http://www.spiegel.de Daily news, analysis and opinion from Europe's leading newsmagazine and Germany's top news Web site. en Mon, 23 Nov 2009 03:51:57 +0100 Mon, 23 Nov 2009 03:51:57 +0100 http://www.spiegel.de http://www.spiegel.de/static/sys/logo_120x61.gif http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,661999,00.html#ref=rss The Czech Republic this week kicked off celebrations to mark the 20th anniversary of the Velvet Revolution. Back then, it was Czechoslovakian students who took the lead. Nowadays, the country's youth are ambivalent about Prague-style democracy. Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:30:12 +0100 http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,661999,00.html The Czech Republic this week kicked off celebrations to mark the 20th anniversary of the Velvet Revolution. Back then, it was Czechoslovakian students who took the lead. Nowadays, the country's youth are ambivalent about Prague-style democracy.]]> http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,661721,00.html#ref=rss If you find yourself anywhere near Lyon in early December, make sure to stop by for the marvels of the four-day festival of lights. What began over 150 years ago as a spontaneous celebration when a storm cleared has grown to become a must-see event. Tue, 17 Nov 2009 17:54:41 +0100 http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,661721,00.html http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,661475,00.html#ref=rss Rather than an annual road tax for their cars, drivers in the Netherlands will soon pay a few cents for every kilometer on the road, in a plan aimed at eliminating chronic traffic jams and cutting carbon emissions. Mon, 16 Nov 2009 12:06:45 +0100 http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,661475,00.html Rather than an annual road tax for their cars, drivers in the Netherlands will soon pay a few cents for every kilometer on the road, in a plan aimed at eliminating chronic traffic jams and cutting carbon emissions.]]> http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,660902,00.html#ref=rss Carbon dioxide is the primary perpetrator of climate change and most efforts to slow global warming go into preventing CO2 production and aiding CO2 absorption. But a new study suggests that the more CO2 we make, the more nature absorbs. So do we really need all those rainforests? Fri, 13 Nov 2009 14:01:41 +0100 http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,660902,00.html Carbon dioxide is the primary perpetrator of climate change and most efforts to slow global warming go into preventing CO2 production and aiding CO2 absorption. But a new study suggests that the more CO2 we make, the more nature absorbs. So do we really need all those rainforests?]]> http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,657805,00.html#ref=rss Everyone remembers the iconic images from the dramatic breaching of the Berlin Wall on Nov. 9, 1989. But the groundwork was laid elsewhere. The fate of Germany and the rest of Europe was decided in Warsaw, Budapest and Moscow. Fri, 30 Oct 2009 16:53:22 +0100 http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,657805,00.html Everyone remembers the iconic images from the dramatic breaching of the Berlin Wall on Nov. 9, 1989. But the groundwork was laid elsewhere. The fate of Germany and the rest of Europe was decided in Warsaw, Budapest and Moscow.]]> http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,657957,00.html#ref=rss America's newspapers business is collapsing. But Nicholas Lemann, dean of the legendary Graduate School of Journalism at New York's Columbia University, is still hopeful. In a SPIEGEL ONLINE interview, he talks about circulation losses, the idea of a government bailout and the brouhaha about "Balloon Boy." Wed, 28 Oct 2009 19:14:35 +0100 http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,657957,00.html America's newspapers business is collapsing. But Nicholas Lemann, dean of the legendary Graduate School of Journalism at New York's Columbia University, is still hopeful. In a SPIEGEL ONLINE interview, he talks about circulation losses, the idea of a government bailout and the brouhaha about "Balloon Boy."]]> http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,656329,00.html#ref=rss Life is returning to the streets of Iraq as improved security has meant theater openings, packed restaurants and an emerging middle class. But violence is still an element of daily life and corruption threatens to become debilitating. Wed, 21 Oct 2009 18:55:53 +0200 http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,656329,00.html Life is returning to the streets of Iraq as improved security has meant theater openings, packed restaurants and an emerging middle class. But violence is still an element of daily life and corruption threatens to become debilitating.]]> http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,656419,00.html#ref=rss Austrian director Michael Haneke discusses his shocking new film, "The White Ribbon," which won the Palme d'Or at Cannes, his penchant for gloomy stories that unnerve his viewers and his unsettling view of humanity. Wed, 21 Oct 2009 17:19:56 +0200 http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,656419,00.html http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,655951,00.html#ref=rss The investigation into public bank BayernLB highlights the problems the German justice system faces in tackling the shortcomings that led to the financial crisis. Investigators are overwhelmed, and managers and supervisors have formed a wall of silence. Tue, 20 Oct 2009 17:26:45 +0200 http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,655951,00.html The investigation into public bank BayernLB highlights the problems the German justice system faces in tackling the shortcomings that led to the financial crisis. Investigators are overwhelmed, and managers and supervisors have formed a wall of silence.]]> http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,655934,00.html#ref=rss The Western media reported last week on how the German company Urenco shipped nuclear material to Siberia, where the highly toxic waste was stored in containers in the open air. The company has stopped deliveries and will store the material with higher standards in Germany in the future. Mon, 19 Oct 2009 13:40:28 +0200 http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,655934,00.html The Western media reported last week on how the German company Urenco shipped nuclear material to Siberia, where the highly toxic waste was stored in containers in the open air. The company has stopped deliveries and will store the material with higher standards in Germany in the future.]]