If you like to know more about the dreadful failure of the so called Tiananmen Square revolution and today’s China please watch this great documentation: The Tank Man.

It tells in great detail the story of a failed revolution and how China’s communists brutally knocked down the people’s will. Sure - we are all amazed by today’s economic boom in China - but still it’s more like a brutal economic progress for the few rich and the party - not for most of the people.

In rural areas the poverty and devastation is unbelievable. Schooling and medical support has broken down in most of the country. Factory workers are denied basic rights - rights the communists used to fight and campaign for. No strikes are allowed, so sick leave is paid and accidents are not covered. It basic and brutal capitalism at work here.

This distorted ’success’ is on one side rebuilding China’s failed infrastructure on the backs of Chinese laborers, while putting the western economies in turmoil. In a strange way both sides are ‘paying’ up to bring China out of the misery of 60 year of stupid communist government.

I still can’t believe that China got the Olympics of 2008.

So Mr Bush is threatening war again - against another ‘evil’ country. Iran is producing weapons of mass destruction and supporting terrorists. Deja vu anyone?

Yes, Iran is run by a theocratic upper class that suppresses democracy, woman’s rights and free speech. Yes, Iran’s economy is down on it’s knees - if it weren’t for all the oil money (thanks for the high prices to the Iraq war) the country would be unable to sustain itself. Yes, Iran supports terrorists and is working on nuclear weapons. But so many countries push ahead their strategic interests, allies and defences.

But NONE of these facts gives ANY other country right to invade it or threaten it with a military attack to take out some of it’s ‘evil’ assets.

Let’s look back in history: the Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi was supported both by the British and Americans and he supplanted a democratically elected president. It was the bad regime of the Shah that caused the people to raise up and kick his butt! Instead of supporting the people’s revolution the Americans fought it (more details here).

Once the mullahs were in charge the Americans supported their enemies like Saddam Hussein. During the VERY bloody Iraq vs Iran war the US supplied arms and military intelligence. The Iranians didn’t loose the war, because the used massive amounts of suicide bombers (mostly teenagers).

Anyone surprised that the people of Iran consider the US of A their biggest enemy?!

But the people of Iran suffered under the Shah and now under the followers of Ayatollah Khomeini. Maybe some day there will be a another revolution and maybe the people of Iran will get it right this time and find the right balance that suits their culture and needs.

But the Iranians should change their society - not someone else.

Wikipedia: Iran

Surprisingly this very practical bed was done during Europe’s Dark Ages and it’s so very Ikea! Maybe a Viking bed?

Very cool TV series from HBO. It’s not as cheesy as those old Hollywood movies, it tries to be historically accurate (but there are some serious errors) - at least in it’s settings and design.

But I do love those characters and their very different attitudes. The personal stories and character development is interesting to watch. The acting is excellent. Life in Rome is full of sex and brutality - it was just ‘normal’ back then, people dying and fucking all over the place.

A nice change to all the doctors, lawyer and other soap operas. I actually would love to see a PROPER series about Athens and other Greek city states - not that Hercules & Xena crap. HBO are you listening?

Rome makes you wander if we have progressed at all? Hail Caesar!

More? Wikipedia

Who did the spell checking here? Were all the craftsmen literate? Could they read what the were ‘writing’? And did they include ‘Easter eggs’ in some texts?

BBC News:  Armenia welcomes ‘genocide’ vote and BBC News Video plus the response of the Turkish President

Almost all countries have their dark spots in history: America’s decimation of native Indians, Belgium’s brutal rule in the Congo and Turkey’s slaughter of Armenians.

Some countries like Germany went through a long and painful process of understanding it’s own history and apologizing for it. Some countries like Japan or Turkey seem to be in eternal denial.

Especially the Turkish macho attitude to national pride and identity are more a curse than a blessing. Yes, you can go to jail for any crime or insult against ‘Turkishness’ (whatever that means).

How dare the US to speak truth to Turkishness?!

Back when it all happened it was the US who condemned and reprimanded Turkey for it’s bloody deeds. Until this day the US congress and many American and of course Armenian NCO’s kept the memory alive. Turkey hasn’t moved an inch since the first Armenian was killed.

Nationalism is always in the way of truth. Being a modern country means also to accept your own dark spots and simply asking for forgiveness for things that went wrong.

