Eurovision vote contest

It will take some time to sort out the new government of Germany and therefore its new Chancellor, but the biggest takeaway is that Angela Dorothea Merkel was not blindly adored. Outside of Germany, she's considered one of the great world leaders, however, Germans saw through that by handing the CDU its lowest ever result (196 seats, down from 246 in 2017). She should have done much more in regards to climate change and refugees, but being a centrist was what motivated her instead of ruffling feathers. Germany is at the crossroads with an ageing population (21.5% are over 65), pension and immigration reform will be haunting the next leader. (Note: for all of its innovation and practicality, Germany has not done enough to raise the minimum wage, it's a measly 9.50 euros per hour). 

Just to go off on a tangent...Germans are proud of their frugality, Aldi and Lidl sum up their stinginess (I say that sincerely). Then on the other hand, every car brand driven by the so-called entitled 1% of society is German (Audi, BMW, Mercedes, Porsche). Germans are the ultimate contradiction, just like their politics. Remember (don't worry, I don't expect readers to be up with the intricacies of Deutschland) when CDU/Grüne (Greens) teamed up in the German state of Hesse (home to the financial capital, Frankfurt). Germany is the real land of hope, here you can get fiscal conservatives doing deals with tree huggers. Germany has a long history of political diversity, one of its 16 states (Baden-Württemberg) is currently governed outright by the Greens. 

To an American audience this will sound shocking, but the Greens should have done better, at one stage they were on track to come first. Still, was a solid return from four years ago, increased their share in the Bundestag from 67 to 118 seats (including two won by transgender candidates). To put it into an American context, this is the equivalent of a Jill Stein led party winning 86 seats in the 535-seat Congress). SPD is now in the driving seat to form a coalition, coming first by taking 206 (up from 153 in 2017) of 735 seats. Got to love German politics, no outright winner, all about compromise. Interesting to see if they take the traffic light coalition (red being SPD, Greens, and the yellow FDP - classical-liberal party that took 92 seats) route by working across political divides like in Hesse. 

In other news across Europe, the Swiss legalised same-sex marriage passing with 64% in a referendum, becomes the 30th nation to join the world of acceptance. A referendum to ban full facial coverings also passed with 51%. ("Congrats" Switzerland, you just became a hero among angry white men spewing hate from their basements). The Swiss might be known for their neutrality, but boy do they swing wildly in referendums from compassion to bigotry. Iceland just falls short of a majority female Parliament. The 63-seat Althing will have 30 seats taken up by women. Katrín Jakobsdóttir, Iceland's second female PM is set to remain at the helm. One thing is for certain, Iceland's 4-day workweek trial was a success, looking set to become the first developed nation to make the law of the land. Iceland is a social experiment leader, men even get 4 months fully paid paternity leave. 

Looking ahead on the European election calendar, Czechia (Czech Republic) heads to the polls October 8-9. All 200 members of the Chamber of Deputies are up for election. It will be fascinating to see how the Pirate Party (founded 2009) does. In 2017 they took 22 seats (third largest in the chamber), which was big news for an upstart student-driven party with a civil rights, direct democracy centric platform. This vote matters, a strong Czechia is needed in Europe, it's the only antithesis to Viktor Orbán running amok in central Europe. The more the autocrat in Hungary is ostracised, the better for global democracy. Heck, even Americans should devote at least an hour of their day to Czech politics. Small world: Prague, Oklahoma was named after Czech settlers. There's even the town of West, Texas, affectionately known to locals as the Czech heritage capital. Before you know it, Bulgaria heads to the polls on November 14th. Autumn in Europe, where the leaves and governments change colours.

Beaver, gyrfalcon, bundesadler all walk in a room...

If you're scratching your head at the heading, then you're not alone. In a time poor world, even though we spend most of our daily lives glued to plastic screens, who has time to celebrate the national animals of Canada, Iceland and Germany (Bundesadler translates to federal eagle, for those playing mythical German creatures trivia).

Big week for earthlings! United Nations General Assembly (where the US President will laud his nation, forgetting it's one without universal healthcare) in session to dissecting a three-pack of votes. We need compulsory global voting. Once we sort out that little racist thing called borders. 

As the dust settles from the vote that garnered little attention in the US and therefore the world, it's my duty to at least inform you of the events that took place in the land of the beaver. This is just a prelude to a big week in elections, with Iceland and Germany next up, it's an out of control time at the polls. Hope you studied the form guide, bring on Sunday! https://globaleditorial.blogspot.com/2021/09/black-red-gold-is-trending.html

Iceland on the other hand will be the first fully inoculated nation to hold an election. Interesting to see if the Left-Green Movement and its leader, Katrín Jakobsdóttir are reelected on 25/9. That's right people, Iceland gets tourists from far and wide, even though it's considered a liberal utopia. Interesting tidbit, there are direct flight from Dallas to Reykjavík. Deep down, American God-fearing southerners love spending their capitalist dollars in tree hugging nations. You heard it here first!

