1. Chat with Putin

When the eighth century was over, the Slavic people had accomplished tremendous things, according to my "Little History of Russia" from 1953, which I once bought for 50 cents at a used bookstore. They were not only located in eastern Central Europe, but also in the endless plains between the Daugava and the upper Volga. But we can assume that the awareness of this act and the new event was only very weak in them.

This awareness is very strong in Vladimir Putin. The ultra-conservative US moderator Tucker Carlson also had to experience this in his sit-in with the president, which was grandly described as an “interview”. For almost half an hour, Putin oracled his way from the beginnings of Rus to the Cossacks and Catherine II into an aggressive present that has absolutely nothing to do with the beginnings of Rus.

In fact, Carlson won't for a second, but he claims to have thought "carefully" for "months" about whether such an interview wouldn't be risky. If the man wasn't just a journalist actor, he would have used the time to prepare.

At least anyone who didn't know this since his 2021 essay "On the Historical Unity of Russians and Ukrainians" preparing for the invasion could learn something about the general's obsessive and bizarre understanding of history. In the USA the conversation went under “further”, in Russia it was a big deal.

A presidential propaganda chat, so to speak.

  • Read the full story here: Ill-prepared Tucker Carlson gives Putin a propaganda gift 

2. But?

The FDP delivers, there's no other way to say it. Because Germany threatened to abstain at the instigation of the Liberals, the planned vote on the EU Supply Chain Protection Act had to be postponed today. Companies should be required to pay attention to the protection of human rights and the environment when producing their goods.

In principle, the FDP also sees it that way, whose deputy parliamentary group leader Lukas Köhler said the golden sentence on Deutschlandfunk this morning: “It is important that we protect human rights, but…” but more than just pointing out that such a law “is not allowed for companies “To overwhelm,” was not something that could be heard from the doctor of philosophy and environmental ethicist.

There are already many companies that have voluntarily made progress and whose competitiveness would be strengthened by such a law. But their lobbyists probably don't have a key to the Hans Dietrich Genscher House. The political arm of German industry (FDP) has now turned the steering wheel of the economic steamship “Germany” around on a small-party, single-handed basis. It is now standing across the channel and blocking the entire European fleet - as it did with the CO2 tax for trucks, as it did with the end of the combustion engine, as it has always done before.

In any case, the supply chain between the FDP and its clientele is short and effective.

  • Read more here: Greens demand word of power from the Chancellor

3. Can they be banned?

Banners at the Brandenburg Gate, chartering ships in the Mediterranean, a flag with a distinctive logo - originally these were Greenpeace-style actions with which the new right-wing "Identitarian Movement" (IB) presented itself as a ethnic youth movement. Recently there has been a bit of silence surrounding the attempt to establish right-wing extremism for ethnic hipsters. Authorities increased the pressure, but growth stagnated.

Then came the network's meeting in Potsdam, where AfD politicians, "interested parties" and poster boy Martin Sellner discussed in a relaxed atmosphere how a pure-blooded Germany could be created. Hundreds of thousands took to the streets against this monster. The Cologne administrative court classified the AfD youth organization as “certain extremist,” not least because of its proximity to the Identitarians.

For SPIEGEL, Maik Baumgärtner, Ann-Katrin Müller, Sven Röbel and Wolf Wiedmann-Schmidt researched how the IB has quietly spread - and what effect it has. In the pre-political space, but also in front clubs, with posts in the parliamentary offices of AfD members.

It's also about who pays for and secures the activities, for example with discreet financing from "old men" (like the former Berlin CDU finance senator Peter Kurth) and through real estate in Rostock, Schkopau, Halle, Chemnitz or Steyregg in Austria.

You can ring the bell and ask politely.

  • Read the whole story here: The secret network of the “Identitarians” 

What else is important today?

  • The term “race” should remain in the Basic Law:

    The traffic light coalition wanted to replace the term “race” in the Basic Law with a different formulation – and is now abandoning the plan. Among other things, the Central Council of Jews had expressed concerns.

