by epochepoque
Mon Nov 16th, 2020 at 02:50:15 PM EST
As we are living through the massive second wave of Covid in the darker months of the year, it's time to wonder what has gone wrong with the response to the plague in Europe.
Back at the beginning the of the year countries in Europe were simply unprepared. Most countries in the world that have managed better had been burned by SARS in 2003. Pain is a powerful teacher and fear can reliably chase away complacency. Therefore Taiwan (No. 1!), Vietnam, Cambodia, New Zealand, etc. acted decisively and quickly. Measures included strict quarantine, contract tracing (the thorough kind), border control, mask wearing, sometimes lockdowns, all of which the population bought into. It's not just Asia. West Africa (burned by Ebola) is doing so much better than Europe with daily case counts we can only dream of.
Frontpaged - Frank Schnittger
by epochepoque
Sun Sep 4th, 2016 at 03:56:09 PM EST
It's been said that the political spectrum does not look like a straight line but resembles a horseshoe. More so in these times where the middle is hollowing out. Today's state election in Merkel's home state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (MV) and Berlin (two weeks from now) offer curious examples of left-right crossover.
Frontpaged - Frank Schnittger
by epochepoque
Thu Jul 14th, 2016 at 08:05:58 PM EST
Authoritarianism and the Logic of Intolerant Nationalism
My previous diary focused on the socioeconomic roots of the current populist tremors. As polling data shows, that explanation is not sufficient. Today I found an article that delineates the psychological sources of the authoritarian backlash.
When and Why Nationalism Beats Globalism - And how moral psychology can help explain and reduce tensions between the two -
Jonathan Haidt - The American Interest
I'll show how globalization and rising prosperity have changed the values and behavior of the urban elite, leading them to talk and act in ways that unwittingly activate authoritarian tendencies in a subset of the nationalists. I'll show why immigration has been so central in nearly all right-wing populist movements. It's not just the spark, it's the explosive material, and those who dismiss anti-immigrant sentiment as mere racism have missed several important aspects of moral psychology related to the general human need to live in a stable and coherent moral order.
Frontpaged - Frank Schnittger
by epochepoque
Mon Jul 11th, 2016 at 12:13:47 AM EST
Brexit, Populism, Inequality, and the Precariat
Since the 1980s the elites in rich countries have overplayed their hand, taking all the gains for themselves and just covering their ears when anyone else talks, and now they are watching in horror as voters revolt. It seems in both cases (Trumpism and Brexit), many voters are motivated not so much by whether they think the projects will actually work, but more by their desire to say FUCK YOU to people like me (and probably you).
Vincent Bevins - LA Times
Frontpaged - Frank Schnittger
by epochepoque
Tue Sep 8th, 2015 at 02:37:12 PM EST
UN agencies 'broke and failing' in face of ever-growing refugee crisis - Guardian

Click on the link to see the complete graph. The first bar is the current unfilled request of the UNHCR for $2.89 billion for the Syria regional response plan. Only $0.9 billion of the total $3.8 billion have been funded. If some European governments had had the foresight (yeah I know), they would've just funded the rest long ago which would've been that much cheaper. Bygones, but it's not too late to make a difference.
frontpaged with minor edit - Bjinse
by epochepoque
Fri Mar 7th, 2014 at 10:17:10 PM EST
"Every great cause begins as a movement, becomes a business, and eventually degenerates into a racket." - Eric Hoffer
The snowy dreams of the last olympics have faded away and we find ourselves in prime geopolitical confrontations. But not only are the Sochi olympics over, the modern olympics in general have finally lost their allure, and the decline which inevitably leads to death has become visible for all to see.
(This diary grew out of a recent rant).
by epochepoque
Fri Jul 22nd, 2011 at 02:12:35 AM EST
Having read DoDo's 2009 diaries about the status of HSR projects in Europe (Part 1, Part 2) I wanted to know how much of an effect those projects have had on actual travel time.
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Cutout of European HSR map, original map by Wikipedia |
So I looked at the timetables of the national railways for travel times of relations that use those high(er)-speed lines. Travel Speed = (Distance station-to-station) / (Minimal travel time in schedule).
front-paged by afew
by epochepoque
Tue Oct 5th, 2010 at 08:10:15 AM EST
 |
Overview of Stuttgart 21. New central station (Hauptbahnhof) perpendicular to the old station. Red solid: new above-ground tracks, Red dashed: new tunnels, Black: old tracks, Crossed lines: old tracks to be removed. Chart by Vieregg-Rössler GmbH. |
What's not to like? A new through station with shiny, modern architecture and a new high-speed line to the East (Wendlingen-Ulm) by 2019. About 100 hectares (~247 acres) of newly available space in the center of Stuttgart. So why are the citizens of this southwestern German city up in arms about Stuttgart 21? Why are tens of thousands of them taking to the streets every week?
Promoted by DoDo with small edits
by epochepoque
Sun Oct 3rd, 2010 at 09:47:35 AM EST
If S21 were only of regional importance and if we had money to burn and if we didn't have peak oil and so forth approaching, then no one would have to bother about it.