Hmm, I wonder if that’s because of the policies of conservative governments - like the CDU in Germany, for example - that would rather favor their cronies in the fossil fuel industry than invest in renewable energy?
I seem to recall that Germany was the global leader in photovoltaic systems until around 2003.
I really wonder why the country no longer plays a significant role in this industry today…? 🤔
Yep, another favor for the buddies - plus, it gives the U.S. oil companies a great excuse to raise their prices too…
Edit: Opportunistic’ Fossil Fuel Execs Cashed In on Trump’s Iran War With Record Stock Sales
Yes, in principle, but unfortunately there are many politicians who do not act in the interests of the people. This is evident simply from the fact that the richest of the rich are getting richer and richer, even though this is by no means in the interests of a country’s citizens.
While there are neo-capitalist approaches such as “trickle-down economics” even after decades of pursuing them, what they postulate has never come to pass - instead, exactly what was to be expected has occurred: tax revenues are plummeting, resulting in a lack of funds for investments in socially vital sectors and infrastructure, and the standard of living for citizens is steadily declining.
The result is that a kind of new monarchy of billionaires has emerged, who use their enormous influence through corruption and lobbying so ruthlessly that today there is hardly a capitalist-democratic state left that still serves the interests of its citizens.
Yes, I agree, especially since selfishness, ruthlessness, and greed are traits that promise profits - and (short-term) profits are the only, or at least the primary, measure by which most managers’ performance is judged (Shareholder Value, Quarterly revenue figures, and such). It is therefore quite likely that current managers also exhibit these traits and thus fill positions with people who are similar to them. It appears to be a systemic vicious cycle that allows for hardly any exceptions.
This appears to be the reasoning: The first and second attempts were invalidated because both were inadmissible under the examination regulations (strictly speaking, the student should have failed on the first attempt). Therefore, a new exam date was scheduled, on which the student then failed for the same reason, he should have failed on the first attempt (the exam regulations do not provide for exceptions due to nervousness, but rather stipulate that the examinee fails in such cases because his performance is insufficient to pass).
So only the third attempt was counted, which meant the student did not receive his diploma, since he would have had to pass that oral exam to do so - which, unfortunately, he did not after his second attempt was striken from the record.
My friend had simply tried to appeal to human leniency, which is strictly speaking not permitted under official rules. It’s quite possible that the first attempt wasn’t even officially recorded, since the student should have already failed. Unfortunately, I don’t know what exactly was recorded for the first attempt.
Apparently, however, the judge or the responsible administrative official at the Ministry of Education had at least some sympathy, since they had the entire exam retaken. But it’s also quite possible that this is the standard procedure when inconsistencies arise regarding the exam regulations. Administratively, it’s probably way easier than initiating an detailed “investigation” of the case.
But yeah, all in all: pretty strange.
Edit: I think it is certainly possible to reschedule an exam, but I assume that a doctor’s note must be submitted to prove that the examinee is unable to take the exam for health reasons.
The student might have been able to get such a note, but since this seems to be an ongoing problem, it would probably have been nothing more than a temporary reprieve.
You don’t really need experts to properly assess this “government,” since it consists solely of talk show hosts, podcasters, wrestling promoters, conspiracy theorists, MMA fighters, and so on - none of these clowns is even remotely qualified for their position, and it’s no surprise that the only two things they’re “experts” in are hate and corruption.
Germany.
However, the complaint was not directed at the grade itself, but rather at a violation of the examination regulations, which do not allow for a retake of an oral exam simply because the student is too nervous to pass. That is why my friend was unable to secure another exception on the student’s third attempt - everything unfortunately had to be strictly correct.
I don’t teach myself, but I’ve heard from various friends that lawsuits over the most absurd things are definitely a thing in Germany, too. As a result, teachers have far fewer freedoms than they did ten years ago - and also face much more bureaucratic red tape to document everything in a way that reduces the risk of lawsuits.
I’m not really familiar with that area myself, but unfortunately, I can easily imagine how frustrating it must be for the teachers.
Edit: Here is an article that describes the problem (in German).
A friend of mine is a teacher, and he told me the following story a while back:
A student had an oral exam and was so nervous that he couldn’t get a word out. So my friend coordinated with the “exam committee” to give the student a second chance, which, fortunately, was possible that very same day thanks to some persuasion among his colleagues. After my friend worked with the student to help him regain his confidence, the second attempt at the exam went better - the student was still very nervous, but overall, it was enough to barely pass the exam. The student was absolutely thrilled, and the examiners were reasonably satisfied.