Denial in the age of information looks rather stupid and backward, no matter how much pride a nation can muster.

Some more background: Turkey’s Armenian dilemma and BBC Q&A about the Armenian genocide.

Compared to most animals we humans have developed a huge variety of jobs. First we started out as simple hunter-gatherers with only a specialization between genders. But as our mental capabilities grew - so did the job market.

Since we are lazy creatures we tried to find methods to make life easier and work less. Technology and machines are the result of this - sadly slavery and feudal systems as well.

Until the industrial revolutions everything was handmade - machines played only a limited role for example in irrigation, mills and building. That all changed with the steam engine.

But in early stages of industrialization life & work was still harsh and deadly.

World War II laid the foundation for a different global economy after colonialism and the coming information age.

Overall work (and life) got a lot easier for most humans. We even invented holidays - a very modern social gimmick that would be astonishing to Egyptian slaves or medieval peasants.

Even more amazing is our range of jobs: some people get huge amounts of money for hitting small balls with sticks, some very few navigate machines thru the sky and some others simply for listening to other people’s problems.

Amazing, don’t you think?

One of our most basic building blocks of our modern culture today. Nails have been around for a long time (the romans already used them), but many cultures have developed building technologies without nails - especially were iron was not easy to find.

Erwin Rommel was always considered one of the ‘good’ Germans of WWII. He was a brilliant tactician, loved by his soldiers and respected by his enemies. He was forced to commit suicide, because he was suspected to plot against Hitler.

Overall the German military establishment utterly failed to stop Hitler in it’s tracks. They are - with a very few exception - a classical bunch of non-thinking military figures. Just following orders!

Although it might weaken a military, but a modern country needs ‘thinking soldiers’, critical of their leaders, critical about war and the reasons for it. No fatherland, no motherland, no religion, no dogma is worth dying for.

You should put your life for a good reason on the line.

Wikipedia entry

The first of 41 satellites. One of the greatest achievements of mankind and one of the greatest PR move ever! America was shocked out of it’s wits by the Russian Beeper in space.

Some videos from that time: Russian Show reel, Dutch report, American reel and great BBC dramatization.

Happy Sputnik day!

Soon it will be twenty years that the war ended for the two Germanys. East and West become one again. Today is a public holiday celebrating the big event.

But is Germany reunited?

No. Huge amounts of money have been spent to bring east Germany up to western standards. The infrastructure has been updated to world class levels. But the economy is simply not speeding up. East Germans have been leaving their homes in droves (1,3 million) for the golden west - while the golden west is loosing it’s shine, because all the money for infrastructure went to the east. Public funds and people went in different directions. The effect was pretty stupefying.

Chancellor Helmut Kohl promised east Germans they would be as fat and loaded as he was …

Today east Germany mass unemployment, unhappiness and depression rule the land. Neo Nazis and old communist found fertile grounds for their ideas. Both parties got seats in local parliaments. Plus there is growing hostility towards foreigners. Again and again brown or black people have been beaten up on the streets. Is Fascism rising again? Not really, these are just underprivileged people trying to find someone to blame and beat up - while the rest of the brave citizens wallow in innocent ignorance.

But the whole country is still under an extra tax burden to still finance the cost of reunification. More money to waste. Politicians and companies have filled their coffers with shady deals and subsidies. The usual. most east German states are already in debt, because is irresponsible spending. So much about German planing and precision.

Germany is still bugged down by the cost of reunification, the economy and the people are slowly coping with the effects of globalization as well. All social programs have been cut down pretty harsh, very similar to Britain during the Thatcher years.

Hair density equals amount of brain cells.

German culture is built on steadfastness and mutual consensus - not exactly qualities you need for global competition. Germany has to learn to be more flexible, fast, creative and aggressive.

We still have good educated work force and good engineers, but Germany has dangerously neglected it’s education system. PISA has repeatedly given Germany some of the worst scores for European countries. That is a national shame. But for years now there has only been talk, talk and even more talk. The school system is regulated by each state, which has created a chaos over the last forty years: some states do not recognize other states diplomas. You would thing that an knowledge society like Germany would be smart enough to develop a good national education system? Nah …

We are better at developing weapons than putting many troops in the field. The German Bundeswehr hardly scares anyone these days - maybe except Liechtenstein …

The new Germany has shed of it’s historical restraints. We have sent troops to Kosovo and Afghanistan. Germany always spent a lot of money on international support and development. Our politicians would love to have a permanent seat at the UN, while the average Teutone doesn’t really care. Plus our military budgets is still shrinking, so our few soldiers here and there are hardly equipped with the right stuff to do any serious fighting. But we are pretty decent in rebuilding stuff - like we do in Afghanistan.

