Mrs. Merkel goes to Washington

For the first time in over 50 years, the sitting German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, has given a speech to the combined houses of the US Congress. The last time this happened was when Konrad Adenauer spoke to Congress way back in 1957.
Speaking first auf Englisch, and then reverting to German, Merkel thanked the US for its role in helping create the political climate which ultimately led to the fall of the wall ("der Mauersturz"). Interestingly enough, and in an obvious nod to another period, she noted that November 9 was also the date of Kristallnacht in 1938 which many feel was the true beginning of the Holocaust.
She noted the American efforts behind the Berlin Airlift and the leadership exhibited by the US as strong allies of Germany. Quite notably, she specifically mentioned the necessity to help maintain Israel's security and prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons. "Wer Israel bedroht, bedroht auch uns" - "What threatens Israel, threatens us all".

I found the headline in die Zeit, "Merkel dankt USA für Wiedervereinigung" a bit interesting. It translates as "Merkel thanks the USA for reunification" and that seems just a bit over the top - especially for a German language article, but maybe that's just a layout editor's journalistic license showing.

It was 20 years ago (not quite) today...

November 1989 was a watershed year in global politics. That was the year in which the Iron Curtain was finally parted - a process which began (at least in the most visible sense) - with Lech Walesa's leadership of the Solidarity party in Poland and ended with the collapse of the Berlin Wall in November 1989. There are lots of articles and reminiscences being published now - many along of the lines of, "Where were you when the Wall fell?" and the like.
But whether you read German or not, almost everyone can learn from this very cool multimedia graphic published in the Berliner Morgenpost.

Je suis, tu es, il est, nous sommes...

The Economist magazine has a blog written by a writer using the pen name, "Charlemagne". I read it when I can, but not often enough. Charlemagne recently wrote this article about the decline of foreign language abilities in the UK. I especially like the comment in the article that "Learning a foreign language teaches you humility, empathy and respect for others. In Europe, it teaches you the ancient links that unite our squabbling continent."
Well said. I've studied languages my whole life. I've been fortunate to visit Europe many times for work as well as pleasure, but to my deep dismay, I've never had the opportunity to live there for an extended period of time. I've strongly encouraged my daughters that in addition to whatever else they take up in their life, a firm grasp of second language would be to their advantage and betterment. I generally an open minded person, but I cannot understand why some people have no interest in learning more about life in other countries. This isn't just about language studies - it's about really trying to be more aware of the cultural influences that affect the way others see us, and we see them. Studies of language (if left unfettered) will naturally lead to study of history, literature, art and ultimately a better understanding of what makes us tick.

I've always enjoyed reading Michael Kimmelman's articles in the NYT, but I think he's missing something here. He questions why so few people visiting museums seem to take the time to really 'look' at the art within and are content with brief glances, a few photos, and then it's on to the next gallery.
Whatever it is - fortune, fate, circumstances, planning - he has been given him the opportunity to live abroad, something I've always wanted, but might never obtain. He can (I suspect) visit the Louvre, the Rijksmuseum, the Pergamon, far more readily than those of us not already in Europe. Someone living there can make repeat visits and maybe afford the time to linger and really 'see' the works of art at a studied pace without having to rush through everything.
Most visitors to the world's great museums are not residents of those cities and have no choice but to hurry along and squeeze in as much as possible in the time allowed. Americans especially are pressed by time and financial constraints more than your average European resident. Few of us can afford to spend even a week in Europe and those that can manage that quickly realize they have an overwhelming task at hand. A week in Paris for a first-time visitor is not enough time to arrive, check into the hotel, orient oneself, figure out the Metro, check the maps, learn where things are, and then try to visit the Louvre, d'Orsay, Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, walk along the Seine, visit the Musee Picasso, Arc de Triomphe, stroll the Champs-Élysées, Luxemburg Gardens, shop, eat, rest, etc. Want to to cram in a side trip to Versailles too? How about Normandy? Forget it.
I've been lucky to visit Europe numerous times, but when I'm travelling for pleasure, I have had no choice but to rise early, plan days with military precision, and try not to rush through these wonderful museums (but truth be told, rush we must). On my last visit to Berlin, I had less than a single day to visit both the Pergamon and the Bode Museum. But that's ok - I'll be back. Many visitors will never get the chance to return.

Hitting the (Outdoor) Mall....

One of things that seems to typify European life to me besides the languages, history, cultural differences, etc. is the prevalence of pedestrian malls and large public squares within major city centers. The following article from the IHT about a new pedestrian mall in Madrid is a perfect example. I'm reminded also of the 'Fussgängerzone' in Wiesbaden, Karl Johansgate in Oslo, Kärnter and Graben streets in Vienna - the list goes on.

