Society

This section contains social developments, observations and tensions in the center - topics that affect our coexistence, our values and our cultural orientation. Some of these articles address current debates, others question long-established structures or look back at historical contexts. Often, it is not about making quick judgments, but about pausing, taking a closer look - and asking the question: where do we actually want to go as a society?

Those who read here will not find loud opinion theater, but calm analyses, clear words and an eye for what often lies between the lines. Especially in a time of increasing polarization, a differentiated view of social issues can help you to choose your own point of view more consciously - and to question it if necessary.

Helge Schneider: Attitude, humor and the freedom of not having to explain yourself

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Helge Schneider Portrait

I noticed Helge Schneider very early on. Not because he was particularly loud or pushed himself to the fore - on the contrary. It was this peculiar mixture of intelligent absurdity, linguistic sideways thinking and musical matter-of-factness that stuck with me. Something about it seemed different right from the start. Unexcited. Unimpressed. And above all: not in need of explanation.

This portrait is therefore not a fan text. Nor is it an ironic wink or an attempt to pigeonhole Helge Schneider into a cultural category. Rather, it is an attempt to look at a personality who has consistently resisted any form of appropriation for decades - and who shows attitude precisely because of this.

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The Two Plus Four Treaty, NATO and the Bundeswehr: What still applies today?

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When security policy, the Bundeswehr and international obligations are discussed today, it is usually in the mode of the present: numbers, threat situations, alliance capabilities. Rarely, however, is it asked on what legal foundation all this actually stands. Yet there is a treaty that forms precisely this foundation - and yet is barely anchored in the public consciousness: the Two Plus Four Treaty.

Many people know it by name. Few know what exactly was regulated in it. Even fewer are concerned with the question of what significance these agreements still have today - more than three decades after German reunification, in a world that has changed fundamentally in political, military and social terms.

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Digital ownership explained - How sustainable online assets are created

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What is digital property

For centuries, property was something very tangible. You could touch it, walk on it or hold it in your hand. A house, a piece of land, a workshop, books on a shelf or tools in a drawer - these were all things that could be clearly assigned. They belonged to someone, were visibly present and generally remained so even when political, economic or social circumstances changed.

This article explains what digital property is, what forms it takes and how digital property can be created, especially in today's AI age.

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Climate protection with tunnel vision - electromobility, lobbying and the suppressed costs

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Electromobility without ideology

This article is not an indictment of electromobility. Nor is it an attempt to denigrate a technological development that works perfectly well for many people in their everyday lives. I am writing this text because it has become increasingly clear to me in recent years that there is a gap between the political narrative, public perception and physical reality that is hardly ever talked about. And I'm not writing it from the perspective of an outsider. I have been driving a plug-in hybrid myself for years. I know electric driving from my own experience, not from brochures or talk shows. I know how pleasant it is to glide silently through the city, how direct the power delivery is and how relaxed it feels. Anyone who has ever driven an electric car regularly quickly understands why this type of drive is emotionally compelling. There's nothing to belittle about it.

This is precisely why I believe it is necessary to take a step back and ask soberly: What do these vehicles actually achieve - and at what cost, systemically speaking?

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What is BRICS - and what is not: history, economy and geopolitical classification

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BRICS countries

If you take a sober look at the figures, you will rub your eyes: today's BRICS countries account for almost half of the world's population. Billions of people live in these countries, work there, produce, consume, build infrastructure and shape their future. In terms of population, economic output (especially in terms of purchasing power) and raw materials, they are by no means a marginal phenomenon in global politics. And yet the BRICS countries usually only play a minor role in the daily reporting of Western media - often reduced to individual events, conflicts or buzzwords.

This is precisely where this article comes in. Not to celebrate or defend BRICS, but to understand what is behind this acronym, how it came about and why it plays a role today that cannot simply be ignored.

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What our grandfathers told us about the war - and why these voices are missing today

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War memories of the grandfathers

There is a lot of talk about war. In the news, talk shows, commentaries, social media. Hardly any other topic is so present - and at the same time so strangely abstract. Figures, maps, frontlines, expert assessments. We know where something is happening, who is involved and what is at stake. What is almost completely missing are the voices of those who have experienced war rather than declared it.

Perhaps it is because these voices are slowly falling silent. But perhaps it is also because we have forgotten how to listen to them.

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What was Syria like before the war? Who rules today? What does this mean for refugees in Germany?

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Syria and Damascus

For me, Syria is not an abstract news country, not just a crisis concept in the headlines. I have been following this country - from a distance, but continuously - for around twenty years. Not out of political activism, but out of genuine interest. For me, Syria has always been an example of how the world is more complicated than simple good-and-evil narratives. A country in the Middle East that was secularly organized, relatively stable and socially much more modern than many would have expected.

An additional point that aroused my interest early on was the person of Bashar al-Assad himself. A man who had studied in Switzerland, trained as an ophthalmologist, knew the realities of life in the West - and then stood at the head of a Middle Eastern state. That didn't fit the usual mold. It was all the more irritating for me to observe how quickly public perception narrowed, how a complex state became a pure symbol of violence, flight and moral simplification within just a few years. The shock for me was not so much that Syria ended up in a war - history knows many such ruptures - but how little room there was left for differentiation afterwards. This article is therefore also an attempt to bring order back to a topic that is often only presented as chaos in the media.

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Declining gas storage in Germany: technology, limits and political consequences

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Gas storage in Germany

When the news reports about „40 percent filling level of the gas storage facilities“ When we talk about percentages, it sounds abstract at first. Percentages seem technical, far removed from everyday life. And yet there is something very concrete behind it: the question of how stable our energy supply really is - not in theory, but in everyday practice.

Gas is not only used for industrial plants or power stations in Germany. It heats homes, supplies hot water, drives district heating networks and is still the central backbone of the energy supply in many regions. Unlike electricity, however, gas cannot be produced at will „at the push of a button“. It has to be extracted, transported - and above all stored.

This is where the gas storage facilities come into play. They are like the country's store cupboard. As long as it is well filled, hardly anyone gives it a second thought. If it becomes visibly empty, questions arise: Will it last? For how long? And what happens if things continue to go downhill?

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