LyrArc Article Gist
German Radio started on Dec. 22, 1920. Astonishingly private Germans were not allowed to listen to the broadcasts till 1923 when the ban from the Treaty of Versailles was lifted. And the radio programs came under the Ministry of Posts, the Reichspost. It was a great relief to Germans to listen to radio programs, plays and music on radio, and liberating at the time because of the economic hardship and inflation. At the beginning in 1923 467 listeners and end of 1923 1 million listeners, on to 4 million paying subscribers, and 4 million non paying ones by the end of the decade. New genre was the radio play, also composers and music, and football games. Add to this on location reporting by journalists in 1929. A picture is shown of the "Nauen" broadcasting station in Brandenburg in 1919.

LyrArc Article Gist
Merkel visits China in August 2012 with a large trade delegation including heads of SAP, Siemens, VW and BASF. Germany's largest export market is in the eurozone, at the same time growth in exports has surged to China and India. Between 2005 and 2011, German exports to the EU countries increased by 24%, to the U.S. by 6.3%, and to China by 206%, according to German government data. German investment in China was 26 billion euros in 2011. By contrast China's investment in Germany is small- only about 1.2 billion euros. The impression is that large firms such as VW and Siemens make up most of the investment. In actual fact the German Chamber of Commerce in China says 5000 German companies operate in China, employing 220,000 people, and three fourths of this is from the German "Mittelstand," midsize family owned companies. The Foundation for Family Businesses, representing 400 German Mittelstand companies says it needs more help regarding intellectual property protection in China and is not as well represented in the German trade delegation....

LyrArc Article Gist
The Europeans led by France and Germany demand stricter regulation and a financial regulatory system that oversees the entire financial system, and oversees all the larger countries. The US in contrast wants to see a lighter regulatory system, and lighter regulation of parts of the financial system like hedge funds. For the USA where the crisis originated, the emphasis is on larger stimulus spending. For the Europeans which have a larger safety net that they would like to see considered as part of their stimulus- and their social arrangement such as reduced hours in Germany to avoid layoffs, and the presence of a large public sector in France that is about 52% of GDP- the situation as they see it does not require breaking the EU's committment to control large deficits. The cultural and historical roots are also different. Germany was hit by hyperinflation in the period between the two wars, and there is thought there that this helped the rise of demagogic leaders and the collapse of democracy there. At that time the issue was war reparations that Germany found difficult to absorb in an economy devastated by the first war, which strained German finances. France and Germany also have no foreclosure crisis, and car sales and consumer spending are not in the deep decline that is seen in the USA. In fact car sales have increased in the two countries with the refunds for scrapping old vehicles, with no such plan in place in the USA. Making there is a credible position on the European side. Germany does see itself hit by the collapse in international trade. Germany and France face the prospect of helping their banking systems deal with the large bad loan situation facing them in Eastern Europe. At the same time Germany and France want to save some firepower for coming to the aid of key parts of the European community like Spain, Greece, and Ireland, which are facing a worsening crisis. In short both sides have credible positions, and some form of accomodation as events unfold may be a better desired outcome than some unified outcome. And little has been said of the position of the other countries in the G20, the emerging countries like Brazil, India, China, Russia, Indonesia, Argentina and others, and the position of the World Bank speaking for the poorest countries. These countries may favor stronger stimulus, and would favor the stricter regulation and supervision of global financial systems favored by the Europeans. This is because they may rightly feel that the messups in the global financial system have stolen their chance, at just the point where they were turning the corner in their efforts at bringing better standards of living to their peoples....

LyrArc Article Gist
With the lack of action from House Speaker Mike Johnson on a bill for $61 billion in Ukraine aid bill which passed in the Senate  France, Germany and Britain are speeding up their defense supplies manufacturing and making larger investments with a coordinated effort with other EU nations. The problem say former NATO officials is the lack of investment in spare facilities. Rheinmetall is working on the German side and French defense firms are contributing to increased defense manufacturing.The European Defense Agency's deputy chief executive says production will require sustained investment ant finalized contracts. The European Defense Agency says EU nations have invested $52 billion in 2022 on defense gear.

