Nobody Cares About World News

[bubblesort]

It seems like there are a lot of world news events happening lately, that don't fit nicely into other threads.

I kinda hesitated to make a world news thread, because by definition, where you live determines whether a subject is world news or not. If I read about a murder in Italy, then to me, that's world news, because it's not happening in America. If an Italian reads about a murder that happens in America, then to him, that's world news, even though it's local or maybe national news to me (local / national really depends on who got murdered).

So with that in mind, I guess anything can be world news. If it's world news to you, then post it, and try not to nitpick whether something is or isn't world news. No matter what the story is, it's world news to somebody.

Here's a quick rundown of what's world news to me today:

Trudeau was just reelected in Canada. (we already have a thread about this, though, here)

The Germans are having an election to replace prime minister Angela Merkel on Sunday. It looks like the Social Democrats, Christian Unionists, and Greens are in the lead right now. It's been a tight, ugly election, by German standards (even though it looks tame by American standards).

Evergrand, the largest real estate company in the world, is going bankrupt in China. There is a lot of speculation over how bad it will be. The two big camps are "this is another Lehman Bros," and, "this is not another Lehman Bros." Personally, I think Lehman Bros comparisons are a bit silly, on both sides. Whether this is 2008 all over agian or not, this will bad effects on global markets and supply chains.

Hati's president just dismissed the prosecutor who is investigating his role in the assassination of his predecessor.

Australia just cancelled a contract to buy submarines from France, in order to buy from America and England. The French are throwing a fit over this. This will almost certainly stop the negotiations regarding Australia entering a free trade agreement with the EU any time soon.

UN Secretary General Guiterres says we are, "on the edge of an abyss", and the only way forward is to work together. I mean, he's secretary general of the UN, so him encouraging cooperation isn't shocking. At the same time, he makes some good points, and it's good to see what people at the UN are worried about, as corona progresses, environmental disasters keep happening, the financial world looks less stable, new heads of state are being appointed, tech giants are doing crazy things, and generally, the world feels more politically divided than it's been in decades.

 

[Noodles]

Petition to change the threat title to "Nobody Cares About World News", as seems to be the often confusing naming convention around here.

 

[bubblesort]

Petition to change the threat title to "Nobody Cares About World News", as seems to be the often confusing naming convention around here.

LOL, done!

 

[Soen Eber]

We are definitely going to have to find some way ro comp the French who got screwed badly in the sub deal. How about the U.S./U.K. taking up a couple subs each and basing them in Taiwan? Modern diesels are amazingly quiet and considering China is pumping shit loads of their own there we should have some quiet hunter killers to balance out? They'd make a good threat to any proposed naval troop deployment.

 

[bubblesort]

German election results are coming in. It looks like the results are as follows...

SPD: 25.8%
CDU: 24.1%
Green: 14.6%
FDP: 11.5%
AfD: 10.4%
Linke: 4.9%
Sonst.: 8.7%

The news is reporting that the CDU is having a melt down, because they apparently wildly underperformed. It looks like the SPD and CDU have a plurality, if they are together, but need a few more votes to have a majority, and the FDP is talking to the Greens about some kind of alternative. I never really totally understood the horse trading that happens with appointing chancellors and prime ministers, but it looks interesting.

Maybe this is a sign that the rise of the conservative extremism is fading across Europe? Probably not, but I can dream.

EDIT: Sorry, calling the CDU conservative was a bad take on the situation. I"m a stupid American, I didn't know. I thought anybody with 'christian' in the name is an evangelical or a fundie. That's how it works in America! LOL

 

[Innula Zenovka]

Maybe this is a sign that the rise of the conservative extremism is fading across Europe? Probably not, but I can dream.

Whatever the faults of Angela Merkel's CDU, I don't think they can be accurately accused of "conservative extremism." They're conservative extremists the way more centrist and right-wing Democrats are conservative, I think.

Our "conservative extremists" are people like Germany's AfD or Marine le Pen and her "National Rally" party, or Viktor Orbán's Fidesz party in Hungary (Tucker Carlson's latest crush, I think).

