gelbes_gilatier | Entries tagged with politics

The office of German Bundespräsident (President) is not half as powerful as that of the American, French or Russian President. It's mostly a ceremonial office and laws have to be signed by the President to become valid. I have only ever heard of exactly one President who refused to sign a law until it was changed (Horst Köhler, if I remember it correctly. Input, anyone?) so that's mostly ceremonial, too.

( You, sir, are Not My President, and this is why. )

Current Mood: pissed off
Current Location: GRRRR!
Current Music: MOAAAH!

Let's do this, guys. Let's tell the EU Parliament what we think about making ISPs the democratically non-legitimated police and judges of the interwebs rolled into one. Let's tell them how much our freedom of speech matters to us and what we think about denying developing countries affordable medication (because yes, that's part of ACTA, too). Let's sign those:

Just say no to ACTA campaign by access

ACTA petition by AVAAZ.org

Let's tell them how sick we are of old white men who print out their e-mails trying to reign the internet.

Current Mood: optimistic
Current Location: At home.
Current Music: Das unbekannte Tunesien

Originally posted by

morgandawn at Seems I Am Not The Only One.... and found at

afteriwake

......who feels the need to take a break from an increasingly dysfunctional relationship.

Black March - Thursday March 1st 2012 to Saturday March 31st 2012 With the continuing campaigns for internet-censoring litigation such as SOPA and PIPA, and the closure of sites like Megaupload under allegations of 'piracy' and 'conspiracy' the time has come to take a stand against music, film, and media companies' lobbyists. The only way is to hit them where it hurts. Their profit margins. March 2012 is the end of the First Quarter in economic reports world wide. Do not buy a single record. Do not download a single song, legally or illegally. Do not go to see a single film in cinemas, or download a copy. Do not buy a DVD in the stores. Do not buy a videogame. Do not buy a single book or magazine. Wait the four weeks to buy them in April: see a film later, etc... Holding out for just four weeks, maximum, will leave a gaping hole in media companies profits for the first quarter, an economic hit which will in turn be observed by governments world wide as stocks and shares will blip from a large enough loss of incomes. This action will give a statement of intent: "We will not tolerate the Media Industries' lobbying for legislation that will censor the internet."

Original image and campaign source: reddit.

Edited to add my own thoughts (not part of the original reddit call for action): And if you do not feel like taking a total break and perhaps want just a trial separation or couple's counseling, then perhaps consider Black March Lite 2.0 = spend, but spend money on those content creators and independent retailers who came out against SOPA/PIPA. And tell them why you're buying their products in March. There are many of them.

And for those who favor the more targeted boycott, you can find info here. But no matter which, you can participate and you can tailor your level of participation. We have the tools, the will and the strength to take a stand.

Text of image
Black March - Thursday March 1st 2012 to Saturday March 31st 2012
With the continuing campaigns for internet-censoring litigation such as SOPA and PIPA, and the closure of sites like Megaupload under allegations of 'piracy' and 'conspiracy' the time has come to take a stand against music, film, and media companies' lobbyists.
The only way is to hit them where it hurts.
Their profit margins.
March 2012 is the end of the First Quarter in economic reports world wide.
Do not buy a single record. Do not download a single song, legally or illegally. Do not go to see a single film in cinemas, or download a copy. Do not buy a DVD in the stores. Do not buy a videogame. Do not buy a single book or magazine.
Wait the four weeks to buy them in April: see a film later, etc... Holding out for just four weeks, maximum, will leave a gaping hole in media companies profits for the first quarter, an economic hit which will in turn be observed by governments world wide as stocks and shares will blip from a large enough loss of incomes. This action will give a statement of intent:
"We will not tolerate the Media Industries' lobbying for legislation that will censor the internet."

Current Mood: optimistic
Current Location: Let's do this! Yes!
Current Music: James Morrison - I won't let you go

This is the German Armed Forces' newest image/recruiting video ad (the catch phrase is "Wir. Dienen. Deutschland."/"We. Serve. Germany." and though I don't really know what to make of the periods I'm slowly starting to warm up to the phrase.Very slowly. Maybe.) :

What do we think, people?

Good? Bad? Ridiculous?

(One thing that really shook me: the pictures of the official funerals. Even though it's aimed both and improving the image and recruiting, it took a lot of balls putting them in there. Any of you non-Germans ever seen something like that in any of your Armed Forces' recruiting ads?)

