General / Off-Topic German vice-chancellor Sigmar Gabriel says break-up of EU no longer 'unthinkable'
- Thread starter Cosmo
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Many badly paid jobs ... and without the German cars ...
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You cannot simply compare the payment for the job and think that's all that matters. I could have 2x the salary, if I moved to the US - but my quality of living would still be lower.
What most German "low wage" workers don't see it that they have full social security with their minimum wage job. If you pay the minimum-minijob health insurance of 50EUR a month (half payed by employee, half by employer), you get exactly the same services as I get, who pays the full (capped) health insurance of 700 Eur.
The full payers usually whine about paying too much and only getting the same benefits as the minimum wage workers.
Both of them are economic idiots without the slightest clue about fixed cost, step cost and contribution margin. They f.ex. get a 100 Eur Tablet "for free" with their 120 Eur Newspaper subscription and they never wonder "how that can possibly work".
Oh, and what politicians don't nearly focus enough on is that, while the minimum wage might be fine to cover your living expense while you're working, as soon as you retire and get a fraction of it, there will inevitably be a gap, which for low income/low pension/low asset citizens is *existential*. Giving current retirees more money to win elections (like it happened in greece) is just making the issue worse - especially given our demographic situation.
Our private health and pension sector is gettin into crisis now, because a security network has to be held by as many people as possible, not some "opting out to get a better deal". As long as you're healthy and a good payer, private insurance works - if you actually need the benefits, you're a loss for that company and they raise your payments or kick you out.
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One wonders why the rich do not want to become poor ...
They don't want to share. Wouldn't make them poor, just the poor less so.
Most people think I'm socialist when they hear me. Still gonna vote conservative and pro-EU.
French and German people have very little to gain from division or competition. Our top 1% do. Same story since the dawn of time, but this time the farmers can read and write and know tax law.
Tonight on the TV news, I saw a report on German employees. They said that the Germans are on sick leave, much more often than in the past. 2016 has been an explosion of sick leave. 15 days by year on average. The Germans take advantage of the system, and do not think that the work is the only goal in the life. I believe at Mercedes, they give a bonus of 200 euros per year if the employee is not sick. Really pathetic to have an argument like that
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It you'd get payed sick leave like this what would you do?
Go to work and infect everyone with that cold?
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/business...ry-pays-the-most-when-workers-take-sick-leav/
France has 36 total minimum days of payed vacation (non sick leave) Germany 29. 7 less a year each year.
Go to work and infect everyone with that cold?
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/business...ry-pays-the-most-when-workers-take-sick-leav/
France has 36 total minimum days of payed vacation (non sick leave) Germany 29. 7 less a year each year.
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Ah, but I do not criticize. On the contrary, I find that the Germans become intelligent
Well, we did learn some from our neighbors. German cuisine was pretty 'particular' til rungis express and Paul Bocuse saved us.
You'll never beat our white wine, though. Never!
Sometimes it's funny how people don't notice how used they're to the EU. Wait til the UK discovers they have no wine on their own. And the bottle of cheap wine is already 10 bucks over there and they could have the good stuff for that price at pretty much any supermarket on the continent.
You'll never beat our white wine, though. Never!
Sometimes it's funny how people don't notice how used they're to the EU. Wait til the UK discovers they have no wine on their own. And the bottle of cheap wine is already 10 bucks over there and they could have the good stuff for that price at pretty much any supermarket on the continent.
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Well, we did learn some from our neighbors. German cuisine was pretty 'particular' til rungis express and Paul Bocuse saved us.
You'll never beat our white wine, though. Never!
Sometimes it's funny how people don't notice how used they're to the EU. Wait til the UK discovers they have no wine on their own. And the bottle of cheap wine is already 10 bucks over there and they could have the good stuff for that price at pretty much any supermarket on the continent.
In France there are people who say that wines of the South will be cultivated in the North in the 2050s. With the global warming, the vineyard is one of domains of future for the British
Hmm. Which party is this, and do you honestly feel they share the values you have outlined here? The Conservatives in Finland seem hell bent on protecting the loopholes that benefit the rich, and privatising everything they possibly can.