LyrArc Article Gist
Former finance minister Peer Steinbruck will be the SPD candidate for chancellor of Germany in the 2013 elections. He is is trusted in Germany for his economic experience and handling of the economy during 2008-2009, especially with the eurozone crisis worsening. Helmut Schmidt, a former chancellor has endorsed Steinbruck. He could draw some right wing support from Merkel. Merkel is personally popular in Germany but the CDU has lost elections in key states, and its partner the Free Democrats is considered weak.

LyrArc Article Gist
Germany has shown that low tech contact tracing efforts work- no apps needed, a phone, a desktop computer with a centralized database, and most important the human relations skills of the person doing the calls. The  sensitivity to the situation facing each person being called, being able to talk to the person in the language they speak in a multilingual environment such as California, is shown here. A 40 person team operates in San Francisco consisting of public health officials, clinicians, medical students and librarians. They call the contacts of people with coronavirus, arrange tests, and as needed send packages of food and medicines to hotel rooms or homes. Every call is expected to last 15 minutes but all sorts of questions are handled.  English and Spanish are used. Here one of the persons doing the contact tracing says she does not use apps, just an open source software used in the fight against Ebola. Definitely low tech, no waiting, get going is the message to every city in the world. She says apps software such as what Google and Apple are putting out can tell you whether the person went to some place, but cannot tell you more about that person, cannot tell you about problems the person is having being tested, and how they are having difficulty providing for families. One of the big lessons from Germany and efforts such as this one in San Francisco, and in other places such as Paris, Singapore, Taiwan, is that there is a complex nature to contact tracing that cannot be solved by tech. In fact the best thing to do is to get started immediately, with a phone and a database on a computer, as long as you have a person who has the motivation and skills, empathy with people, a lot can be done. Waiting for apps is a dangerous waste of time is shown by the low tech German experience, and the experience in other places. Most important is starting immediately. The example shown here of working with migrant workers in contact tracing shows in the most vulnerable places it is these human relations skills that count, that no tech app can do. It requires detective skills to find out and get people to share their history of movements and contacts for 14 days . In Singapore crowded dormitories house 300,000 of 1.4 million migrant workers. Singapore using an app also but its use is secondary. Apps don't work in many situations but fail in the most critical situations such as these dormitories and other eccentric or atypical situations such as faced by South Korea with religious groups and gay communities, elderly people in Europe, that generate the worst dangers of spread and need to be cluster isolated quickly. Human contact tracing has a history of being an effective method and was used in China and South Korea during the 2003 SARS epidemic. More countries need to adopt the method used in Asia and in Germany, particularly Britain, the U.S., France and India. It is OK that Britain's NHS and India's national government with Aarogya Setu app have put out their own apps which balance privacy concerns with the need to act immediately and cover the entire country, but the hard slog of human contact tracing teams in each district is indispensable. This is why the former Health minister in Britain calls it Britain's national mission to do this. Speed is key- putting together teams across the country in every district from skilled volunteers or government workers, and pulling together the phone and a centralized database on a computer as basic equipment. The fact that this is easily doable and people with human skills needed can always be recruited as they have been in Germany- from public officials in local government who are less busy in lockdowns, medical students, clinicians, volunteers, people from different professions- makes it inexcusable not to learn from others experience and get going. Just Do It. You want to reopen business, professions, offices and public services- Just Do It, it makes this possible. You want to prevent spread of the virus- Just Do It, it makes this possible. You want to limit damage to the economy and get the recovery going- Just Do It, it makes this possible. People of all shades of opinion can agree on this- its the only thing that works, even when there is a lack of enough proper accurate testing. ...

LyrArc Article Gist
Bangladesh is seen as doing better than India and Pakistan in life expectancy, hunger, fertility rates, and other key development indicators. The new Padma Bridge over the Ganges river operational in 2019 will link different parts of the country and is expected to add 1% to GDP growth. Other infrastructure projects are being planned with $30 billion in projects planned with China including a new port south of Chittagong. The Vision 2021 Plan plans to take Bangladesh out of the poorest nation group by 2021, the 50th anniversary of independence. Germany is the second largest donor and the gender equality in Bangladesh with coeducation in schools is seen by experts as unique among all Muslim countries. The growth of Dhaka and the social and economic change from 5 million garment workers, mostly women and rural could lead to social and cultural change that may be underestimated, says DW.com, providing the view from Germany. DW.com also warns that there are risks for Bangladesh in relying on remittances from Gulf countries, and in not diversifying so that it is not dependent on textile exports alone. Overall German view is that development aid works, and Bangladesh is welcomed from that perspective in Germany. ...