Current Mood: impressed
Current Location: Why? Why do I still try think up stuff of that?
Current Music: In the Electric Mist

I guess 9/11 is my generation's Kennedy assassination. We all knew where we were and what we did when we heard about the attacks. This is the story of where I was and what I did.

( Remember, remember, the Eleventh of September. )

Current Mood: thoughtful
Current Location: Home, on the couch.
Current Music: The Parlotones - Come Back As Heroes | Powered by Last.fm

I just read in my news RSS that another German soldier was killed in Afghanistan and to be honest, I was a little shocked about myself. Why? Because I wasn't shocked. Or at least not as shocked as I used to be about dead German soldiers in Afghanistan (remember, dead and wounded soldier are still something the German public rather rather remembers from WWII than from recent wars... for us, for a long time it used to be the others that died).

Instead I just sighed and wondered how for much longer this will have to go on before we'll see some actual positive results from soldiers of a plethora of nations fighting and dying in a country that has next to nothing to do with their country. Because, let's just be honest, in the ten years, ISAF has been there, they accomplished next to nothing. Insurgents still kill people, children still die of hunger, landmines and firefights, women still wear burqas... will things really change if the multinational coalition keeps fighting there? I honestly don't know.

In the meantime, however, it astounds and shocks me how little notice the German public really takes of German soldiers fighting in more than just one country (there's also Kosovo, the Horn of Africa, UNIFIL...). The only time they do is when one dies and even then it's only short-lived. It still makes me sad, mostly because I don't think it will ever change, even though it's been over 65 years since the end of WWII now. No one wants the jingoism and nationalism from WWI and the fascism and racism of WWII back but honestly... is it asked too much to take notice of all the countries several thousand German soldiers (and cops, too, BTW) are stationed in and fighting and sometimes even dying in, once in a while, people?

(today's title is presented to you by Theodor Fontane and means: "With thirteen thousand their trail they began./Only one man returned from Afghanistan.", from his poem The Tragedy of Afghanistan)

Current Mood: morose
Current Location: Why am I still trying to find cover locations?
Current Music: Oh, um, nothing.

So Osama's dead.

First thing I though was: "So... what?"

Second thing was: "Are they stupid? It's like a fucking hydra's head. Cut off one of them, you get three new ones."

( Please tell me you didn't all lose your brains over the death of that old man. )

Current Mood: annoyed
Current Location: Now actually at home.
Current Music: Monty Python: Almost the Truth.

Originally posted by

deathpixie at Further info on the LJ DDoS attacks

Grabbed from

hollymac_79

synecdochic: LiveJournal’s DDoS and Russian Politics

This is an excellent round up of the problems that have plagued LJ of late, which are, in turn an interesting insight into the implications of running something that truly is a global service. The short version: if you are an English language user who is tempted to complain about LJ's recent down time, you should probably shut the fuck up before you embarrass the rest of us. And if you are an English language user who isn't actually *paying* for the service, and you're tempted to complain, please make do so a long, long way away from me, because I'd hate to have to beat you with something heavy.

As annoying as the downtime has been, it has served to bring to light the "other half" of LJ's user base in Russia, and to explain the importance of the journal platform to freedom of speech in that country. Enough so there are those who would see that platform go down. It really makes you think about the difference perspective makes. For us, LJ is a place we keep up with our friends, do memes, roleplay, write. For Russia, it's the place where people get a chance to know the truth of what's going on in the country and for ordinary people to have a voice.

Certainly something to think about, any way.

Current Mood: angry
Current Location: Dammit, what's with the stupid DDoS attacks again?
Current Music: Auf der Datumsgrenze

Who said Germany would send soldiers to Libya even despite foolishly abstaining from voting for a military invention? Who did? Who did?

That's right, I did! (here, to be precise)

And I was right, as not only daily Der Tagesspiegel but also weekly DIE ZEIT and MilBlogger Thomas Wiegold have confirmed (all in German, though). Apparently, the German government is preparing a parliament voting for a Bundeswehr mandate as part of a European EUFOR battlegroup to protect ships with aid goods for the Libyan people. Of course it's not a combat operation.

Mhmh. Yeah. Right.

