Spaßbremse

Boeing's myriad crises are well known, but what explains the success of its (relatively) new European rival, Airbus? To find out, Ted speaks with aviation analyst Scott Hamilton about the history of the firm, Germany's role in it, and what has allowed Airbus to overtake Boeing. They also discuss the different approaches toward the aircraft manufacturing business on both sides of the Atlant...

The economic news from Germany is bad. But is the reality as dire as it's portrayed? To find out if Germany is really the "sick man of Europe" again, Ted speaks with Professor Sebastian Dullien of the Hans Böckler Foundation's Macroeconomic Policy Institute (IMK). They discuss the problems Germany faces and what it needs to do to escape them. For background, listen to Episode 1 o...

Acknowledging and atoning for the crimes of the Third Reich is now an essential part of Germany's national identity. This process is comparatively straightforward for ethnic Germans, whose family members may have been complicit during the Nazi era. But where does this "emotional social contract" leave post -WWII immigrants to Germany, particularly those of Muslim backgrounds? To expl...

What explains Germany's steadfast support for Israel? Even as Israel's response to the October 7th Hamas attacks has drawn increasing international condemnation, Germany has doubled down on support, proclaiming that Israel's security is its Staatsräson and cracking down on speech deemed insufficiently supportive of Israel. To answer this question from a historical perspective, Ted spea...

German media and politicians say that the country is experiencing another "migration crisis." But has it ever not been? To explore the history of migration politics in the BRD, Ted speaks with Lauren Stokes ( @laurenstokes ), a historian at Northwestern University, about her book Fear of the Family (2022) and article "The Permanent Refugee Crisis in the Federal Republic of Germany&q...

What is the NATO alliance really for? Grey Anderson's recent book Natopolitanism offers some hints, and the answer is (shockingly) not always what proponents of the Alliance say it is. On this episode, we speak with Grey—an editor and historian based in New York—about the book, the history of NATO, and what the future of the transatlantic relationship might look like. Buy his book here: https:...

During a demoralizing year for Twitter, there's been one notable bright spot: the relentless and inspired posting of Austrian economist Gunther Fehlinger ( @GunterFehlinger ). With political opinions (and matching selfies) ranging from #exRussia and #exChina to the need for Austria to join NATO , Gunther has risen quickly to become one of the world's most legendary commentators on geopolit...

The far-right Alternative für Deutschland party is surging across Germany and the CDU seems increasingly willing to cooperate with them. Is the "firewall/Brandmauer" taboo of working with the radical right finally crumbling? To answer this, Ted speaks with historian Ned Richardson-Little ( @HistoryNed ) about the postwar history of the far right in both East and West Germany. They discus...

Ted is joined by historian Quinn Slobodian to discuss his latest book, "Crack up Capitalism," including how his recent work on economic "zones" relates to his earlier thinking on neoliberalism and the tensions between capitalism and democracy. They also discuss the microstate of Lichtenstein and the rise of the far right in Germany. You can buy Quinn's latest book here: htt...

Talk is heating up of an impending split in the German Left Party, Die Linke. Sahra Wagenknecht, who has long been a controversial figure in the party, is now openly considering forming a breakaway party. On this episode, we have Loren Balhorn of Jacobin Germany and the Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung on to discuss what this would mean for the Die Linke and the potential new party. Ted and Loren also go b...

With the finals of this year's Eurovision Song Contest taking place this evening, we thought it would be a perfect time to reflect on the weird and sometimes surprising political and cultural history of the world's most-watched non-sporting event. Ted is joined by Kat Friege , a modern European historian at the University of Oxford. For some more info about Eurovision, check out this artic...

Ted interviews Arne Semsrott of Freiheitsfonds, a bail fund for people who have been imprisoned for riding public transit without a ticket. Check out the Freiheitsfonds website for more info: https://www.freiheitsfonds.de/ We encourage you to donate if you can! -- Co-hosted by Ted ( ⁠@ted_knudsen⁠ ) and Michelle ( ⁠@shhellgames⁠ ). Produced by Isaac Würmann ( ⁠@wuermann⁠ ). Follow Spaßbremse on Tw...

Ted talks to transport researcher Giulio Mattioli about recent transit-related German news, including Germany’s recent efforts to block a measure ending the sale of internal combustion engine cars at the EU-level. You can read more about that here .  For more from Giulio, you can follow him on Twitter:  ⁠@giulio_mattioli⁠ . Following the interview, we consider a recent article in Der Spiegel that...