Our dreams of power are long over, all we want to be is to be good Europeans - fly somewhere for a nice vacation, do some nude bathing and watch stupid TV shows like everybody else.

Fifty years after WWII it’s ok to be a German again …

Last years World Cup brought an unexpected boost in moral for the country, but I am afraid that the lack or slow speed of reforms will cause a lot of trouble in the future. Germany still is a strong economic power and pulling it’s weight on the in international scene. But it should concentrate more on it’s internal problems instead of trying to be a world player.

Two more issues are important: the Muslim integration and the aging society. But I consider these European issues, since all members have shrinking populations and yet to fully integrate our fellow Muslim citizens.

Overall Germany is a ‘normal’ and a nice country now with some baggage that’s slowly fading.

More? Wikipedia entry on Reunification

Every time I hear a modern politician emphasize the need to democratize the backwards nations on this planet I want to applaud and punch them in the face at the same time. This also applies to many political commentators and of course Bloggers, who love to pounce undemocratic countries and make them switch to the best political system invented yet by sheer willpower.

Although I am a staunch supporter of Democracy, I don’t believe in it as an instant solution to most countries problems. Democracy is an indicator for a modern and developed nation - but Democracy itself doesn’t transform backwards societies into shiny new ones.

Europe has not only invented many forms of government - but also tried and tested many of them. It’s a rich tradition paid for with many life’s and often centuries of terrible consequences. Most of all it took Europe nearly two thousand long years to transform itself into these shining beacons of enlightenment and peace as we know it today.

Aristotle’s Politics at work in Greece.

But the History of Democracy itself is a funny and ugly affair - with a huge whole between it’s beginning and final modern success.

Although it was so famously invented by the Greek nation states (most notably Athens) around 500 BC. But it was not the form of democracy we hold so dear today: woman, slaves and bloody foreigners were excluded from the process and of course regarded as second class citizens. Most important of all is that Demokratia was in the beginning successfully exported to some other nation states, but pretty fast abolished through other forms of government. Here is another good background article on Greek Democracy.

A similar development happened to the Roman Republic - which freed itself from it’s kings around the same time as the Greeks discussed in public meetings. The Roman Republic also had many elements of a modern state: a senate with lively debates, a citizenship, rule of law, votes and elected officials.

Greece lost it’s independence to the Romans around 150 BC - Rome itself turned slowly into a dictatorship after many bloody civil wars and chaotic rule by the Senate. This transformation found it’s great dictator with Julius Ceasar.

A republican Senate is boring - lets get ourselves a proper Dictator

Now comes the funny thing - since the end of the Greece and roman experiments not much was heard or seen of Democracy in Europe. Some tribal societies had smaller democratic elections or forms of community (like the Althing in Iceland - established 930 or the polish Veche), but no big democratic state or system emerged for a long time.

Also the idea of Democracy was more or less forgotten by European thinkers and statesmen. The medieval mind was more occupied with symbolism and religion then democracy or equal rights for everyone. Now it was time for feudalism and religion to bring blood, tears and ignorance. The common men lost any chance in participating in ‘big government’.

For almost 1500 years until the Renaissance nobody had any real interest in old Greek ideas and values. Rich merchants, the clergy and feudal ruler continued to suppress peasants and workers. Even the Reformation didn’t change much about this. Martin Luther supported the ruling class during several peasant uprisings. It was not yet time for social equality nor democratic rights for everyone.

May I have your head your Majesty?

But all was not lost - especially in England. The first Parliament (later split up into the House of Commons and House of Lords) was formed during the reign of King Henry III in the 13th century. Still not mass democracy, but a start to sharing powers and establishing the modern rule of law.

It was still a feudal affair, a political class system instead of a system of democratic equals. And still the Crown ruled supreme. It was a long and bitter process over many centuries and civil wars to change this.