Just like Afghanistan wasn't a combat operation. It was only about drilling wells and building girl schools. And now we ended up with over 40 KIA and WIA soldiers, several hundred PTSD afflicted soldiers and for the first time since WWII German soldiers have been involved in gunfights, repeatedly. We also had (and probably still have, no one really knows) Special Forces soldiers over there of whose operations (and probably also casualties) the public is almost fully oblivious of. It took the government almost ten years to call it a war but that's exactly what it is. And they were just there to help, they always told us. So... anyone who believes that this will be a quick in and out probably only for a few months humanitarian aid operation, raise your hands. Anyone? No one? Huh. Weird.

Current Mood: productive
Current Location: Smug. Most of all I'm kind of smug.
Current Music: Mom talking.

Today, the UN Security Council finally passed the NFZ resolution for Libya. As predicted, Germany who's currently a temporary member, abstained. This is so very embarrassing and a fucking bad idea that I don't even know where to start. This isn't like Iraq where Bush tried to push the allies into a war based on assumptions and downright lies and where the Iraqis for some reason were less than thrilled about being occupied by a super power and her allies... this is genuinely about the future and the freedom of an entire country and they'd hoped for this resolution for at least a month and what does my country do? They abstain. Jesus. Fucking. Christ.

( I'm a million miles away from happy, as Mr. John Birmingham wrote so nicely in Without Warning. )

Current Mood: pissed off
Current Location: On the Holy Couch of Seriously Being Pissed Off.
Current Music: Tropenwelt Karibik

Yep, it's a collection of daily meaningless rambling...

00:27 Parents are going 2 Crete on vacation. Why won't she believe me it's a better idea to tell them they're from Austria than from East Germany? #
10:59 Mehehe! RT @dieternuhr Köhlers Nachfolgejob: Er wird Orakelkrake im Berliner Zoo. Man will Oberhausen das Feld nicht alleine überlassen... #
15:04 Quick, someone make a screenshot, Zweiter Wahlgang is world wide leading trending topic on twitter :D Also... NOT MY GAUCK DAMMIT! #
15:10 But srsly, did anyone actually think Wulff would make it in the 1st ballot? I really don't see why people are making such a fuss about it. #
16:09 §%$&$! "They can show they arrived in the 21st century"? You mean, because GAUCK is still living in 1989? JESUS FUCKING CHRIST I DON'T EVEN! #
18:57 HOLY SHIT GODDAMMIT! Democracy also means the right NOT to want to vote for s/o! Is that really so hard to understand? Seriously? SERIOUSLY? #
21:22 JESUS FUCKING CHRIST! FINALLY a new Bundespräsident. Congratulations, Mr. Wulff. #
22:30 Also, you know what I find funny? The whole day Gauck wasn't in the top 10 trending topics. Not ONCE. Christian Wulff was, even twice. Mh. #
22:39 OK, until now I wasn't a big fan of Klaus Ernst, but right now... he's making so much SENSE. Just amazing. #

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Yep, it's a collection of daily meaningless rambling...

14:29 RT @SPIEGEL_English: Controversy Over Afghanistan Remarks: German President Horst Köhler Resigns... - tinyurl.com/39wwwrh #
14:42 RT @bbcworld: German President Horst Koehler says he is resigning immediately, following criticism of remarks he.. bit.ly/c5qZyL #
14:50 RT @Graupause: Verstehe ich das richtig? Der Köhler ist wegen Majestätsbeleidigung zurückgetreten? #
15:08 Can't believe "Köhler tritt" (sic) is No. 1 world wide trending topic, before "Gaza flotilla"... the apocalypse is only a stake throw away. #
15:32 RT @tagesspiegel_de: "Horst Köhler hat einen Vorwand gesucht" - Der Kommentar zum Rücktritt bit.ly/a59PSa #