 

[Soen Eber]

Found a new YouTuber with an excellent description of the German parties:

tl/dnr, and this is just my take (and I'm probably wrong):
note: most come without the U.S.-style batshit insanity, are pro-Europe and usually aren't nasty to workers and the poor
SDU - classic left
CDU - classic right
CSU - Bavarian classic right, very religious because Bavaria
Greens - 70's/80's protesters, now 10% of the electorate
FDP - Libertarians without the "Peter Thiel style" nastiness
Die Link - East German socialists. DDR nostalgists, mostly
AfD - Yeah, we all know about them *face palms*

 

[bubblesort]

Whatever the faults of Angela Merkel's CDU, I don't think they can be accurately accused of "conservative extremism." They're conservative extremists the way more centrist and right-wing Democrats are conservative, I think.

Our "conservative extremists" are people like Germany's AfD or Marine le Pen and her "National Rally" party, or Viktor Orbán's Fidesz party in Hungary (Tucker Carlson's latest crush, I think).

Oh yeah, you're right! Sorry, that was a bad take on things. In my defense, to the American ear, any party with "Christian" in the name usually means evangelicals or fundies, LOL

 

[Innula Zenovka]

Oh yeah, you're right! Sorry, that was a bad take on things. In my defense, to the American ear, any party with "Christian" in the name usually means evangelicals or fundies, LOL

I think "Conservative" had associations with pre-war German party politics that they wanted to avoid. There had been a German "Conservative Party" and they didn't want people thinking it was them.

 

[detrius]

German election results are coming in. It looks like the results are as follows...

SPD: 25.8%
CDU: 24.1%
Green: 14.6%
FDP: 11.5%
AfD: 10.4%
Linke: 4.9%
Sonst.: 8.7%

The news is reporting that the CDU is having a melt down, because they apparently wildly underperformed. It looks like the SPD and CDU have a plurality, if they are together, but need a few more votes to have a majority, and the FDP is talking to the Greens about some kind of alternative. I never really totally understood the horse trading that happens with appointing chancellors and prime ministers, but it looks interesting.

Maybe this is a sign that the rise of the conservative extremism is fading across Europe? Probably not, but I can dream.

The underperformance of the CDU can be traced back to the fact that it has been in power for 16 years, under the guidance of Angela Merkel. She wasn't up for reelection this time - but without her, the party doesn't really stand for much any longer. During her rule, Germany legalized gay marriage, introduced minimum wage, avoided entering any military conflicts and tried to put up a humane response to the refugee crisis sparked by US foreign policy failures in the Middle East and Afghanistan. Dr. Merkel - deserved or not - also personally became one of the prominent faces of the political opposition to far-right extremist leaders like Donald Trump and Victor Orban.

Now, I personally find all of those positions quite agreeable, but the problem is that none of them are typically associated with conservatism.

Basically, what makes them Germany's conservative party nowadays is that they're the party of "maintaining the status quo", which is the defining trait of any conservative party. The problem is that this doesn't translate well into distinct policies and "maintaining the status quo" could also describe the SPD.

I never voted for the CDU, but I respect them for their integrity.

So what I'm hoping for is a traffic light coalition, and the CDU taking up the role of the opposition leader. Because if there's one thing I figured out, it's that a healthy democracy requires an opposition that is serious about participating in the political dialogue and about providing an alternative to the policies of the government. The CDU can use this time to recuperate as well, and finally find a successor to Merkel.

 

[detrius]

Meinung: The Post-Merkel Era: German Conservatives Need to Take a Step Back

After 16 years in government and a disastrous election result, German conservatives have lost their way. It is time to stop pretending that they can be part of the next government and begin the process of renewal.

www.spiegel.de

 

[bubblesort]

The underperformance of the CDU can be traced back to the fact that it has been in power for 16 years, under the guidance of Angela Merkel. She wasn't up for reelection this time - but without her, the party doesn't really stand for much any longer. During her rule, Germany legalized gay marriage, introduced minimum wage, avoided entering any military conflicts and tried to put up a humane response to the refugee crisis sparked by US foreign policy failures in the Middle East and Afghanistan. Dr. Merkel - deserved or not - also personally became one of the prominent faces of the political opposition to far-right extremist leaders like Donald Trump and Victor Orban.

Now, I personally find all of those positions quite agreeable, but the problem is that none of them are typically associated with conservatism.

Basically, what makes them Germany's conservative party nowadays is that they're the party of "maintaining the status quo", which is the defining trait of any conservative party. The problem is that this doesn't translate well into distinct policies and "maintaining the status quo" could also describe the SPD.