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Sometimes it's funny how people don't notice how used they're to the EU. Wait til the UK discovers they have no wine on their own. And the bottle of cheap wine is already 10 bucks over there and they could have the good stuff for that price at pretty much any supermarket on the continent.
I agree with your general point, but isn't there supposed to be some decent wine production in the UK now, largely thanks to the climate change making Central Europe too warm?
Hey, things are opening up now. Thanks to the people waking up, the EU turns out to be nothing more than a unification of countries for the sake of profit and deceitfulness.
Speaking of globalization,
Unless you want to have the Trans-Pacific-Partnership continue to ship you poor-quality and unsafe goods & appliances from 3rd world countries and least industrially-trusted countries like China and Pakistan, have negative impacts on services because of foreign cultures bringing their bad work ethnics to us and flat-out see more obvious cases of corruption levels shooting up through the roof, then you can support globalization. I'll say this again, people are waking up and the elites can't be in any more fear than what they're already in--In fact, their most common way of work is to manipulate the news media, say big threats and not do anything at all. People aren't interested in the news media making statements about how bad (it's not) it is to have these corrupt elites lose their income and role they play in. Need we say any more?
I'm sorry, i'm done.
Speaking of globalization,
Unless you want to have the Trans-Pacific-Partnership continue to ship you poor-quality and unsafe goods & appliances from 3rd world countries and least industrially-trusted countries like China and Pakistan, have negative impacts on services because of foreign cultures bringing their bad work ethnics to us and flat-out see more obvious cases of corruption levels shooting up through the roof, then you can support globalization. I'll say this again, people are waking up and the elites can't be in any more fear than what they're already in--In fact, their most common way of work is to manipulate the news media, say big threats and not do anything at all. People aren't interested in the news media making statements about how bad (it's not) it is to have these corrupt elites lose their income and role they play in. Need we say any more?
I'm sorry, i'm done.
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German here. Many people, even those of a left or leftish leaning opinion, haven't been taking Sigmar Gabriel seriously for many years. He's typically full of , so I wouldn't give much on what he speculates.
And he has definitely absolutely no chance whatsoever has a competitor against Merkel in 2017 elections. Martin Schultz (same party, and yes, the guy who has until recently had a major EU post) would be a more sensible and realistic opponent, but with Gabriel as their candidate, the SPD effectively forfeits the election prematurely...
And he has definitely absolutely no chance whatsoever has a competitor against Merkel in 2017 elections. Martin Schultz (same party, and yes, the guy who has until recently had a major EU post) would be a more sensible and realistic opponent, but with Gabriel as their candidate, the SPD effectively forfeits the election prematurely...
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Yes, abuse of sick days happens. Doesn't make it a bad system. Much better than having sick people infect all the co-workers.
Regarding this particular bit
Many Germans actually still do believe that work is the most important thing in life, to the point of believing that the unemployed are totally worthless, subhuman beings. See also: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Work_ethic
That said, I personally do not subscribe at all to this work ethic and regard work as merely a means to an end, nothing more, nothing less.
It's funny how the news media makes desperate attempts to make it look as if the majority of the people don't support someone's recently won election, meanwhile the majority of people had voted him/her. Look at what's going on in the west right now with Trump, heck look at the the news media said when Canada's former Prime Minister Stephen Harper was losing--they said he was a "very good man" when meanwhile he was known to be one of the world's most hated people. Same goes for Brexit when the news media had stated it was a horrible occurrence and meanwhile the majority of the people had much reason to believe it was good.
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What are you talking about? Gabriel is one of the least respected top level politicians in our country, and with him his party has absolutely no chance to win the elections. That's not some "media lies", in fact many parts of the press try to give the man more credibility than he deserves.
These are words of wisdom
Any electoral campaign program is for the trashbin anyways. The one protecting my values is myself. Pretty practically - I can use law loopholes myself, if I have to, so I'm not too worried about me. ^^
I just need someone in charge who can take on Putin. And that's Merkel. ^^
(we do have 2 votes over here, yay, so you can split your support between a person and a policy. Savvy, I know.
)There's supposed to be some decent wine production in Nappa Valley. It's decent for defrosting your car windows. [uhh] [big grin]
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