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I can feel it in my bones. I mean... look at it:

first the earthquakes in Haiti and Chile
then The Volcano No One Can Pronounce (you know, the one that grounded practically all of Europe for at least four days and had people do such strange things as taking a cab from Oslo to Brussels for 3500€ (I ain't joking... that's what John Cleese did) or from Riga to Warsaw for 500€ (the boyfriend of one of my sister's co-workers did that) or journey through half of Europe in a rental car so you can get to Chile (36 hours nonstop from Basel to Madrid, one of my sister's co-workers did that)
also the Caribbean will probably be polluted for... oh... the next 1000 years (and my sincerest and deepest condolences and greatest hopes for all those on my flist that are direct or indirect victims of that)
Israel totally went off the rocker (seriously, just a few decades ago those actions would have provoked declarations of war from at least three countries... and supposing the whole thing did indeed happen in international waters, Israel committed an act of piracy... the same thing the US Navy and EUNAVFOR are fighting off the Somalian coast... also: Where are the German MPs, dear Israeli government?)
and, last but not least, as of today, Germany is without a head of state - that is to say: President Horst Köhler decided he felt offended by the criticism to his latest none-too-clever demands to use the Bundeswehr for unlawful actions (i.e. "protecting Germany's trading routes") and resigned from his office (like, you know, "OMG, someone criticised what I said! Did I miss something? Are we living in a democracy all of a sudden?")

So... see what I mean?

ETA: The Israel situation is getting better and better:

"Heute gegen 20:30 Uhr konnten Inge Höger und Annette Groth im Hafen von Aschdod das Gaza-Hilfsschiff Mavi Marmara verlassen. Beide sind unverletzt. Auch der ehemalige Abgeordnete Norman Paech hat den Angriff auf die Hilfsflotte unverletzt überstanden, er befindet sich noch auf dem Schiff in Gewahrsam des israelischen Militärs.

Annette Groth und Inge Höger konnten mit Vertretern der deutschen Botschaft in Israel telefonieren, wurden dann aber an einen unbekannten Ort verbracht, ein direkter Kontakt mit ihnen ist immer noch nicht möglich, auch die deutsche Botschaft hat keinen Zugang zu ihnen."*

Source

*Translation:

"Today, at around 2030, Inge Höger and Annette Groth (the two German MPs) could leave the Gaza solidarity ship Mavi Marmara. Both are unharmed. Also the former MP Norman Paech has survived the attack on the solidarity fleet and is unharmed; he is still in the custody of the IDF.

Annette Groth and Inge Höger could talk to the German embassy in Israel, but where then brought to an unknown location; direct contact is still not possible, the German embassy also does not have any contact to them."

Jesusfuckingchrist, this is a fucking hostage situation. The Israeli state has taken German MPs as their hostages. WTF. I don't even.

Current Mood: pessimistic
Current Location: Probably not far away from an apocalypse.
Current Music: Wer wird Millionär?

Yep, it's a collection of daily meaningless rambling...

11:20 Congrats to new health care system, dear Americans. It's not communism, it's simply fair and makes sense. You'll get used to it. #

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About the disappearance of German MilBloggers, that is. Seriously, it's starting to aquire the appearance of a plague. In late 2009, Soldatenglück simply went poof (I swear, it literally disappeared... one day it was there and the next... nothing, just a site that was empty apart from a note saying "Maintenance" or something) and I do miss it, not only for the news but also as an archive (even though I seemed to spark quite the controversity whenever I decided to comment...).

( Where have all the bloggers gone... )

Huh. I just realized I haven't blogged about anything remotely political in ages. Somehow blogging fannish stuff seems to have taken precedence... I guess it's time I blog something new in the "On... Germans" category, right (because I always get political when I do that)?

Current Mood: bitchy
Current Location: Supposed to do stuff for my dad.
Current Music: My dad getting on my nerves... and I've just moved in a week ago...

Yep, it's a collection of daily meaningless rambling...

11:41 Who would have thought... RT @tagesschau: Bartsch gibt Amt als Bundesgeschäftsführer auf goo.gl/fb/bk96 #
12:30 Somehow... their English is so... CUTE :D RT @ISAFmedia: VIDEO German Soldiers Assist Afghans in Mazar-I-Sharif tinyurl.com/yhftbnm #
12:35 WHAT does it say about me that those "new over-30-hits" on Antenne Thüringen are all songs I know & identify w/? I'm 27, for Heaven's sake! #

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Yep, it's a collection of daily meaningless rambling...