Almost 500 years later Oliver Cromwell made the Parliament a permanent establishment instead of a ’seasonal affair’ created and disbanded by the Crown at will. Now the people reigned supreme instead of the Monarchy - but it took two bloody civil wars to cut of the monarch’s head (1649) and establish the Parliamentary System in England.

What say ye old wooden tooth?

The biggest step for European Democracy happened in … America and their fight for Independence from the British Empire (1775 - 1783). The American Revolution started with the impressive Declaration of Independence in the year 1776.

This great document was the ‘result’ of the European ‘Age of Enlightenment’ - a political, artistic and philosophical movement that created the mental cornerstones of our modern societies with it’s humanism, socialism, secular and democratic systems. But it was the achievement of young American society to build the first nation based on these ideas. It was much harder to transform the old and encrusted European societies - but it happened eventually.

Now we have to applaud the french people who finally got it right and started their first revolution of 1789, which lead finally to the Abolition of Feudalism.

The modern House of Commons from 1851.

It still took almost two hundred more years since Cromwell till Democracy was more firmly established in the UK by the Reform Act of 1867, which allowed more ‘normal’ men to vote instead of the privileged gentry and it also abolished so called rotten boroughs. Still no women were allowed to vote.

The real reason for the breakthrough of modern western Democracy was the Industrial Revolution. With the emergence of the working and middle class the old class system was finally abolished and replaced by new modern movements. Socialism, Feminism and Communism were triggered by the social consequences of the Industrial Revolution.

Say hello to a new political power - the industrial working class.

The miserable living and working conditions of workers in slums, child labor and the slow organization of Labor created the pressure for huge changes, like medical care, housing projects, education, equal rights and the vote for everyone. The new economy broke down many social barriers and also allowed a new upward mobility.

And finally the suffragette movement - started in the early 1800’s - established the right to vote for woman (1920 in the US and 1928 in the UK). Once again a slow process that took almost another hundred years to be globally accepted.

The new ‘mass societies’ also demanded better forms of representation and government - as well as accountability and social justice. The shock of the Soviet October Revolution finally convinced even the most hardened elites in Europe that mass democracy was the best way to go for the future.

Democracies have to be protected against the enemy from within

But modern Democracy faced two final test before it got the global stamp of approval: it had to fight to defend it’s values against Fascism and Communism before it was accepted as the best form of government. Hitler, Stalin, Mao, Moussolini and Franco transformed their nations by popular support into terrible societies.

So it was a long and bloody road from the first forms of Democracy until our modern mass Democracies. To establish itself Democracy needs first the rule of law and a broad industrial society with a rule of law and separation of powers.

Without economic support to pay for education, medical care and a national infrastructure it won’t work. You also need a big and strong middle class and educated elites to develop a political landscape, start parties, run ministries, the judiciary system, an independent media, ‘neutral’ police and armed forces. Too many Democracies fell victim to military interventions ‘to save the country’.

We elect Allah as our Leader.

Equally important is a strong secular humanism within the society itself - the separation of Church and State. It took Europe centuries of war and millions of deaths to learn that lesson.

Many African or middle eastern countries lack many components I just mentioned and you can’t for example develop a strong economical base over night or an educated middle class to form a strong political landscape. The same is also still true for a few Asian countries, but they have picked up the basics much faster then many of their African and Arabic counterparts.

John F. Kennedy is still a very popular figure in modern history. But looking at his legacy I can’t see any real political achievements. His main appeal seems to be his appeal: his drive and energy to revitalize a country and inspire it’s people.

Cuba and Vietnam are also not shining examples of good policy. He could avoid a full nuclear confrontation with the Soviet Union, but he also was part of inciting that dilemma in the first place (The Bay of Pigs and the blockade against the warheads for Cuban missiles).

The same is true with Vietnam. Neither McNamara nor Kennedy wanted to get into this conflict - but they did sent troops anyway.

His personal and moral record is hardly spotless either. President Clinton’s blowjob seem tame and boring compared to JFK’s many affairs.

One achievement I will applaud: the first treaty for limiting nuclear testing. Which paved the way for more and more treaties on arms control and nuclear disarmament. His engagement into the space program was less convincing, especially since it was just another aspect of the cold war fight - and an escalation.

If the real story behind his assassination can ever be uncovered - so will his true legacy. Maybe he pulled more important strings behind the scene or was truly fighting for a change in American culture?

