr was heard almost the parliamentary normality today. Particularly apparent in his time did Franz Müntefering (SPD), which evoked the "party discipline". For other parties, such as the Greens , there was just such controversies. From punish the "apostates" (z. B. By dropping in the nomination of candidates for the next federal election) to the expulsion from the party , and the range of intimidation practice.

So also with the thorny vote on euro rescue fund (EFSF) last Thursday. Some nonlinear faithful EFSF opponents had to listen to this in advance worst insults from its own ranks, even the veteran Wolfgang Bosbach (CDU) was able to experience this puzzled .

Meanwhile, is clearly regulated in the Basic Law: this entry »

It's never been easier probably to gain a seat in parliament, than today. Just quickly be Pirate Party member and can be set up for election. Well, in the near future it should look a bit poor, what state elections terms (2011, no more, in 2012 only one).

There hails from autumn 2013 for one year only as election dates. And the election of the Bundestag also approaching. So plenty of opportunities, at least one's own "basic income" before luxuriant hedge. Until then, can not hurt anything temporal preparation safely. For example, one can imagine already in colorful pictures, what you will do with all the coal ...

Otherwise, it does not take much knowledge. Learning by Doing just fine, so you can see even in long-established MPs, how often sometimes change their department.

Temerity, or at least daring occurrence / appearance is also not a disadvantage; On the contrary, it emphasizes the credibility. Authenticity seems to be prompted again.

And this is serious!

To be pirate has what, this is now "hip." Read this story »

Since last Sunday, the media interest in the Pirate Party has potentiated scary. Previously, she was still overlooked as a small party as much as possible, sometimes even scorned or ridiculed. Since the pirates are fed with 8.9% of the vote in the Berlin House of Representatives, and the same with all 15 candidates , things look different. The new faces including biographies go through the press. Even on talk shows the "network privateer" have become popular.

The Berlin election was the first major success since the founding of the Pirate Party in 2006, we see times on various local elections. But why the sudden rush of voters? Was it the increased campaign advertising in advance? Or is it (late) fruits of the rapid increase in membership (now around 12,000, which makes it the seventh largest pirate party behind the Greens)? Or was the whole time just ripe?

Anyway: It was a smart move by the pirates, take the basic income and direct democracy in their party program. this entry »

Since recently, I may be the proud owners of a "smartphone" expect (no, none of IPhones, because I Apple's rigid policy not even want to support and their hardware monopoly).

Frankly, I'm flabbergasted, what has happened in recent years in the field of mobile communication. My phone is actually mutated into a portable mini office with a range of functions, of which I as a journalist dared hardly dream recently: E-mails and send rechechieren the Internet, subscribe newsreader, read e-books, make high resolution photos and movies , plan routes and navigate through the country (and even with so-called augmented reality -Apps) use social networks and messenger such as Skype, online banking on the go, documents and even scan barcodes for product identification, and even speech and music recognition is now with surprisingly high hit rate possible (to dictate a text message is very handy) - and, believe it or not: you can calls with the thing too. All this finally with a single small device, at affordable prices. My joy at the start was huge.

But then came the disillusionment: namely, the there's a catch. Not to say, a giant hook. Read this story »

Done even signs and wonders? Traces here just a change? Or is it just a concatenation happy "accidents"?

Leafing through this week's Focus issue anyway, I had the same amazed several times. It starts with the title image: Stands there but actually "ME - The best medicine in the world" and the subtitle: "The miracle of self-healing". Ten pages dedicated editors in the inner part of this focus, which ends with a kind of summary, which says: "The new soul medicine". In Focus mind you. I beg your pardon?

Until not too long ago still had Focus, Spiegel & Co. only contempt, if not ridicule, but at least polemic left for everything that moves beyond the conventionality. Did I oversleep what? of this entry »

Source: Bild Zeitung of 6 July 2011

Necessity is the mother of invention, recently even the federal government. Because of the nurses emergency one adopted last Monday unceremoniously and without fanfare a change in the law, which expanded and relocated the powers of the authorities. For example, to engage with immediate effect nursing homes under the armpits police.

A photojournalist get these snapshots immediately after the entry into force of the amendment. They show motivated officers on duty, as they carry an elderly man friendly, supervise this without time pressure and even shoot photos of him. The police finally friend and helper!

But wait, something is wrong. Keeps the grandpa not a "counter-Stuttgart 21" sticker in your hand? And what should the title of "pensioners demo against S21"? Read this story »

Late last year, he had contemplated, now he is serious: A few weeks ago , the Dalai Lama announced from his Indian asylum that he resigns from his post as political leader of Tibet. His successor in that office to be elected to office, it said. His position as spiritual leader, however, he reserved.

A clever, especially a long overdue step. It is exactly this Vereininigung both offices in his person or the resulting confusion to who is really speaking to his people, the secular or the religious leader, it forbade his people to disagree with him. For his Buddhist leader have you follow unconditionally, but not his policy, it explained the former German translation of the Damai Lama, the Buddhist Helmut Gassner, in an interview with zeitgeist . Read this story »

At the beginning of the year I was from Andreas Bleeck (on behalf of the party of the Violet, which I incidentally not a member'm - I'm in at all any party and will never enter into a what me alone demanded the journalistic principle of neutrality) interviewed where there is a concern to portray the publisher of the so-called cultural-creative media landscape and their motives. The interview was now on the website of the "Violet" published - likewise as audio recording as well as a transcript.

When asked I was to my journalistic concerns the origins and of course the current contents of the zeitgeist magazine (which has incidentally nothing with which to do "Zeitgeist Movie" or initiated by the movie "Zeitgeist Movement". this entry »

No April Fool's: For the 12th time evening were the German "Big Brother Awards" awarded to the most active Datenschutzfrevler yesterday. Taken findings had on this festive occasion about 300 guests in the Hechelei in Bielefeld (yes, the city does indeed exist, all conspiracy theories notwithstanding - I could convince myself personally thereof;-)), including the judges (including the Chaos Computer Club ) and those responsible from Foebud e. V., which organizes the awards each year.

The prizes were awarded this year: Read this story »

That lobbying is a manifest evils in our society, is today probably deny hardly anyone. Many networks and cliques make backstage politics of the day with - according to the motto: one hand washes the other. In Berlin alone, drifting over 5,000 lobbyists to mischief.

Opinion mongering, disinformation, unfair collusion, bribery, nepotism, subtle influence on bills and voting, before dividing by tender ... - seems endless list of names and influence offenses, of which the average citizen brave long would not hear. Or could not imagine / would as unconscionable able to operate politicians and business leaders. Many also are privy to and remain silent out of fear or because they themselves benefit from cowardice.

But there are brewing up something: Read this story »

By the atomic disaster in Japan in this country the fundamental debate on the phasing out of nuclear power boils up again. The there leaked radioactivity added now the whole world worried - and, as it seems there are even more leaks in a completely different place, namely at the Canada-US border. In a nuclear power plant near Toronto should have flowed into Lake Ontario 73,000 liters of contaminated water ...

Many other good reasons for a nuclear phase-out has been around a long time, but now only wants the seven oldest reactors, the federal government - at least temporarily - to shut down. Two are probably already on the network, possibly all 17 German nuclear power plants are even soon closed down permanently, as an internal strategy document unveiled .

Nevertheless, the remain only a beginning. Read this story »