00:42 RT @bbcworld: The last surviving member of the group who helped hide Anne Frank from the Nazis dies aged 100. bit.ly/8enhV6 #
19:45 RT @Michael_Yon: Would also go with Germans in a heartbeat. Lived in Germany for several years and really like Germans.bit.ly/83SA7Y #
19:54 You know what I've been wondering? What the hell happened to @Soldatenglueck? It went offline in Dec and was never heard of again. Any info? #
20:33 Gah. 2 rows of DVDs and I can't decide. #BandofBrothers? #BSG:Razor? #Buffy? #SGA? GAAAAAAH! #
20:40 Still can't decide. #VeronicaMars? #RobinHood? #Farscape? #Firefly? ...what do you mean, I have too many DVDs? #
20:44 OK, Sat1 movie is horribly getting on my nerves. Time 4 some good old SGA (yes, Critical Mass @mackenzismomma) & maybe something else later. #
20:49 One of few good reasons to move back to parents? BIG TV screen. Only... DVDs will be in boxes. Way to go, stupid *sighs #
20:54 Why couldn't Lorne be in Critical Mass? WHY? Oh right, because TPTB hate me, at least according to @mackenziesmomma. Makes sense, of course. #
21:38 Watching #Buffy now. Can't be scarier than me knowing several lines in #SGA's Critical Mass by heart. Yes, I'm a nerd, shut up. #
21:47 Five minutes into the episode and I wonder why ever I stopped watching #Buffy. How COULD I? Really nothing like girl power vs. demons. #
22:35 Rwarrrrrrr. Totally in love with Spike all over again. THAT's some vampire... and HE does NOT sparkle. #

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Yep, it's a collection of daily meaningless rambling...

02:13 SQUEE!RT @NathanFillion: World, meet Captain Spartacus WatCat Von Awsome. Spartacus, meet world. yfrog.com/3guwnej #
13:01 Yay, Berlin Senate will end cooperation with DB on public transport S-Bahn. Take THIS, Hartmut Mehdorn! #bahnfail #
14:23 Oops, just ruined my dad's saw blade. Means I'll get to do some administrative stuff before I go to the opera tonight ("The Magic Flute"). #
17:23 Note to self: stop starting new writing projects. I can't believe I started writing Shock and Awe an hour ago... #
20:53 Meh, no opera for me tonight (sold out & couldn't pre-order tickets b/c that would have been too expensive). Better luck next time, I guess. #

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Yep, it's a collection of daily meaningless rambling...

13:43 First phase of rearranging apartment next door (future storage room for my stuff *sighs): check. Will have to get back after break. Blergh. #
14:54 Second phase of rearranging apartment: check. Mounting frustration about family that can't throw away stuff: check. ARGH. #
20:44 RT @Michael_Yon: Actually...the Gold Medal for border harassment goes to Israel. The U.S. gets the Silver on border bit.ly/584sUx #
23:16 RT @Batteriechef: RT @tweetsintheME: make sure everyone knows the best way to deal with the problem is bomb bomb bomb #badyemenwriting #

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Yep, it's a collection of daily meaningless rambling...

01:29 Huh? Why didn't I look more closely at #SGA"Duet" screencaps? Cadman DOES have a dog. Need to remember that for further stories... #
03:44 Huh. I just wrote a wedding ceremony. And despite having been a writer since I was 14... I just realized I never wrote one before. Oh wow. #
12:55 Ach, jetzt doch? RT @thomas_wiegold: Ex-Verteidigungsminister Jung tritt zurück bit.ly/5WqUJE #
20:37 OMG, am forced to watch New Moon. AAAAAAAAAAARGH! #
21:07 Sis' boyfriend's comment on #NewMoon vamps: "Oh, they can E-MAIL as well?" Yes, we're having fun here... #
23:35 Guys, you GOTTA see #2012. I daresay it's the best Emmerich movie yet & he already made a few really good ones (remember Independence Day?). #

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Fire in the Hole

There is no problem that cannot be solved by the use of high explosives.

Entries tagged with politics

Not My President.

Just say NO to ACTA!

HELL yeah let's do this!

I am... in awe. And not quite sure what else to think.

On this day in history, ten years ago.

Mit dreizehntausend der Zug begann/Einer kam heim aus Afghanistan.

And when you're done celebrating, please start thinking again.

Further info on the LJ DDoS attacks

I KNEW it! I just KNEW it!

I think... I'm kinda ashamed of my country.

Even MORE daily useless rambling

Even MORE daily useless rambling

Guys, the apocalypse is just a stake throw away.

Even MORE daily useless rambling

You know, I'm starting to get worried...

Even MORE daily useless rambling

Even MORE daily useless rambling

Even MORE daily useless rambling

Even MORE daily useless rambling

Even MORE daily useless rambling

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December 2014

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