We in the US certain have some of these scattered about, and of course many of our cities have beautiful urban parks offering a respite from the grit and cacophony of urban life, but I think that a clean, dedicated pedestrian zone within major city centers including high-end shopping, restaurants, cafes, bakeries, and hotels would go a very long way to attract investment, visitors, and life into many US cities suffering from urban flight.

The Colonial Life (or, "Where to spend your Euros in North America)

While perusing The Economist recently, I came across a short article about the tiny islands of Saint Pierre & Miquelon off the coast of Newfoundland. The article itself concerned the future economic development of the islands which has been hampered by decline of local fishing stock and the purported efforts to lay claim to some of the undersea oil and gas deposits nearby.
What caused my "Hmmm" was the reminder in the article that these islands are among the last vestiges of French colonialism. The local language is French, they are defended by France, send representatives in the French National Assembly and Senate and use the Euro as currency.
There is some worry in the islands that Canada may dispute France's claim to some of these offshore oil and gas deposits and the islanders are concerned that they could be viewed by France as a commodity or bargaining chip and could possibly even see themselves becoming part of Canada itself.

The Dragon and the Shopping Cart

A number of years ago I spent two weeks teaching the basics of E-Commerce to some students from Guangzhou province in southern China.
The class itself was quite high level, and designed to teach the rudiments of X12-based EDI, but also cover the concept of back-end integrations with order management, inventory, and financial systems and the way the data messages themselves were created and transmitted between the parties involved.
Although the students' command of English was only fair, it was far better than my Mandarin, which is non-existent and they seemed to understand my words reasonably well.
After the first few days into the class though, I could tell they were struggling to understand and we had to take an unscheduled diversion from the lesson plan to sort things out.
I learned that it wasn't language difficulties causing confusion, but rather some of the basic business concepts. These students were only familiar with 'cash and carry' business transactions and such familiar concepts (to us) as sending a Purchase Order to a supplier, then having that supplier ship the goods and submit an Invoice was a novel idea. I never did get them to understand the concept of specific terms of sale such as '2-10 Net 15'.
We didn't dwell on some these for long in order to get back on track. I just made sure they understood the basics of the most simple supply chain transactions, but this was a real eye-opener for me. Nevertheless, one need now only look at what thousands of small Chinese manufacturing firms are currently doing with ecommerce to see that in spite of coming from way behind, the Chinese have fully grasped E-business and the current generation's business leaders have learned their lessons well.

Social Contract or Line Item ?

I stumbled across this article in the IHT in which several writers espoused upon the varying ways which firms in the US and Europe are inclined to reduce their employee-related expenses (salaries, wages, etc.) during difficult economic times. In Europe, the trend is to reduce hours, perhaps have brief furloughs, but retain the workers as employees of the company. In the US, companies are more likely to have permanent layoffs in which the position itself is eliminated and the worker has little or no chance of re-employment with his former employer.

I recently had a discussion with an Italian friend about this topic. American firms are laser-focused on the bottom line and look at this issue in purely economic terms. Though all companies say they value their employees, the truth is that any employee, or work group, or even division - is strictly a line item expense on the balance sheet. Under tight economic pressure, American firms have little hesitation about doing whatever it takes to reduce costs, whether it's finding a new office supply vendor, changing internet service providers, or cutting positions. In their view, the company isn't terminating an employee, it's eliminating an unnecessary position (and associated costs). The human being filling that position receives nary an afterthought save for a few wistful reminiscences from former colleagues.

Surely there are notable exceptions on either side, but there seems to be some form of social contract that is part of the fabric of European life. Citizens there pay more in taxes, and perhaps put up with greater bureaucracy and silly rules, but have a far greater social safety net in return.

Getting to Know Our Neighbors to the South

It's been a while since I've posted anything. Time to get back. I was recently chatting with a friend who's based in Lima. We were discussing free trade agreements and international exports between nations. That discussion got me looking a little bit at some of these economies in the Americas and how little most of the US knows about our neighbors south of the border. Last year, for example, (according to the Economist), Peru had a higher rate of GDP growth than China and is expected to remain higher than any Latin American country this year. I didn't know that - did you?

Oh, to be popular....

So, I was browsing Die Welt this evening, trying to maintain my modest comprehension of written German, and perusing an article about a BBC survey which people were asked which country had the most positive influence on world affairs. Considering the article's prominence on the page, the answer was not surprisingly - Germany, followed by Canada and Great Britain. Go figure. The amusing headline though somehow claimed that Germany was thefore the 'most popular' country in the world. Somehow, I don't think that's what the survey was really asking.

