Monthly Archives: July 2018
What I’m watching: Non-threatening Germans Edition
“Why is it so addictive!” asks one youtube commenter. “What a nice guy!” writes another. “Susane looks so good and always pays a fair price! Respect.” Other comments are dedicated to endlessly repeated in-jokes. “Dr Ratzpappelzapabellapapelazeppal” “The intern is at … Continue reading
The Currency of Politics
(nb a little rambling and describing a phenomenon does not mean I completely support it) Across many countries, the old neoliberal order is beginning to lose large swatch of electoral support with its representatives either winning elections and then promptly … Continue reading
People Do Things For Unexplained Reasons
The strike by Ryanair cabin crews is big news in Europe but it’s a sign of the times that it’s very hard to find information on why they are striking. There are bland references to pay here and there but … Continue reading
Fire on the Aegean
I don’t know if it’s been reported much in North America but this week has seen devastating fires in Greece that have killed 80 people (and counting). Fires have always been a thing in Greece in summer (dry, hot… do … Continue reading
Spain’s New Normal
I just got back from a week spent on Spain’s extreeeemely touristy Costa del Sol. My last trip in Spain was about three years ago and what I remember then was state TV was constantly showing government officials who were … Continue reading
What I’ve Been Watching: Imperial Arctic Madness Edition
Many years ago I went through an Eskimo phase and read a lot of ethnographies and some other books on them. I was wondering how I might get to travel and study in Greenland (close to an Eskimo state though … Continue reading
Language and Center of Gravity
I’ve been listening to some videos by a Ukrainian immigrant to Poland (he has enough Polish ancestry to be recognized as Polish and his channel is Polak z Ukrainy (A Pole from Ukraine). Mostly he compares things between the two … Continue reading
Fourth of July Conversations
I didn’t look for any kind of July 4th celebration yesterday and treated it as a normalish working day. Now I’m reflecting on three conversations. The first came as I was walking to work. I noticed some US flags and … Continue reading
If Microsoft Made Office Equipment
I’ve been thinking lately how much I hate Microsoft and their increasingly useless interfaces and I remember my own past doing office work and wondered how that would have been different if Microsoft sold real, physical office equipment and not … Continue reading
My German Problem and Ours
If you live in Europe you have to spend time thinking about Germany. It’s the largest (in population) country and unquestioned economic motor of the whole EU…. and it’s just not a normal country, there I said it. The German … Continue reading