We're talking about something a bit different on this episode, and about a time period much earlier than we usually discuss: the witch trials of early-modern Germany. Why? Because it's Witchy Zeit in Germany!  Carnival/Fasching/Fastnacht just happened last month and at the end of April is Walpurgisnacht, also known as Hexenbrennen (witch burning). Michelle and Isaac give a bit of background a...

Here's a preview of our latest premium episode, where Ted talks about tanks! Specifically, he laments the anglophone media's gratuitous hand-wringing over Germany's alleged reluctance to adequately support Ukraine. To listen to the full episode, support us on Patreon: www.patreon.com/spassbremse -- Co-hosted by Ted ( @ted_knudsen ) and Michelle ( @shhellgames ). Produced by Isaac ( @wuermann ). Fo...

The whole team's back together again to discuss the upcoming repeat election happening in Berlin on Sunday, February 12.  Here's a link to the candidates' debate that we reference throughout the episode: https://www.rbb24.de/politik/hintergrund/livestream-ihre-wahl-kandidatencheck-berlin-abgeordnetenhaus.html  You can check out the latest polls and coalition possibilities here: https://i...

We're joined by journalist Ruairi Casey to talk about the evacuation of the climate protest in Lützerath earlier this month, and what it can tell us about climate politics in Germany. Read the piece Ruairi wrote on this subject here: www.lrb.co.uk/blog/2023/january/in-luetzerath For more from Ruairi, follow him on Twitter: @Ruairi_Casey -- Co-hosted by Ted ( @ted_knudsen ) and Michelle ( @shh...

Happy (belated) New Year! Here's a short preview of our latest premium episode featuring part two of Ted's interview with Fritz Bartel, Assistant Professor of International Affairs at Texas A&M at the George H. W. Bush School of Government and Public Service, about his new book The Triumph of Broken Promises: The End of the Cold War and the Rise of Neoliberalism. After the interview, Ted and M...

Back by popular demand, we’re joined by Nathan to talk about this year’s Christmas market scandals! Check out last year’s two-part episode “The Twelve Days of Christmas Market Scandals” for more holiday drama. This year, we’re discussing six different scandals: 1. Not heeding the energy-saving restrictions https://www.insuedthueringen.de/inhalt.eisenach-trotz-energiekrise-weihnachtsmarkt-ohne-eins...

Despite the many controversies—from the deaths of thousands of labourers in horrible working conditions to the corrupt bidding process—the 2022 FIFA World Cup is happening now in Qatar. Instead of focusing on the World Cup, we sat down with journalist Dave Braneck to talk about the politics of German soccer/football. Here are some of the sources we referenced on this episode: Too cool for their ow...

Ted talks to Fritz Bartel, Assistant Professor of International Affairs at Texas A&M at the George H. W. Bush School of Government and Public Service, about his new book The Triumph of Broken Promises: The End of the Cold War and the Rise of Neoliberalism. It's a fascinating account of how two processes that we agree happened roughly simultaneously—the end of political tensions between the US...

Ted chats with the hosts of the Eurotrash podcast: Anton Jäger, Postdoctoral Researcher at KU Leuven and Dominik Leusder, Research Director of the LSE Global Economic Governance Commission. The three discuss all things EU, from the union's economic and political crises, the way these crises get talked about in the media, and how things could have gone differently.  You can find Eurotrash on T...

A short preview of our latest premium episode, which features part two of Ted's interview with economic sociologist Wolfgang Streeck and reflections from Ted and Michelle on the interview.  To listen to the full episode, support us on Patreon: www.patreon.com/spassbremse And make sure to listen to part one of the interview with Professor Streeck if you haven't already! You can find it here: h...

Ted talks with economic sociologist Wolfgang Streeck, emeritus director at the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies in Cologne and one of the leading scholars and commentators on European capitalism. In this exciting conversation, they discuss Germany's foreign policy role in Europe at this moment of the so-called "Zeitenwende."  On this main feed episode, we're releasing the first...

A short preview of our latest premium episode, in which Ted and Michelle dive into the history of Germany's love affair with sparkling water -- or Sprudelwasser, auf Deutsch -- and sample an assortment of bubbly offerings with the most Sprudel-pilled guy out there, Nick from Corner Späti . To listen to the full episode, support us on Patreon: www.patreon.com/spassbremse If you're not able to suppo...