LyrArc Article Gist
Jerome Boateng was 2016 Footballer of the Year in Germany. Here he talks about his own experience playing for teams after growing up in Berlin. He was born  in Berlin in 1988 of a Ghanian father and German mother, and practiced on Berlin streets before joining Hertha Berlin, Hamburg and then Bayern Munich. He has been an important part of the German team. 

Here he says education is important, most important, no child is born a racist. Boateng says " What we really need is to get stuck in and do something, be that working with children and doing integration projects. Everybody can help." The best thing is to be active in the community and helping in every way to educate children.

LyrArc Article Gist
In Germany the mood is changing in favor of vaccination as people are try to cut into the line for vaccinations based on age groups. Younger people even say they are caring for older parents to get vaccinated in this report from Hamburg and other cities.

This may be an encouraging sign even though it may not be following the rules because Germany's vaccine skeptics are giving way to vaccine envy. The word "Impfneid" refers to the feeling vaccinated people get with vaccine documents enabling them to travel freely. German took 52 million vacations in 2019, and only half that in 2020. In New York city people do not answer or say they do not want to get vaccinated in a door to door drive reported in NYT.

LyrArc Article Gist
A new loan disbursement to Greece of $8.5 billion euros goes ahead in June 2017. Greece has to repay 7 billion euros in July 2017. The German parliament set as a condition for approval that the IMF also participate in the Greece bailout. Germany's finance minister Schauble stated that it was particularly important to increase Greece's competitiveness,  to help Greece "stand on its own  two feet" by the middle of 2018. The IMF under Christine Lagarde, and the eurozone group say that Greece has implemented the reforms requested. Greece's ruling party Syriza split over accepting the reform package, with its leader Tsipras finally accepting the need for the Third Bailout program following a referendum and parliamentary elections in 2015. The IMF under Lagarde has stepped in to support Greece in its effort to seek conditions that make the debt program workable for Greece.

LyrArc Article Gist
A news story about French president Francois Hollande saying he wanted to see tough negotiations sends the British pound plummeting on October 7, 2016. It fell to $1.18 before recovering to $1.24 to the dollar. Experts say algorithms overreacted to the news story about Hollande's remarks. Further declines are expected as Brexit negotiations happen in 2017 closer to elections in Germany and France, with issues such as movement within the EU likely to be obstacles. Other factors influencing the pound are the that the pound is no longer a safe haven following Brexit, and the uncertainties generated by the Brexit "yes" vote. This would mean higher prices in Britain's retail stores for imported products, costlier vacations overseas, and higher inflation. It could boost British exports with a devalued currency making them more competitive. 

LyrArc Article Gist
This editorial in Der Spiegel magazine sees something positive emerging from the current state of politics in Germany with the fragmentation in political parties. It says this situation is something that is happening for some time now. In the Netherlands there are a number of parties working together in a coalition government. And in France the Macron movement swept away the old parties. Something similar is also happening in Italy with the Five Star Movement as elections approach in March 2018. This may be a positive development in that the days of 100 percent convention votes, and of career politicians who move up the ranks from one political committee to another, are over. Voters are acting in individualistic way, don't trust the elites and old big tent parties with career politicians who may not be responsive to people's needs.  Young people are eager for more participation, and this may be a good thing, says Der Spiegel. It points out that not just parties like AfD are gaining as a result. SPD support dropped to 16 percent in one poll same as AfD. The Christian Lindner's Free Democrats in Germany also are benefitting,Macron in France is benefitting, Sebastian Kurz in Austria is benefitting. Their parties they prefer to call as "movements" with some marketing and political platforms that appeal to young people. Macron's movement moved aside the old political system and brought in younger people, revitalizing the decaying political system. The conclusion for Der Spiegel is that this change is not entirely good or bad, its a challenge. Our focus should not be on propping up obsolete structures, breathing new life into old political structures could be a good thing with new younger voters looking for participation. So don't be afraid of voters. ...