There's much to dissect post Canadian election, here's a rundown in tweet form. (Aimed specifically at earthlings out there who fall asleep during op-ed's, surely you can stay awake to read messages that cannot exceed 280 characters). Here are three tweets to discuss among your American obsessed social circle.

Back to the future moment in the world's 9th largest economy #Canadavotes2021 Teflon JPJT banked on getting a majority by going to the polls two years early. Instead, Liberals repeat 2019 by failing to win 170 ridings & the popular vote, so more faux progressive leadership it is!

The Premier of Alberta (the Texas of Canada) Jason Kenney guaranteed a Liberal victory. The conservative bastion of Alberta was staunchly anti vaccine mandate. #Covid19 outbreak hits Alberta, Kenney back flips wanting vaccine passports, on cue his alt-right constituents go nuts.

#Trudeau talks big (granted he's more liberal than anything the US can serve up, including Bernie Sanders). Legalising marijuana/admitting 44,000 Syrian refugees were wins in his 2nd term, SNC-Lavalin affair was a fiasco. Now it's time to step up or Chrystia Freeland will be PM.

This is how committed GE is to the Great White North, watching live coverage on election night takes precedence over all other programming. O Canada, I forgive you for having a voter turnout of only 59% (lowest since 2008), seeing as 70% of your population is fully vaxxed.

PS. Happy Independence Day, Hayastan (Armenia). 30 years since it was freed from Soviet occupation. One day the Armenian diaspora might take their abilities back home, but for now, a people of only 11 million worldwide are making political contributions globally. Talking Canada, Anna Simonyan (Bloc Québécois) polled second in Montréal's Ahuntsic-Cartierville riding (you never know, you might need to know this to win big on Jeopardy). Armenians have come a long way when they're running under the banner of protecting Québécois sovereignty.

Black, Red & Gold is trending!

Hurry up, get your picks in for the vote that will stop the globe in its tracks. (Clue: involves the world's fourth largest economy). If you don't know what nation is being referenced, then you need to get out more, alternatively volunteer for a psychiatric evaluation. Only 20 sleeps (if you believe in resting your eyes) left until we find out the makeup of the Bundestag (all 598 seats), and of course, the successor to one of the great (if not the greatest since the creation of democracy in 508 B.C.) technocrat leaders of our generation, Angela Dorothea Merkel (Chancellor since 22/11/2005).

Remember, even if you don't have any tax obligation to Deutschland or have any DNA connections to the Germanic people, you still need to block out your calendar (starting 26/9/20222) and devote all your attention to this election, once the final tally is in you're allowed to get back to normal life, whatever that means. Here's the Who's Who (and the parties) of the Deutschland vote MMXXI. One of the following will soon lead the Black, Red and Gold (tip: if you have some extra cash lying around, back the candidate born on 15/12/1980). 

Armin Laschet - CDU/CSU (Christian democracy)

Olaf Scholz - SDP (Social democracy)*

Alice Weidel/Tino Chrupalla - AfD (right-wing populism)

Christian Lindner - FDP (Classical liberalism)

Janine Wissler/Dietmar Bartsch - Left (Democratic socialism) 

Annalena Baerbock - Alliance 90/The Greens (Green politics)

*Front runner to form government (to think the polls gave SDP a 1% chance in early August), currently trending at 33% - who said German elections aren't sexy? This outcome will likely form a 'traffic-light' coalition with the FDP and Greens. 

The German electoral system is a great fusion of proportional representation and first-past-the-post voting. Basically, it's the best system going around to stop buffoons from taking power (you can thank their dark past for ensuring they never go there again). Think about it, Merkel governed under the conservative umbrella, but in the US she would be more progressive than even some Democrats, she could easily be elected as Governor of Rhode Island. Germans don't have time for medieval conservative thinking, hence why the Greens have won state elections and have been part of governing coalitions at a federal level.

Anyone one of the above would be a sane choice, although, the AfD is clearly the worst, they're more palatable than any dinglebat in the GOP (and I include the so-called more open-minded types from Massachusetts). Sorry to mention Uncle Sam, this piece is not about the nation with the world's 30th best healthcare, but about the one with the 17th best. (For those of you playing that classic trivia game: where is the best place to get sick).

I'm no ageist, but oldies have a good run running (ruining) nations. So many small nations are going with young female leaders, god bless Finland (is there a better nation earth) and their PM, Sanna Marin born 16/11/1985. The time has come for a G-7 nation to be led by the fairer sex, one that was in nappies when one of the great songs of all-time was hitting the airwaves, In The Air Tonight (Phil Collins).

For those who have the privilege of casting a vote, I envy you. The other earthlings, not lucky enough, sit back, and take in a real democracy at work. Many of us own/use at least one German product, we also make contributions via its many retail brands, and don't forget the engineering prowess that they have given the world, you could be relying on it as you read. So as they say in the classics: we're all Germans (the kind that evolved after 1945).