I never voted for the CDU, but I respect them for their integrity.

So what I'm hoping for is a traffic light coalition, and the CDU taking up the role of the opposition leader. Because if there's one thing I figured out, it's that a healthy democracy requires an opposition that is serious about participating in the political dialogue and about providing an alternative to the policies of the government. The CDU can use this time to recuperate as well, and finally find a successor to Merkel.

LOL, yeah, I agree with you. I was tired when I called the CDU conservative. I mentioned that a couple of comments down from this post. I should edit that post to point out that I know I was wrong.

 

[Innula Zenovka]

Tensions rise at Kosovo border as number plate row escalates

Behind a seemingly minor dispute, the long unresolved enmity with Serbia simmers

www.theguardian.com

Evernote link

 

[Soen Eber]

So what I'm hoping for is a traffic light coalition, and the CDU taking up the role of the opposition leader. Because if there's one thing I figured out, it's that a healthy democracy requires an opposition that is serious about participating in the political dialogue and about providing an alternative to the policies of the government. The CDU can use this time to recuperate as well, and finally find a successor to Merkel.

That sounds like a pretty good coalition, if they can pry off the FDP from the CDU. I know they're not as horrible classically liberal as American libertarians or the Chicago school [of Economics], but I'd still feel more comfortable if the other two parties can keep an eye on them.

Even so, the temptation for them to go back to CDU after a few years will be pretty strong.

And ... I hope I know what I'm talking about. If this is sh*t please tell me.

 

[Innula Zenovka]

Pandora papers: biggest ever leak of offshore data exposes financial secrets of rich and powerful

Millions of documents reveal offshore deals and assets of more than 100 billionaires, 30 world leaders and 300 public officials

www.theguardian.com

Evernote link

 

[detrius]

LOL, yeah, I agree with you. I was tired when I called the CDU conservative. I mentioned that a couple of comments down from this post. I should edit that post to point out that I know I was wrong.

I wouldn't say you were wrong.

They are conservative.

The crux is that nobody knows what that means nowadays, including them. So it's now up to them to come up with a new conservative vision for the 21st century, which probably won't be easy for these particular people.

 

[Innula Zenovka]

French far right’s new face: the meteoric rise of Éric Zemmour

The controversial TV pundit recently overtook Marine Le Pen in presidential election opinion polls

www.theguardian.com

Evernote link

 

[Luisa Land]

I wouldn't say you were wrong.

They are conservative.

The crux is that nobody knows what that means nowadays, including them. So it's now up to them to come up with a new conservative vision for the 21st century, which probably won't be easy for these particular people.

I am not sure whether the majority of CDU members see themselves as conservatives.
Of course, as in any large party, there are different groups with different values.
But as I perceive it, the majority in the CDU is not particularly conservative compared to conservative parties in many other countries..at least not as far as social-cultural ideas are concerned. But they do exist, the ultra-conservatives as a minority in the CDU. Perhaps the economic orientation of the CDU can be described as conservative. However, CDU sees the concept of the "social market economy" as its basis, even if one must certainly argue about how social these ideas are when it becomes concrete.
What can be said, in my opinion, is that the CDU has no convincing ideas or concepts in view of the profound upheavals facing Germany and the world (climate change, consequences of the pandemic, mode of production (globalisation, supply chains, international -unfair division of labour and distribution of wealth)...
Some other parties are more concerned about this.

So The CDU, , actually stands for "business as usual", even though it verbally writes "stability and Renewal" on its election programme.

 

[Isabeau]

OECD deal imposes global minimum corporate tax of 15%

Accord signed by 136 countries will enable them to raise tax on sales made by multinationals within their borders

www.theguardian.com

Well, it’s a start.

Almost 140 countries have taken a decisive step towards forcing the world’s biggest companies to pay a fair share of tax, with plans for a global minimum corporate tax rate of 15% to be imposed by 2023.
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) said that 136 countries and jurisdictions had agreed to join an accord to impose a two-pillar global tax reform plan.

 

[Sid]

As long as not all countries take that step, there will be tax paradises around the world.
It may trigger some inconveniences for the filthy rich, but they will find their way to not waist their money on society through something vulgar like taxes.
One needs a larger cruise ship than the others, right? And a servant who irons the newspapers and washes the coins for you.