LyrArc Article Gist
Christoph Hasselbach of DW.com says the idea of European Union brings so much good for Europe that it should not be diminished by use of pressure or punishment. He refers to the firm opinion in Brussels, of Mr. Juncker and Merkel, that there can be no cherry picking when it comes to remaining in the EU. This led in Jan. 2017 to British prime minister May saying Britain would not go begging to Brussels, and would simply opt out of the European Union and the single market. Hasselbach offers an interesting and plausible explanation for the Brexit vote shifting by a small margin to the exit side. He says rightly that uncontrolled immigration fears were used by the politicians supporting exit. Interestingly he says the worries in the UK were not just for current people but for future citizens from the hundreds of thousands of refugees who would become German citizens in a few years. Would they try to settle in the UK- prime minister Cameron failed to provide a convincing answer, says Hasselbach. He is right to point out as we have at Lyrarc that it is healthy to have questions and even some skeptical views about Brussels, that the appeal of the EU must depend on not being dogmatic about it, but being open and willing to accept questions.   ...

LyrArc Article Gist
The German government's committee on the future of transport has proposals that call for fuel price hikes and electric vehicle quotas as Germany faces heavy European fines for not reducing transport emissions since 1990. This means the stretches of unlimited speed on the Autobahn roadways in Germany may now have speed limits. The proposals include limits of 80 mph on roadways and fuel tax rises from 2023, abolition of tax breaks for diesel cars, quotas for electric and hybrid cars that could get half of the emission cuts needed.

A series of diesel emissions cheating scandals have damaged confidence in diesel, and the lack of progress in climate change through less coal use has damaged confidence in Germany's climate change efforts. A new climate change law is planned.

LyrArc Article Gist
A behind the scenes account of the chain of events after the meeting of French President Sarkozy and German Chancellor Merkel at the seaside resort of Deauville, France, on October 18, 2010. Based on interviews with EU officials this account shows how these events are leading to closer union of the 16 nations of the European Union. At the seaside meeting Sarkozy met privately with Merkel. Merkel offered to take back the German demand for automatic penalties for nations failing debt guidelines. She insisted that bondholders should bear losses if a member nation of the EU defaults. The French president agreed to accept the German condition knowing that Germany was reluctant to support the bailout fund beyond 2013, and German public opinion was souring on the bailout. The European Central Bank president, Trichet, was furious that the two leaders were undercutting his efforts to create confidence in the euro. Trichet told Sarkozy, he must not understand how serious the situation was. Sarkozy told Trichet, "you must be talking to the bankers," "we are responsible to the citizens." Weeks of negotiating between the ECB and the Irish government followed, leading to the bailout of Ireland. The contagion effects on Portugal and Spain created more tensions for the euro. Merkel softened the German position and the EU leaders meeting in December 2010 moved in the direction of a closer union. Bondholders would still take losses but only if one of the EU member states were to become insolvent. And after months of discussion and debate the EU leaders realized that the only way forward for the European experiment was to build a closer financial union. Germany's future, Merkel told the German parliament, was in Europe....

LyrArc Article Gist
Ruchir Sharma, chief global strategist at Morgan Stanley, says Poland has achieved a remarkable transformation over 25 years with steady growth of 4% year after year. The bright spot is manufacturing. For emerging nations the average percentage of GDP from manufacturing exports is 22%. Poland is at 33 percent of GDP for manufacturing exports. Countries dependent on commodity exports such as Argentina, Brazil, Russia, lack this steady growth from a manufacturing base and are less likely to cross the line of $15,000 of GDP per person that qualifies for it to be called an "advanced economy" for the IMF. South Korea, the Czech Republic and Poland are some of the countries that have benefited from manufacturing exports. Poland's wages are one third of that in Germany and its currency is cheap, giving it an advantage as an export hub for German companies. Germany is the main destination for exports and the German automobile industry uses the Czech Republic and Poland as export hubs. Poland's and Czech Republic's geographical location near Germany with a highly educated population makes it attractive for German companies. Poland has gone from $2300 per capita GDP to about $13,000 in 25 years according to the IMF, and is likely to be the next country to make it to advanced economy status by 2020, says Sharma. It is important not to run up debt, to manage finances carefully, and to maintain steady growth not growth in spurts interrupted by declines, and have a manufacturing base, says Sharma.  ...