But what really grabbed my attention on this same page was a slightly interactive, graphic description of the White House and its various outbuildings. Very cool.

It's the 'Real Thing' ?

So, after something like 25 years, Coca-Cola is finally dropping the word 'Classic' from its labeling for regular Coke. To this day, the company, and practically everyone else insist that the introduction of the sweeter formulated "New Coke" (aka "Coke II") in the mid 1980s was a huge marketing blunder. Books have been written about it, and this brand management fiasco is studied in business schools all over.

I may be alone, but I believe Coke's mistake was not in the creation or introduction of a new, sweeter product per se, but rather the decision to create a huge advertising blitz touting the new product and the demise of the original. Coke's marketing engine was churning out print and television ads full bore hyping this new and improved product. What Coke should have done was quietly release the new, sweeter Coke without fanfare to its bottlers and minimized the marketing. Unfortunately, because of the way it was released, consumers had no choice but to compare the two products and were then in a perfect position to voice their displeasure (loudly). Had the company quietly changed the product, consumers would clearly have noticed the difference, but there wouldn't have been the resulting firestorm of discontent and opposition.
The new product may still have failed, but then the company could have easily reintroduced the old formula with a new marketing splash, "We heard you ! Original formula Coke is back !" or even had two products on the shelves - original Coke with the particular 'bite' that it's known for, and then a second product with the new sweeter formula to rein in the Pepsi crowd. Instead, Coke spent another hundred million dollars (or whatever) to bring back 'old' Coke, undo their marketing campaigns, say their mea culpas, and spend years rebuilding the brand.

Remembrance of things past....

I read another article today – as usual, in the IHT – about the new memorial at the site of the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. I was about to say the ‘infamous Bergen-Belsen concentration camp’, but in this case, I think no adjective is necessary or could ever truly describe a place such as this.

It’s been a year since I was in Berlin. There was no real purpose to the trip other than it was a city to which I had never visited, I had managed to get a couple days off work, and the airfare was relatively cheap (as was the hotel in which I stayed).

While there, I was continually struck by the lengths to which Germany seems to go in order to ensure that this nation will never forget this terrible past. There still seems to be a kind of national collective guilt and the country is doing all it can to remind its citizens - and the world – that it not only acknowledges the sins of the recent past, but is determined teach the younger generations what happened under their fathers’ and grandfather’s watch.

In Berlin itself, the Neue Wache is a solemn place, and sits in quiet testament to all those who have lost their lives due to oppression. There is Daniel Liebeskind’s relatively new Jewish Museum. Not far from the Brandenburg Gate lies the controversial Holocaust Memorial. I say ‘controversial’ primarily because some feel it doesn’t convey a true sense of being a memorial to the six million – perhaps it’s a bit too ‘artsy’ – but it is there.

The Neue Synagogue is carefully maintained, and under continuous patrol by the Polizei. Children are taught in school about the era of National Socialism. While I was there, I was twice approached by young Germans who noticed me visiting these sites and asked me to remind my friends back in America that what happened in the past was from a different generation. In the Deutsches Historisches Museum, the years from 1933 – 1945 are fully exposed for all to see and nothing has been swept under the revisionist rug. In the south, not far from Munich, the camp at Dachau has been preserved and is carefully maintained.

Racism and xenophobia will never be completely erased from any nation’s consciousness, but Germany is one country that is determined to move forward, while always remembering to look back too.

Seven Years

It was seven years ago - Jan 1, 2002 - that the European Union welcomed the Euro as the official currency of its member nations (although there are still a few EU countries that have not yet adopted it).

It was a huge event then - of course - but even now, with the benefit if hindsight, I still think that this has to be among the top five biggest economic events of the past 100 years.

In order to adopt the Euro, these countries had to look beyond whatever cultural, historical, or even sentimental bonds they may have had with their former currencies. Moreover, the adoption of the Euro tended to force these nations to really begin seeing themselves as part of a larger union itself. Some critics have even called the EU (somewhat derisively, I suspect), the "United States of Europe". Perhaps it is a certain reluctance to join the others and run with the herd is what has kept the UK, Denmark and Sweden from adopting this currency in spite of being among the original EU members. Today, January 1, 2008, Slovakia becomes the latest country to join the Eurozone and adopt the Euro as its native currency.

Guten Rutsch ! Happy New Year !

Since I'm not able to hit the road as often as I'd like, I do most of my travelling in the virtual way by reading articles and stories from other nations and capitals. Today I came across this story in the IHT (again).

After my trip last January (hard to believe it was almost a whole year ago), I sure wish I could have been there to see it this year. I can just picture the scene by the Brandenburg Gate ....

Maybe next year...