As a symbol he shines, but as a mover & shaker he was mediocre.

Chemical warfare is not a modern invention. Although the french were the first to use it in WWI they certainly didn’t invent it. Read this fascinating article at Wikipedia on chemical warfare - and that we can be very lucky that it is still very much out of fashion. Too bad that many big nations like the US, Russia and China own huge quantities of that stuff.

Isn’t shooting or nuking people enough?

Click here to visit this great online exhibition. Europe almost didn’t survive it’s early Christian seclusion. Most knowledge of the romans and Greeks had been lost, science and exploration grinded to a total stop. Good thing that the Muslims / Arabs kept the Light of Knowledge burning. Europe had to re-import all that old knowledge via trade with the Muslims with Italy or Spain. This restarted the European spirit - the Renaissance heralded a new era.

So enjoy and explore this interesting exhibition that shows how advanced the Arab / Muslim world was. Too bad they also had their falldown and still haven’t recovered the cultural and scientific greatness they once had.

Two way radio changed warfare forever. Before this invention allowed commanders and troops to communicate they tried all sort of devices and methods: carrier pigeons, couriers, smoke signals, flags … hand waving (in WWI airplanes).

Hitler’s invasion of Poland and France showed how tanks and airplanes could cooperate perfectly via radio in the so called Blitzkrieg. The polish army hardly had any tanks anyway, but the French had tanks - but these were not equipped with radio and they had not developed any new tactics since WWI.

The tank is a British invention and was used by the allied troops to break that dreadful stalemate in World War I. Tanks easily rolled over the fortified trenches and pushed the German troops back.

The Allies were actually not too impressed by this new weapon, since those tanks were a nuisance: they had many technical problems and were expensive. It were the German generals that were impressed and pushed tank warfare to new heights: the Blitzkrieg.

More? Wikipedia

Every decent army develops new weapons and defenses against other armies. Especially in war you want your people to be superior, kill and dominate the enemy - it’s as simple as that.

The web is often full of stories of secret weapons, military experiments and strange sightings of new deadly toys.

I think it’s only normal and actually the duty of your countries military to ‘waste’ some money on improved weapons and keep their development secret as long as they can. There is no such thing as a friendly war - but there is a mechanism called ‘the balance of power‘.

We are not a peaceful global society yet, so the military and the balance of power will stay with us for a some time.

So we need our military guys to watch the other military guys and give them the same toys. Plus we have to allow them to do stupid research projects.

But our politicians have to watch them carefully and make sure that other countries don’t feel threatened by your own military and gimmicks.

Imbalance, fear and over confidence can be as much a reason for war as race, religion, resources and football.

Inspired by Edosan’s links: The Weird Russian Mind-Control Research Behind a DHS Contract and Run away the ray-gun is coming : We test US army’s new secret weapon

There are several American ’security experts’ and weirdos who say, that Europe is the real threat to American security - because it is the perfect breeding ground for terrorists.

The shoe bomber was a British national - right! The killer of the Dutch director van Gogh was also born in the Netherlands - right! Didn’t Germany harbor a cell of 9/11 terrorists - right?!

According to some sources somewhere between two to seven million Muslims live in the US - while Europe has around twelve to twenty million.

First of all they are not just ‘one kind of people’. Germany is host to many Turks, while Britain has people from many Arab nations as well as Asian Muslims. France and Spain are of course closer to African Muslims, because of their history (remember Spain was once conquered by Muslims). They sure are all Muslims, but they share very different backgrounds and languages. Just as many white Europeans are Christians - but hardly all follow the catholic church.

These bloody protestants - all terrorists! Burn them all! We need to protect our communities!

Many Muslims are living at the fringes of normal European societies, which is normal for most immigrants that have no local family connections, no money and hardly any education in modern jobs. There is obviously the language barrier and some xenophobia as well. But even ‘native’ Muslims in their third or even fourth generation live at the fringes. Why? Because many of these cultures simply stay within their own ghettos. We have Turks here in Germany who lived here for thirty years, but hardly speak German, know teutonic culture or have even contact to any Germans. They stay in their little Istanbuls and prefer it that way. The same is true for many communities in France, Britain, Netherlands etc.

