Worldcrunch
Around Germany’s Eichstätt region, unemployment hovers just above 1%, with industry booming despite the euro debt crisis. Across southern Germany, the overall economy has largely recovered, especially as the auto sector is rebounding. A good sign for the
For a while, tiny Algeria had a world-class soccer team. But years later, players are asking if performance-enhancing drugs administered by Soviet trainers played a role in the success. Why the suspicion? Seven of the players have since fathered handicapp
Eating in absolute darkness, or getting a massage without being seen, can change your perspective. From Paris to London and Barcelona — and coming to the U.S. and Russia — institutions run by the blind are also sharing their vision of life’s experiences
Outside creditors aren’t the only ones loathe to throw money Greece’s way. Would-be taxpayers have been unwilling to part with their cash, according to a new EU Commission report that found the Greek government may have to write off some 30 billion euros
Essay: Yet another avoidable tragedy has struck rural China, where a crammed school van crashed and killed 18 children. One Chinese writer’s j’accuse against public officials who are busy spending money on luxury cars instead of safe school transportation
Not for the first time, Russian scientists are taking their considerable knowledge and moving abroad. Some of the brainy emigrants cite funding problems and Russian red tape as reasons to move. For others, heading West is simply a lifestyle choice.
The prestigious Grand Palais museum in Paris is hosting an exhibition on the history of video games, marking an unofficial christening into the realm of high brow for a craft that has long been associated with mass (and mindless) entertainment.
Europe’s “systematic crisis,” as EU Commission President José Manuel Barroso recently described the situation, has banks across the region preparing for widespread layoffs. Just this week France’s BNP Paribas gave word it’ll be letting 1,400 employees go.
Over the past 10 years, Colombia has enjoyed a huge change in fortunes. The economy is humming, drug-related violence is down and security forces have corralled the rebel FARC guerillas. From infrastructure to corruption, however, some serious problems pe
Italian retailer Benetton is again pushing the boundaries of advertising with a provocative campaign. The ads portray global figures, including President Obama, shown kissing their nemeses. But the prickliest of the pics has the Pope smooching an Egyptian
Rudolf Elmer, former employee of Swiss bank Julius Baer, appeals his conviction of violating confidentiality. Elmer turned over private documents he says show the bank helping wealthy clients avoid taxes. Not surprisingly, Elmer’s new best pal is
Ruslan Akhtakhanov, a well-known Chechen poet and activist, was gunned down Wednesday night in Moscow. Police suspect the writer may have been the target of a contract killing ordered by Chechen nationalists.
The architect of Cologne’s not-quite-completed new mosque has been fired, accused among other things of having hidden Christian symbolism in various places in the new structure. At the very least, we have the first Da Vinci Code conspiracy plot with a mod
The Bejing Olympics was an occasion for China to show off its new architectural gems. One of the most original was the China TV building, a curious rectangular vertical loop designed by the German architect, Ole Scheeren, who has chosen to plant roots in
A German court has ruled in favor of a mineral water company hocking their H2O as “bio,” or organic. Next to come: organic air?
Essay: The exit of Silvio Berlusconi and the arrival of Mario Monti marks a watershed for a nation still crucial for both Europe and the world. But Italy has lost both economic and political influence, which can only be regained by rallying all the forces
Both sides of the Atlantic have been buzzing since a hacker busted into Siri, the new voice-recognition software on the iPhone 4S. Meet the man who cracked Apple’s latest secret gem. But is it legal?
Russian developers run by local politicians have spent the last decade replacing historic buildings with luxury apartments and shopping malls. Preservationists have long cried foul, but say there’s still time to save some of the city’s endangered landmark
Fueled by income inequality, gender imbalances and repressive laws, China is experiencing a barely-hidden sexual crisis. The government criminalizes Internet porn and sex toys, but offers no better solution for the urban lonely and millions of men unable
Amazon is using free labor: unemployed Germans receiving state benefits. The German trade union Ver.di smells scandal while the American e-commerce giant and public job centers insist that the practice is the best way to match the unemployed with the righ
Essay: Channeling her “citizen yogi,” Swiss columnist Anna Lietti takes a couple of deep breaths before launching into a passionate defense of why yoga matters more than ever.
