Categoria: general

A spectre haunts the world

da Peter Herrmann's Blog, posted in general, thoughts on life and its philosophy

A recent entry on these pages linked to a critical article on the tradition, still haunting the word gendarme, celebrating the Founding Fathers.

Looking for the roots, they are especially constituted by the

Fifth Amendment, amendment (1791) to the Constitution of the United States, part of the Bill of Rights,

No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a grand jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the militia, when in actual service in time of war or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.

Well, constitutions are about constituting something, right?

It had been repeatedly stated that the EU could not be member state of the EU as theEU is actually not committed to its own rules …
The paradox with the USNA is that it completely complies with its own rules — on the one hand: fir the white (yes, Barack, there are exceptions), male (yes, Hillary, there are some exceptions), upper-middle class society; still, there is something in the US that actually reminds me of the ancient societies: some people, namely slaves, had not been considered as people, as human beings — so they could be treated differently – and the proclaimed freedom provides the means.
A sad state of the nation – a saddening nation state …. that makes these days the headlines again and again, showing the teeth of a shark to its own people – especially to the black who had never been part of the “community”.

The Direct Way

da Peter Herrmann's Blog, posted in general, quotes

In order to arrive at knowledge of the motions of birds in the air, it is first necessary to acquire knowledge of the winds, which we will prove by the motions of water in itself, and this knowledge will be a step enabling us to arrive at the knowledge of beings that fly between the air and the wind.

Leonardo da Vinci

Migration – aren’t there any ways to stop criminals?

da Peter Herrmann's Blog, posted in contemporary socio-economic situation, general

Yes, it is a heading that can easily be mistaken, but reading about EU-policy and referring “being criminal” to various policy makers, and the new Foreign Office minister, Lady Anelay, will hopefully easily get you there.

It is a disgrace, reading in yesterday’s Guardian

British policy was quietly spelled out in a recent House of Lords written answer by the new Foreign Office minister, Lady Anelay: “We do not support planned search and rescue operations in the Mediterranean,” she said, adding that the government believed there was “an unintended ‘pull factor’, encouraging more migrants to attempt the dangerous sea crossing and thereby leading to more tragic and unnecessary deaths”.

What we currently see as anti-migrant policies is unbearably when considering the human tragedy and it leaves only one demand: If we are serious about human rights people like Anelay should be immediately convicted.

(For the original reference click here)

Yesterday

da Peter Herrmann's Blog, posted in general, joys - what we usually take for it
3:60 Euro for a Cappuccino – that Is how Economies work – surely not for the people. The German term for macroeconomy is Volkswirtschaft – must be rich people. Studying economics today is usually about microeconomics  – of course, why bother about people if all is about much money for the few.
Yesterday, well yesterday had been another day – with a really lovely meal, Cuban atmosphere and some comrades around the table.

verità più profonda?

da Peter Herrmann's Blog, posted in general, quotes

“Mia soltanto è la patria della mia anima. Vi posso entrare senza passaporto e mi sento a casa; essa vede la mia tristezza e la mia solitudine ma non vi sono case: furono distrutte durante la mia infanzia, i loro inquilini volano ora nell’aria in cerca di una casa, vivono nella mia anima. Ci fu un tempo in cui avevo due teste, vi fu un tempo in cui questi volti erano bagnati dalla rugiada dell’amore e disciolti come profumo di rosa. Ora mi sembra che anche quando indietreggio avanzo verso un’ampia porta, oltre la porta ci sono ampie distese di pareti, rombi di tuoni smorzati e lampi spezzati riposano. Mia soltanto è la patria della mia anima.”

Marc Chagall

Just a reminder

da Peter Herrmann's Blog, posted in contemporary socio-economic situation, general, social quality

Pensions do not exist to increase national savings or to provide jobs for actuaries, tax lawyers, accountants, fund managers and regulators. Their purpose is to allow the elderly and disabled to retire from work with dignity

Willmore, Larry: Three Pillars of Pensions: Is there a need for mandatory contributions? in: OECD, Private Pensions Series OECD 2000 Private Pensions Conference 2000. Insurance and Pensions; Paris 2001: 385-397; here 385

So Slow ….

da Peter Herrmann's Blog, posted in contemporary socio-economic situation, general
A recent press release from the Irish Minister for Justice states
Dáil to debate Bill to provide free access to health services for Magdalen survivors
• Government is committed to full implementation of the Quirke Report
• Bill provides for an enhanced medical card for Magdalen survivors
• To date a decision has been made in 87% of cases. 495 applicants have received payments totalling €18 million.

22nd January, 2015 Frances Fitzgerald, T.D., Minister for Justice and Equality, today stated that the Dáil is scheduled next week to commence consideration of the Bill (the Redress for Women Resident in Certain Institutions Bill 2014) to provide free access to health services for Magdalen survivors. …

Nothing wrong with such a law. Still, there is something about speed.
Sure, the one side is
Fai di fretta e male – act fast, without thinking and do not worry about bad results.
– this seems to be too often the rule under which we live, the rat race in which we are caught. But there is another side, where the lack of speed is a bit worrying:
The Catholic Church needed until 1992 to fully acknowledge that they had been wrong in the case of Galileo Galilei – though even in 1990 the then still Cardinal Ratzinger actually condemned him when speaking at La Sapienza, the university in Rome.
And it took a long time for the Irish government not only to rebuke morally what happened but to provide a committed answer — even worse: to think about it with the debate on the bill.
And there is still a further dimension to it:
The Irish government — and all other governments — should finally acknowledge that free and qualitatively appropriate health care is a fundamental human right. This is what we may call the required rule of the day, instead of continued austerity policies in Europe and elsewhere.
And there is surely urgency in this!!!
I just finalized two papers,
  • Developing a Social Quality Perspective in relation to the Debates on Ethical Economy and De-Growth (elaborated in connection with a recent event in collaboration with the Angelicum, EURISPES and the European Academy of Science and Arts
and
  • Employment Crisis or Crisis of Employment, notes in preparation of a conference next month in Moscow.

Both documents can be obtained on request.

wishes … – on the Greek elections, and the time that follows

da Peter Herrmann's Blog, posted in general, quotes, thoughts on life and its philosophy
Whatever we are able and would like to do, presents itself to our imagination, as without us and in the future ; we feel a longing after that which we already possess in secret. thus the passionate anticipating grasp changes  the truly possible into a dreamed reality. Now if such a bias lies decidedly in our nature, then, with every every step of our development will a part of the first wish be fulfilled – under favourable circumstances in the direct way, under unfavourable in the circuitous way, from which we always come back again to the other. Thus we see men by perseverance attain to earthly wealth; they surround themselves with riches, splendor, and external honour. Others strive yet more certainly after intellectual advantages, acquire for themselves a clear survey of things, a peacefulness of mind, and a certainty for the present and the future.
Goethe: Truth and Poetry. From my Own Life; Translated from the German by John Oxenford, Esq; London: Henry G. Bohn; 1848

——

Unsere Wünsche sind Vorgefühle der Fähigkeiten, die in uns liegen, Vorboten desjenigen, was wir zu leisten imstande sein werden. Was wir können und möchten, stellt sich unserer Einbildungskraft außer uns und in der Zukunft dar; wir fühlen eine Sehnsucht nach dem, was wir schon im Stillen besitzen. So verwandelt ein leidenschaftliches Vorausgreifen das wahrhaft Mögliche in ein erträumtes Wirkliches.

Quelle: Dichtung und Wahrheit IX