LyrArc Article Gist
The German state elections will be conducted under new election laws- a voter over 16 years old votes for one of 70 constituencies in the first state election in Baden-Wurttemberg and also votes for a party that helps determine the distribution of seats by party in the state parliament. The CDU candidate Manuel Hagel is leading by small margin over the Greens candidate Cem Ozdemir. This is the first state in 7 state elections in 2026 with cities of Stuttgart and Tubingen, Munich.

LyrArc Article Gist
Patience and remaining undeterred with SPD at 15% just months before the election helped SPD'S Scholz to win. There was also a carefully planned campaign around Scholz, unity in the SPD behind Scholz. Scholz and SPD realized that there was a major opportunity to win confidence of Germans in the pandemic aid packages for Germany and the European Union that Scholz put together. Scholz took charge chairing meetings when Merkel was in isolation. In this way he not the outgoing chancellor Merkel was seen as the architect of economic recovery from the blow of the pandemic.  Percentages are deceiving including the drop to 15% for SPD. Scholz pointed to public fatigue with the two major parties and need for change had led to shift to Greens, and other parties. By working with Greens to develop a common approach based on borrowing to invest in infrastructure and climate change Scholz realized he could both tap into skills of a younger generation that had gone to the Greens and build Germany along lines that also tackled climate change. This created a new and real option for Germany- the experience and new zeal for workers and families of the changing SPD under Esken and Scholz with the energy and zeal for tackling climate change of the Greens under Habeck and Baerbock. As a map of Germany in the NYT shows on September 28, the numbers can be deceiving. Except for Bavaria in the south most of Germany's regions including cities of Cologne, Berlin, Hamburg voted for the SPD or the Greens. Most of the map is red color of the SPD, with small densely populated pockets in cities Cologne and Berlin for Greens. Apart from Bavaria and Thuringia-Saxony, the election was won by Greens SPD by big margin. ...

LyrArc Article Gist
Michael Getler of the Washington Post gives an indepth look at former West German chancellor, Helmut Schmidt, who succeeded Willy Brandt as chancellor in 1974 till the fall of the SPD government from internal divisions in 1982. This was the period when West Germany emerged as the leading economy in Europe, and pursued policies of improved relations with East Germany (the GDR) under Honecker, and the Soviet Union under Brezhnev, leading to the period of German reunification under his successor Helmut Kohl of the Christian Democrats. Schmidt also pursued very close relations with France under Giscard d'Estaing, setting up the groundwork for what would become the Euro currency and European monetary system. In the years after 1982 Schmidt was active as co-publisher of the Die Zeit newspaper. This account of Schmidt and that period complements Jonathan Kandell's indepth assessment of Schmidt in the NYT. Today's world economic summits of western leaders- especially the critical ones following the 2008 global economic crisis- originated from the meetings Schmidt started in 1975 and broadened in 1979. During that period Germany, France, UK and the U.S. were faced with the global recession after the 1973-74 oil crisis. Here Getler describes Schmidt in terms used by Germans for someone who is action oriented but also overconfident and brushes off other people- the German word "macher." Another German expression "Mr Schmidt Schnauze," as Mr Schmidt the Lip, stuck to Mr. Schmidt for his tendency to offer strong criticism, while being less tolerant of criticism of his own policies and actions....

LyrArc Article Gist
Britain's prime minister David Cameron is having finance minister Osborne lead the negotiations with Germany and France on treaty changes for Britain to stay in the European Union, following his election promise to hold a referendum by 2017. The discussion about the prospects for changes show how difficult it will be for Britain to get the changes in the next 2 years. German chancellor Merkel supports Britain staying in the EU but only up to a point, and German public opinion does not show strong support for the kind of changes on immigration that Cameron is seeking. Support is also declining in countries like Poland because of the immigration issue. Merkel would like to see Britain in because of its open economy, free markets, and also because German contributions to the EU budget would increase significantly with the exit of Britain. Northern countries such as Sweden would also favor an effort to keep Britain inside the EU. On defence and foreign affairs EU without Britain would not carry the same weight and influence. Inside Britain Cameron faces problems with Euroskeptics inside the Conservative Party, and with the 13% popular vote that went to the UK Independence Party in the recent election. The uncertainty is not good for business and the economy of Britain, which is why Cameron is considering holding the referendum on the EU in 2016....

