Pen International’s charter reads as follows: »Members of PEN should at all times use what influence they have in favor of good understanding and mutual respect between nations and people; they pledge themselves to do their utmost to dispel all hatreds and to champion the ideal of one humanity living in peace and equality in one world.« The French sociologist, Pierre Bourdieu, described intellectuals as people who use »their competence in the autonomous field of culture (to) intervene critically in support of universal values.« This description epitomizes the classical understanding of intellectuals‹ role as incorruptible advocates of freedom and justice who use their privileged access to the public sphere to assist those who lack such options. » Read

Starting in January of 2025, Trump will be prepared to launch a trade war with half the world. His campaign slogan, »America First,« is simultaneously the core of his program for governing. More than anything else, Trump wants to protect the American economy and American jobs. However, that strategy can work only if foreign competitors are handicapped in U.S. markets. » Read

We like to wish each other good health, but the truth is that 60% of the people who live in Germany no longer trust the existing health-care system. My therapeutic strategy is to rethink and totally reconstruct health and the health care system. » Read

Democracy depends on the relevant actors' ability to compromise, i.e. on their enlightened self-interest in cooperation and bargaining. For decades democratic politics have been accompanied by background music: chiefly, the lament that it is hardly possible to implement »ambitious« policies within the existing structures of federal, parliamentary democracy. » Read

It is for Ukraine alone to decide whether – and if so to what extent – it is willing to make territorial concessions to achieve an armistice, peace negotiations, and hopefully a stable peace following this dreadful war. In a communique issued on March 29, 2022, Ukraine already has taken a position on that question, declaring itself willing to guarantee its permanent neutrality, meaning that it would not join NATO. » Read

The world of financial policymaking has changed a lot since November, 2023. On that date the Federal Constitutional Court declared that it was unconstitutional for the government to take money from the Climate and Transformation Fund (CTF) and apply it ex post facto to a different purpose. Their ruling also had retroactive force, making previous repurposing of such funds null and void. As a result of this harsh verdict, the financial strategy of the Federal Government for the coming year has collapsed under its own weight. So far it has not recovered from the blow and at this point it is hard to foresee how and when it might. » Read

The year 2024 began with a bombshell dropped on society that overwhelmed CORRECTIV’S investigations team, but did much more than that. For months, millions of people in Germany took a stand in favor of democracy and against right-wing extremism. The occasion for this movement was the publication of a document entitled Secret Plan against Germany, an investigative report on the meeting near Potsdam that brought together far-right radicals, high-ranking AfD politicians, and the donors who sustain them. » Read

The rise of far-right populism and the democratic mobilization of the socio-political center – are outcomes of a German-German history of democracy, one shared in a dual sense. It began far earlier than 1990; in fact, it dates back to 1949 and even beyond. The two developments are better understood and categorized more intelligently in political terms if one takes fuller account of – indeed even begins to conceptualize – this divided democratic history of the longue durée. » Read

Masculinity has become a target of critique. At least since the ongoing #MeToo movement got underway, the concept of »toxic masculinity« has become firmly embedded in our vocabulary. Discarding old images of masculinity has the potential to empower men, too. Transformation is not easy, but there is hope for the future. The most powerful leverage that these pioneers of new masculinity have is the role they play as fathers of the next generation. Fathers who are emotionally accessible, communicative, and caring will raise a new generation of men (and women). . » Read

Many people consider the rise of right-wing extremism within the party to be less and less problematic.  They regard the AfD as a party like any other despite its drift toward extremism. Such research results make clear that two parallel trends have been taking place. On one hand, the party has been radicalized from within – a tendency apparent in the classification of several state-level parties as »definitely right-wing extremist«; on the other hand, the party has been »normalized« for the general public. What has to be done. » Read

Concern is rising, particularly in scientific, creative, and artistic circles, that human labor power might become redundant or even be replaced entirely. But at the same time the technology behind AI is the outcome of innovative scientific procedures. So how should the relationship between AI and science be conceived? Will the »parents« soon fall victim to their own »child«? » Read

According to economic theory, growth is a key element of a properly functioning economic order. But that principle already puts modern, liberal-democratic states in a discursive dilemma, because, if economy and society are to be sustainable, they cannot keep on growing forever. If they did, they would bump up against limits on natural resources as well as environmental and climate problems. » Read

During the early phase of Russia’s war against Ukraine, respected German news programs announced that the Russian massacre of civilians in Bucha had triggered „horror around the world.“ That was an assertion that reveals a great deal about Germany’s take on global events. » Read

At the latest since the pandemic, we have known that illnesses like COVID-19, influenza, and malaria won’t stop at our external borders. They show us that global challenges call for global solutions. Germany is intensively engaged in seeking such solutions. » Read