We will run out of oil - sooner or later. But how will be continue then? Will me make a transition back to a new steam age, horses and fuel cells? I am sure we gonna see a huge diversity of old and new energy sources. Even sails for ships could make a comeback. Maybe we will even (finally) see atomic cars.

After the Wright Brothers made their historical first flight they toured the world with their marvelous machine.

One of the great benefits of the industrial revolution was that parts were made after certain standards, so they became interchangeable and you could easily mass produce them everywhere by just transferring the blueprints.

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?

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

Obviously there is hardly any Jewish culture left in Germany. Most of it is tucked away and hidden. Plus the old guilt complex makes any ‘normal’ exchange painful.

German Jews were always an important aspect of my country - until that maniac came along. The brain drain thanks to the holocaust as well as immigration was incredible. The intelligentsia, as well as artists and academic sector was depleted of thousands of important people.

We badly need that Jewish humor and wits back - plus a normalized relationship again, like in pre-war Germany before 1933.

"Whenever I hear anyone arguing for slavery, I feel a strong impulse to see it tried on him personally."

Abraham Lincoln

It is easy to hate big corporations!
It is easy to hate consumerism!
It is easy to hate globalization!
It is also easy to have nothing.

Instead of complaining about too much commerce, money and capitalism we should work on better distribution, competition and fair markets.

The Soviet Union for example was a rich country, but unable to create and maintain proper markets so people could earn money and buy stuff a decent price.

It hardly will get any cheaper and our reserves will become less and less …  so let’s use oil for heating and driving sports cars, fight more wars for it …  makes perfect sense …

Today - I guess - all currency systems are strictly decimal. But back in the days many countries had odd coins and papermoney. The most famous were the british sixpence and shilling. Both were absolished in the 1970s.

From Wikipedia:

Before decimalisation in 1971, a shilling had a value of 12d (old pence), and was equal to 1/20th of a pound: there were 240 (old) pence to the pound. Post-decimalisation, “shilling” refers to the 5p coin, which is still worth 1/20th of a pound, because there are 100 new pence in a pound.

The name shilling is believed to come from the old Scandinavian word skilling, meaning a division, or a mark on a stick.

The abbreviation for shilling is “s”, from the Latin solidus, the name of a Roman coin. Often it was written informally with a slash, e.g., “1/6″ as 1 shilling, 6 pence or when there were no pence, with a slash then a hyphen, e.g., “11/-”.

During the reign of Queen Elizabeth II shillings were minted featuring both the English “three lions”, technically three leopards couchant, coat of arms, and the Scottish lion rampant coat of arms (see illustration above).

A slang name for a shilling was a “bob” (which was invariant in the plural, as in “that cost me two bob”).

To “take the King’s shilling” was to enlist in the army or navy, a phrase dating back to the early 1800’s. In a modern context, to say someone has “taken the King’s shilling” implies in a derogatory way that they are in the pocket (or employment) of another. To “cut someone off without a shilling” means to disinherit.

Most people in rich countries seem to have forgotten the terrible days of early capitalism and industrialization? Worker stuffed into small houses or special workers areas in overcrowded cities. Terrible pollution damages humans and nature alike. Many must work hard and in backbreaking conditions, so others can get cheap goods and services. There are not insurances against work accidents or any healthcare packages. Industrial giants do what they want, since the government depends of their money.

That’s just like what is happening in China and India again. But workers rights and our modern social achievements are under attack in rich countries as well.

The 9/11 anniversary past almost unnoticed last weekend. Some articles here and there … it is already yesterday’s news.

The great leader finally leaves this planet - after 82 years of disaster and about 70 million of his fellow chinese killed. The truth about Mao.