Brexiteer, n.: A person who supports Great Britain leaving the European Union. B. are easily distinguishable as their language involves the frequent use of subjunctives (example: “If Britain leaves the EU we could…”) and racist language (example: “Immigrants are ruining the NHS”). B. are also characterised by little knowledge or deliberate self-denial of knowledge about … Continue reading
Dresden, Chemnitz, Bautzen, Claußnitz, Freital, Heidenau – only a short time ago these villages and cities in Saxony – apart from Dresden – have been unknown to the wider public. Now they have in only a few weeks gained quite a recognition and media coverage – in a negative sense. In all of them … Continue reading
Bonfires lighten up the sky. Dark clouds of smoke hang over the city. Soldiers fire canons and jets thunder trough the air. The sun glows mercilessly and burns the faces of hundreds of soldiers and thousands of spectators. It is the middle of February in Port Elizabeth: the South African military is celebrating itself. … Continue reading
What did it take 76 years ago to drive a continent into despair and destruction? Tanks, guns and fascism. What does it take to drive a country into despair in 2015? A rhombus – Angela Merkel’s signature gesture –, a man in a wheelchair and financial fascism otherwise known as neoliberalism. July 13th 2015 could … Continue reading
I did it. For three and a half months I lived completely vegan. Never being an excessive meat eater I decided to do an experiment by living vegan from the beginning of the year 2014 until Easter. After reporting a few times about vegan lifestyle for radio and internet in 2013 I was inspired to … Continue reading
Recently I came across a book that deals with the generation of East Germans born between 1975 and 1982. The author, Sabine Rennefanz, an East German herself, argues that those born between the mentioned years are so called Eisenkinder (“Iron Children”) which also is the title of her book. The book retells the story of … Continue reading
As a single-woman I have my experience with online-dating. It is not that bad, if you do not expect much. But if you are a woman with too many kilos on your hips, even in Internet life you will encounter the stereotyped thinking of people. The categories you can click on your dating profile are: … Continue reading
When I was a child my grandfather taught me to collect the seed of flowers like garden lupines and tagetes. He dried them carefully in his cellar on a dish towel and then stored them in little tool boxes. He harvested potatoes and always kept some of them to let them grow next spring. I … Continue reading
In a previous article I mentioned the documentary Water Makes Money. Having watched the documentary about the consequences of water privatisation more than two years ago on television I recently ordered the DVD to use it with students at university. When ordering the filmmakers informed me that a lawsuit had been filed against the French … Continue reading
Even as a young child you are made aware of certain role models propagated to be the ideal form of life. Think of the Disney princesses waiting to be rescued and married off to charming young man. Happily ever after means mother, father and children, a close bond that has nothing to do with reality … Continue reading
There are moments in life when you have to realise that things you once craved to do, become impossible, a nightmare instead of your true dream. It is heartbreakingly hurtful to realise that what you have planned over years suddenly seems like a burden, useless and frightful. For nearly five years I have been writing … Continue reading
Do you actually know what a cubic metre of water costs in your community? I suppose you do not – unless you live in one of the communities in Portugal which experienced a rise in water costs of up to four hundred per cent. Water services had been privatised in the affected communities and according … Continue reading
Germany finally discusses every-day sexism – a long overdue debate Growing up in a kind of paradise, in a little village with caring parents, I had quite a sheltered childhood. Sex and love had always been openly discussed in my family and even though my mother gave up her job when I and my … Continue reading
There once was a king, feared and loved at the same time. His kingdom was torn from the inside, divided even under his oppressive rule but larger than any kingdom his forefathers had called their own. He reigned for many a year, fighting wars in the foreign lands of the south, struggling with cousins, foe … Continue reading
I know I can become quite obsessed with things: films, series, actors, books… It is something my friends and family have to endure – me talking about nothing else but a series I have just watched and started to watch again and again. But how enchanting it is to recognize sometimes that I am not … Continue reading
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