LyrArc Article Gist
Germany's chancellor Angela Merkel says she will not support the moves by the EU commission to impose export bans on export of Astra Zeneca vaccines made in EU countries to Britain. A Dutch factory has 4 million doses of this vaccine ready for shipment.  Merkel says, "there are a huge range of international interdependencies when it comes to vaccine production. You have to be very careful when it comes to imposing export bans. You have to take a close look at supply chains."  Merkel's action comes as Britain makes an effort to talk to German and French leaders for a fair way to allocate supplies of vaccine. France and Germany see the need for the principles of "reciprocity" and "equivalence" to be covered in settling the differences on vaccine supplies. Equivalence refers to the sense that there should not be a big gap between EU and non EU countries in vaccine access. On March 24, Britain had vaccinated 45 of 100 people in the country, and EU had vaccinated only 13 people in a hundred. ...

LyrArc Article Gist
The Greens made speed limits on the autobahn a key plank in their program. The Social Democrats SPD party also agrees. The new proposed speed limit is 131 kms per hour or 81 mph. 
In 1952 speed limits were lifted on the autobahn in a reaction to the strict limits imposed in the Nazi period, and a sense of freedom in putting the past behind on the road.

The Greens party estimated 1.9 million less emissions of CO2 from the speed limit. The auto industry including Audi VW have not supported this change. Auto fatalities are 23 per 1000 kms of motorway in France compared to 30 in Germany. In sections of autobahn where there are speed limits in Germany the fatalities have dropped sharply. About 77% of Germans stay within the 81 mph speed limit which today is advised but not mandated.

LyrArc Article Gist
Axel Springer buys London's The Telegraph newspaper( allied with the Conservatives) for $793 million. Axel Springer also owns The Politico website in the US. “To be the owner of this institution of quality British journalism is a privilege and a duty,” says Mathias Dopfner, CEO of Axel Springer, the German publisher. He says Axel tried to buy The Telegraph 20 years back. It will preserve the editorial independence of the newspaper and invest in its digital development and AI related work.

LyrArc Article Gist
The election of Merz in Germany as chancellor means a sharing of minds with Macron of France, the two leaders share the same approach, coming 3 years after the inertia under chancellor Scholz. It means the steps will be taken for European defense and for a European alternative to NATO. It also means efforts will be made for the French-German economic engine to be revived. 

UK's prime minister Starmer also supports this effort for a united Europe to tackle defense and economic challenges in 2025. Leyen, head of the European Union is also a member of CDU party of Merz and led the defense ministry under Merkel.

LyrArc Article Gist
In EU elections the German coalition parties of SPD, Greens and FDP barely get the vote percentage of the CDU/CSU of 30%. The SPD 13.9%, Greens 11.9% and FDP 5.2%. This is the lowest showing of the SPD. Much of the problems come from the SPD socialist democratic party that seeks to bring more social democracy by building infrastructure, public services as Biden is doing in the US, yet is prevented from doing this with the presence of the FDP which is against spending and seeks budget discipline as the charter of its party. The Finance minister Lindner is from the FDP. As a result the SPD and Greens are not able to do what they prmised in the last election to invest in infrastructure and public services. A visit to Germany shows this with the Deutsche Bahn, the rail stations with a dilapidated look as if built in the last century, trains late with old technology and less investment in maintenance. Not much construction is seen and public transport looks haggard and old. Germany's constitution makes investment difficult and court decisions limit spending or finding other sources for investment, the FDP acting as a brake on spending. The far right AfD vote was upto to15%. Without investment and offering a new vision of a modern Germany even after managing the energy crisis of which some of the fault lay with the way Merkel allowed over dependence on Russian supplies of oil and gas, even then the CDU is getting more of the vote. Another reason is the CDU under Leyen taking a strong stand on Ukraine with the SPD's history of maintaining better relations with Russia limiting its role in this crisis. As a result Germany under Scholz labors on with no solution to current problems requiring spending and investment. The next parliament election is in 2025. ...