Friday 12 December 2008

Uberwirtschaft

Missmarketcrash is terribly excited today because she is casting aside all worries (actually I am petrified) of Bernard L. Madoff's GIANT PONZI SCHEMES and the Car Thing to see Child number 1's school Christmas performance.  He is a German Tree.  Should be interesting.  I might add that we are in London.  Thankfully, the forward-looking state school is putting on a performance about the British and Germans casting aside differences on a Christmas Day during World War I to join together for a game of football.  And my son, the star, is a German Tree singing Stille Nacht.  How timely and appropriate after the bit in the news regarding the German finance minister and his statements.  After having a German au pair in the house once, I can only say that Germans are very direct and say what they think.  British people do not.  I can understand the Germans feeling a bit nihilistic about it all, and, thinking (aloud as they do) - "gosh that is silly - that will never work!"  Which is fair enough, but, diplomacy is more than in order these days and such things might be better off uttered in person, rather than to the press.  German brains also think differently - (if you look at the language structure or have read any German philosophy that seems to be self-evident).  Lots of subtle ways to combine words to shift meanings.  I imagine Peer Steinbruck goes to bed at night thinking and dreaming from an Uberwirtschaft perspective - a bit above it all looking down, yes, like one of those giant inflatable balloons tethered by strings floated down boulevards for parades.  Anyway, this Uberwirtschaft floats above it all and takes it all in from a god-like (but ungrounded in such things) perspective with a kind of neutral delight at the highs and lows of the mess and has forgotton that everyone else has immense sensitivity at the moment.  And I don't mean that in a bad way - if you are English you are now laughing at this vision of Uberwirtschaft for a completely different reason than if you are a German reader.  

In keeping with the nihilistic German theme, did you know "finanzkrise" was just voted word of the year on Germany?  I am guessing you do not need a translation.

1 comment:

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