But makes such a strong and rather stubborn refusal against integration everyone a terrorist? Of course not.

Uhhh, scary Muslims …

First of all we simply can’t and won’t control these 20 million people. We Germans already tried that method - it was called Konzentrationslager. Yes, immigration is a problem here, but it is not a flood of Muslim hordes sweeping Europe.

Of course we have also problems with terrorists here - but which one do you mean? IRA? ETA? Red Brigades? PKK? Or even Neo-Nazis? Al Qaeda is simply the newest member of a very annoying club. And once again we refuse to let them dictate our life’s and civil liberties. And there is no protection against them: even Muslim countries get bombed by Muslim terrorists. Plus no law or a gazillion policemen will guarantee absolute security. That is an illusion.

No headscarfs and bombs allowed in European schools

So yes, we Europeans want these Muslims, even though we still stay strangers to each other and still have to learn a lot on both sides to live with each other.

If America feels threatened by foreigners, then it should remember it’s old isolationist’s traditions and maybe shutdown it’s borders - Japan did this for several hundred years more or less successful.

Georg Friedrich Händel is what I would call a typical court composer. After the church had lost it’s almost total control over European music, the aristocracy and later rich citizens became the new mentors of great composers and gifted musicians.

Most of his work was first performed for the bigwigs - Kings & Queens. And they had the money to get someone like Händel to create music just for a bit of Firework or a trip down the river on the royal barge … (make sure you read the Wikipedia entries for some amusing tidbits).

More? Dig deeper at the Georg Friedrich Händel.org with loads of material

Taken from this great site here: 7th Century A.D. - The earliest cookie-style cakes are thought to date back to 7th century Persia A.D. (now Iran), one of the first countries to cultivate sugar (luxurious cakes and pastries in large and small versions were well known in the Persian empire). According to historians, sugar originated either in the lowlands of Bengal or elsewhere in Southeast Asia. Sugar spread to Persia and then to the Eastern Mediterranean. With the Muslim invasion of Spain, then the Crusades and the developing spice trade, the cooking techniques and ingredients of Arabia spread into Northern Europe.

In 510 BC , hungry soldiers of the Emperor Darius were near the river Indus, when they discovered some “reeds which produce honey without bees.” Evidently this early contact with the Asian sources of sugar cane made no great impression, so it was left to be re-discovered in 327 BC by Alexander the Great, who spread it’s culture through Persia and introduced it in the Mediterranean. This was the beginning of one of the best documented products of the Middle Ages.

One of the biggest insult for any modern politician is to called Nazi or a Goebbels like figure. In the later case it’s not only an insult, but also a compliment. Joseph Goebbels obviously stands for extreme and dedicated propaganda to serve and create an evil Reich - but he was smart, witty and extremly skillful.

He not only pioneered several new propaganda techniques like the Volksempfänger, he masterminded the mental seducation the german people. He and Hitler were masters of mass psychology. Goebbels ministry was everywhere - Propaganda was not simply creating advertisement for the government - they formed, educated and developed german society - every detail of it.

It is hard to understand his skills until you heared and analysed some of his speeches. They are really impressive, moving and captivating. The collage ‘Totaler Krieg‘ is a bit more authentic.

Watch this short documentary about Goebbels: Part 1 and Part 2 (although the pathetic music in the background is almost unbearable.

More? Joseph Goebbels @ Wikipedia and a Collection of his Speeches

Chile’s democratically elected president Salvador Allende was thrown out of government by a military coup lead by the dreadful Augusto Pinochet backed by the CIA and the Nixon administration.

This was the start of a fifteen year military dictatorship, much bloodshed and torture.

This is one of the many stupid ‘regime changes’ that brought only suffering to the ‘liberated’ people.

BBC on this day with some more details.

In a world before Radar it paid off to listen. This must have been a strange job. "Reginald, I think I can hear the Jerrys coming from 6 o’clock!"

Sir David Attenborough is one of the greatest film makers ever. His documentaries are stunning, insightful and brilliant. In the year 1976 he produced "The Tribal Eye". A great series about native art and culture all over the world.

Thanks to the wonders of the intranets it can be found on Torrents via Mininova.org. When you like it BUY it - via Amazon for example.

One more thing: Attenborough has this incredibly soothing voice. He could read anything to me and I would find it reassuring. Is it just me?!