German authorities had plenty of info on a far-right terror group accused of killing immigrations, robbing banks and building bombs. Yet for more than a decade, the neo-Nazis operated freely. People now want to know why investigators were unable to put tw
Feeding pigeons is forbidden by the French law, and can lead to fines of up to 450 euros. But that doesn’t stop the army of feeders in Paris from risking it all with their bags of illicit bread crumbs. Now the mess has arrived on the Internet.
A R A B I C A ارابيكا By Kristen Gillespie SYRIA ON SYRIASyrian Foreign Minister Walid Mouallem expressed outrage over Syria’s suspension from the Arab League. The decision “should not have been issued because of the facts on the ground,” Mouallem said. The minister did admit that there is a “crisis in Syria,” but […]
When it comes to public perceptions, Latin America still trails other regions. But there are changes afoot. In its annual “Country Brand” ranking, U.S. firm FutureBrand found Brazil’s reputation soaring. That’s not the case for Paraguay, a booming but eas
The new Super rich of China are indulging in another world classic: Caviar from wild sturgeon in the Caspian sea comes in at hundreds of dollars a spoonful. But China has also quietly become a new source of farmed caviar, which experts say can compete wit
Silvio Berlusconi’s departure in Italy, and the arrival of the economic technocrat Mario Monti, is just the latest sign that market forces may weigh even more than popular will on who is governing in Europe.
After the regime fell, the security vacuum has posed a new set of problems in some hospitals, where doctors and medical workers describe chaotic encounters with enraged – and sometimes armed – patients.
A top figure in the Socialist party, Arnaud Montebourg is putting pressure on party leaders to not support candidates over 67, saying that new challenges require new blood. Not surprisingly, the proposal has sparked some heated debate — and exposed a gen
Op-Ed: Bodies are piling up in Central America’s ‘northern triangle’ of Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras, where drug trafficking and street gangs have made the area nearly ungovernable. The isthmus needs outside help, and it’s time the rest of Latin Am
She worked late hours for meager pay, and suffered constant abuse. But in the end, the case of the Berlin-based Indonesian housekeeper went nowhere – thanks to her alleged tormentor’s diplomatic status. Is it time to change the longstanding practice of di
Researchers at Germany’s Max Planck Institute have calculated the average CO2 emissions per capita by age and have found that the most emissions are produced by people in their early to mid-60s.
As the first baby boomers turn 65 this year, high-tech is gradually making its way into the lives – and homes – of older folks. A look at the tablets, sensors, foot boards and other gadgets seniors can use to get caught up and connected.
A R A B I C A ارابيكا By Kristen Gillespie YEMEN SHELLING*Nine civilians, including at least one child, were killed on Friday in Yemen’s second-largest city after President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s forces shelled the neighborhood where protesters are gathered, Al Jazeera reported. The shelling continued into the early morning, where undeterred demonstrators held a […]
What many considered the planet’s best restaurant, Ferran Adrià’s El Bulli in Spain, recently closed its doors. So where to now for a genuine out-of-this-world meal? North – way north. In Sweden’s Jämtland, a bearded chef named Magnus Nilsson is
Both the American and British coffee chains have big plans for expansion in China. Starbucks, which has opened 500 stores since it first arrived in China in 1999, is giving more autonomy to its Chinese managers to tailor shops to local tastes.
A magazine in France is pushing a new campaign for office benevolence, and even a “Kindness Day” next week. It may sound to some like empty chatter (and not typically French), but it’s part of a larger trend toward finding solut
What do leaked U.S. Embassy documents say about Germany’s original reaction to the developing euro zone crisis? That the German government refused to take the situation seriously, and were all too happy to keep its citizens in the dark.
It is a showdown for the ages: Europe’s top economists (turned impromptu national leaders) and the European Central Bank vs. a panicking global investor pack.
Russia’s strong criticisms of a U.N. report on Iran’s atomic weapons ambitions has baffled observers. Now it emerges that the U.N. nuclear watchdog’s dossier cites a Russian scientist who some suspect may have played a key role in Tehran’s nuclear program