> http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,655653,00.html#ref=rss With coalition negotiations approaching completion in Berlin, Guido Westerwelle, head of the Free Democrats, will likely become Germany's next foreign minister. IP asked Westerwelle about a host of pressing issues, from the European Union to Afghanistan. Fri, 16 Oct 2009 18:06:42 +0200 http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,655653,00.html With coalition negotiations approaching completion in Berlin, Guido Westerwelle, head of the Free Democrats, will likely become Germany's next foreign minister. IP asked Westerwelle about a host of pressing issues, from the European Union to Afghanistan.]]> http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,653745,00.html#ref=rss She came out of small-town America and made it onto the pages of <i>Vogue</i> magazine. But as one German women's magazine declares that it will no longer use professional models, US model Crystal Renn tells SPIEGEL how she starved herself for success and why she is happy to be a plus-size specialist. Wed, 07 Oct 2009 17:33:43 +0200 http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,653745,00.html She came out of small-town America and made it onto the pages of Vogue magazine. But as one German women's magazine declares that it will no longer use professional models, US model Crystal Renn tells SPIEGEL how she starved herself for success and why she is happy to be a plus-size specialist.]]> http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,653520,00.html#ref=rss Russia has never made energy conservation much of a priority. But President Dmitry Medvedev would like that to change. He wants to see consumption drop by 40 percent in the next decade -- but without the technological know-how, it could be difficult. Tue, 06 Oct 2009 16:08:41 +0200 http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,653520,00.html Russia has never made energy conservation much of a priority. But President Dmitry Medvedev would like that to change. He wants to see consumption drop by 40 percent in the next decade -- but without the technological know-how, it could be difficult.]]> http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,648927,00.html#ref=rss In a conversation with SPIEGEL, former French Foreign Minister Roland Dumas, 87, discusses Margaret Thatcher's resistance to German reunification and initial misgivings of his own boss, French President Francois Mitterand. Mon, 14 Sep 2009 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,648927,00.html In a conversation with SPIEGEL, former French Foreign Minister Roland Dumas, 87, discusses Margaret Thatcher's resistance to German reunification and initial misgivings of his own boss, French President Francois Mitterand.]]> http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,646012,00.html#ref=rss US President Barack Obama is serious about his new Mideast policy. He is urging Israel to halt its settlement activities in the occupied territories and is pushing Europe to impose tougher sanctions on Tehran. Israel, Iran and even Hamas are already reacting to the new policy. Does it present an opportunity for compromise? Mon, 31 Aug 2009 16:31:22 +0200 http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,646012,00.html US President Barack Obama is serious about his new Mideast policy. He is urging Israel to halt its settlement activities in the occupied territories and is pushing Europe to impose tougher sanctions on Tehran. Israel, Iran and even Hamas are already reacting to the new policy. Does it present an opportunity for compromise?]]> http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,635223,00.html#ref=rss Four decades after the first moon landing, NASA is setting its sights on Mars. NASA manager Jesco von Puttkamer talks to SPIEGEL about the lure of the red planet -- and its potential as an alternative base for human life. Thu, 09 Jul 2009 16:00:47 +0200 http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,635223,00.html Four decades after the first moon landing, NASA is setting its sights on Mars. NASA manager Jesco von Puttkamer talks to SPIEGEL about the lure of the red planet -- and its potential as an alternative base for human life.]]> http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,635205,00.html#ref=rss Christoph Flügge, 61, a judge on the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, discusses the trial of former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic, a new global judicial order that could make life a lot harder for despots and his trouble with the use of the word "genocide." Thu, 09 Jul 2009 11:57:33 +0200 http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,635205,00.html Christoph Flügge, 61, a judge on the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, discusses the trial of former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic, a new global judicial order that could make life a lot harder for despots and his trouble with the use of the word "genocide."]]> http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,590190,00.html#ref=rss Internationally renowned architect Daniel Libeskind has agreed to design a new synagogue for Munich. And, if the local Jewish community has its way, the building will bring history full circle: They want to build it on the site of Munich's first synagogue, destroyed during the 1938 Night of Broken Glass. Thu, 13 Nov 2008 15:05:00 +0100 http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,590190,00.html Internationally renowned architect Daniel Libeskind has agreed to design a new synagogue for Munich. And, if the local Jewish community has its way, the building will bring history full circle: They want to build it on the site of Munich's first synagogue, destroyed during the 1938 Night of Broken Glass.]]> http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,525972,00.html#ref=rss Benazir Bhutto may have been Pakistan's last chance for peace. Her assassination on Thursday threatens to plunge the country even further into chaos and violence -- with potentially dire results for the rest of the region and the world. Mon, 31 Dec 2007 13:42:40 +0100 http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,525972,00.html Benazir Bhutto may have been Pakistan's last chance for peace. Her assassination on Thursday threatens to plunge the country even further into chaos and violence -- with potentially dire results for the rest of the region and the world.]]> http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,519271,00.html#ref=rss As global warming changes the face of habitats around the world, scientists are asking if humans can help save species from extinction by moving them to cooler climes. But before polar bear resettlement and tiger transports begin, is it time to take a look at easier alternatives? Fri, 23 Nov 2007 16:05:31 +0100 http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,519271,00.html As global warming changes the face of habitats around the world, scientists are asking if humans can help save species from extinction by moving them to cooler climes. But before polar bear resettlement and tiger transports begin, is it time to take a look at easier alternatives?]]>