Elections: Berlin-style

I know it's the hottest day on record, I know it's the middle of the World Cup and Germany is surprising even itself with it's own performances...but there is actually something more important right now.

Germany has to pick a new President. Well, better said - the Federal Convention has to. Politicians from the German Parliament and representatives from the states will cast their secret ballots on Wednesday, June 30. The two prime candidates for the election are Joachim Gauck (backed by the Greens and SPD) and Christian Wulff (put forward by CDU/CSU and the FDP).

The election is necessary after the former German President Horst Köhler resigned on the 31st of May, following controversy about his statements regarding the German army.

Party like it's 2006?

It's the silly season! Not only did the whole city rock to Christopher Street Day on the weekend, but everyone else dressed up and headed out to watch football too. Supporting your team at home on the couch with a packet of cheezels is so passé these days. Public viewing is the new black. Incidentally, here at Euroblog, we still don't have any confirmation as to whether the expression "public viewing" is actually English. We don't really care to be honest.

This week the water-cooler talk (or should I say, "smoking room talk"?) is all about football. I do wonder though how things will look if Germany get's knocked out of the World Cup on Wednesday night. My German friends assure me that there is simply no way that this can possibly happen. History does confirm that the Germans have never gone home from the World Cup after just the Group stage. Time to press those thumbs!*

(*For those that don't know: that's the German equivalent of "cross your fingers".)