My friend thought to himself: All right, that turned out well after all - but unfortunately, no: The student’s parents sued the school because they were dissatisfied with their son’s exam grade. The lawsuit was based on the claim that the exam regulations weren’t strictly followed, since the student had to take the exam twice (with different exam topics, so the other students wouldn’t be at a disadvantage, of course). The parents won the lawsuit, and the court ruled that the oral exam must be repeated.
So now the completely dismayed student had to take the exam again - a nightmare for the poor guy. The examiners were the same ones who, despite the absurdity of his parents’ demands, remained well-disposed toward him. However, the student was understandably even more nervous the third time - so much so that he once again couldn’t get a single word out. This time, my friend’s hands were tied, since everything had to be completely correct from an administrative standpoint. So, unfortunately, the examiners had no choice but to fail the nervous student, meaning that, thanks to his parents, he ultimately did not receive his diploma.
So here too: insane parents who even ruined their own son’s graduation because of their unrealistic expectations.
It’s a real shame, but unfortunately that’s how it went all thanks to the student’s crazy parents…
Another perspective of presumably the same event by Josh Kirby…
/c/showerthoughts also has a “no politics” rule, which means that many topics are off-limits - and since this rule is worded very vaguely, the admins decide at their own discretion which topics are allowed.
I couldn’t agree more, especially since, for anyone not from the US, even the most moderate White House posts are so utterly absurd that these days it’s really hard to tell the difference between satire and real-life clown show.
I can assure you that everyone is trying their best to adjust somehow, but it’s really hard given this level of absurdity.
Because they are all the same kind of people, and age doesn’t really matter in itself - most of the people at the top are just white and old men because the system was set up by those very people.
And that is precisely the problem: this system of endless greed propels ruthless psychopaths to the top. It is sold as a performance-based society, even though performance has absolutely nothing to do with it - if that were the case, the problem wouldn’t exist in the first place.
In my view, an attack on any health infrastructure - of course - constitutes a war crime, a crime against humanity.
I consider this type of warfare despicable and contrary to international law (which is what the US’s illegal war of aggression against Iran is, anyway - not any better than the illegal war of aggression that Russia is waging against the people of Ukraine).
Of course, Iran is ruled by a barbaric, fundamentalist regime - but that does not give equally fundamentalist criminals, namely the horrendous US regime, the right to trample on international law like they do.
We will likely never find common ground on this issue, because I consider this war itself to be a crime, and all the more so given how barbarically it is being waged.
Edit: Btw - what you’re presenting here as a clever “strategy” pretty much fits the definition of genocide, since it involves wiping a people off the face of the earth using precisely those kinds of methods. Maybe look up the term or ask the US allies in Israel - they know a thing or two about the subject.
Hospitals are not legitimate targets for military attacks. Attacking them is by no means a “strategy,” but rather a crime against humanity.
Civilian hospitals organized to give care to the wounded and sick, the infirm and maternity cases, may in no circumstances be the object of attack, but shall at all times be respected and protected by the Parties to the conflict.
What is this supposed to mean? The brain drain has been underway ever since the fascists took the helm - take the medical field, for example: The CDC used to be an organization of enormous global importance. After this absurd conspiracy-theorist clown took office, the majority of the capable staff were fired because they refused to go along with his anti-science bullshit. Now the CDC is barely a shadow of its former self and has consequently lost both its credibility and its purpose on the international stage. This has cost many lives and done enormous damage to the US as a center of scientific excellence.
This is the case in many areas, which is hardly surprising under a Nazi regime that portrays science as the enemy.
Agreed. Agent Orange, lackey to the billionaires, or just plain pedo would probably be much more fitting - but “President” seems completely inappropriate, because even in a pseudo-democratic country, that would imply he acts in the people’s interest, which is definitely not the case.
Yes, that’s true, but I’m sure the method would work just as well if you asked the orange guy where the best location for a wind farm is.
It’s all just a joke, of course: No one should pay even the slightest bit of attention to what this criminal has to say.
Well, I guess you can’t expect someone like this moron to know the tale “The Boy Who Cried Wolf.”
So he just keeps crying…