  • The Bundeswehr is looking for members of the Young Alternative in the force:

    Anyone who takes part in the AfD youth group should report it. The Military Counterintelligence Service addresses this request to the Bundeswehr - and combines it with a clear reminder of soldier's duty.

  • Defense attorneys surprisingly present the defendant's alibi:

    There has already been a conviction in the case of the acid attack on manager Bernhard Günther. Now a second alleged perpetrator is on trial - and his defense lawyers are making unexpected requests for evidence.

  • Tourism industry overcomes corona crisis:

    The number of overnight stays in the German hospitality industry fell by more than a third during the pandemic. Now the industry is reporting a recovery – and the second-best result in its history.

My favorite story today:

...is that Alexandra Föderl-Schmidt was found alive.

  • Read the whole story here: Missing »SZ« deputy editor-in-chief found alive

What we recommend today at SPIEGEL+

  • Investigators start a new large-scale manhunt for RAF pensioners:

    The three former left-wing terrorists Staub, Klette and Garweg have not been caught for more than 30 years. They are said to have carried out a series of robberies underground. Now there are new traces.

  • The crazy promises of a financial fraud:

    A dubious entrepreneur from Saarland promises to turn tens of thousands of people into multimillionaires. But his “crush” is probably a pyramid scheme. Now the financial regulator is examining his promises, which thousands are following.

  • Was that it with the falling real estate prices?

    Houses and condominiums have become significantly cheaper in the past year. Prospective buyers are faced with the question: should they buy now or wait? A lot of things now point in one direction.

  • One idol fires the other:

    After days of rumors, the Ukrainian president created facts on Thursday and fired his popular army chief. The move is risky, but it also offers several concrete benefits.

Which is less important today

Priscilla Presley

, 78, widow of Elvis, danced. We have just seen her as a young girl in Sofia Coppola's biopic "Priscilla", and she is already doing her rounds on the dance floor at the Vienna Opera Ball with the dazzling building contractor Richard "Mörtel" Lugner to "Strangers in the Night" by Frank Sinatra. Lugner is considered “dazzling” because he surrounds himself with celebrities in his box every year. This time it was Priscilla Presley, among others, who proved to be bookable and accepted his invitation. It was unclear whether she would also dance with Lugner - perhaps that was available for an additional charge.

In any case, Presley seemed to be informed about the meaning and purpose of her stay in Austria to the extent that she smeared the appropriate importance honey around the mouths of her hosts. She became somehow emotional: “So beautiful here,” she explained to ORF, “somehow so emotional.” Well, you definitely don't have anything like that in Los Angeles, huh? "We certainly don't have anything like that in Los Angeles," said Presley, who boarded the early flight to Los Angeles the next day.

Mini concave mirror

You can find the entire concave mirror here.

Cartoon of the day

And tonight?

When it comes to religions, I stick to a simple rule of thumb: “The younger, the stupider.” This can be observed in particular in sects, which are essentially nothing other than religions in their larval stage. A nice example is Raëlianism - not to be confused with realism - founded in 1973 by the former sports journalist Claude Vorilhon alias Raël. Vorilhon claimed to have encountered an alien who explained to him that humanity was created around 22,000 years ago using advanced genetic engineering by aliens called the Elohim, which happens to be a Hebrew word for God. In 1975, the Frenchman was taken to their planet by the extraterrestrials, which he eloquently testifies in his book “The extraterrestrials took me to their planet.” And so on, it doesn't matter. In any case, it's a completely absurd trip to watch the Netflix documentary "Raël - The Prophet of the Extraterrestrials", which traces the unstoppable rise of the prophet with archive material and interviews (including with Raël himself). By the way, you can also observe how the media's principle of presenting its audience with, at best, the absurd and completely crazy plays directly into the hands of the absurd and crazy. This is very interesting in view of today's boom in “alternative” truths.

I wish you a spiritual evening

Yours, Arno Frank, author