Post photo: Mark Twain quote
Table of Contents
Grounding
Sometimes it's not bad at all to think a little bit outside the box. The fact that we all live on a tiny planet and that the soon to be 10 billion people will have completely different problems than worrying about national borders should soon become clear to even the last fellow citizen.
And so it's good, especially as a young person, not only to compare yourself with your neighbor next door, but also to see what the performance standards are in other regions of the world. Responsible HR departments have long been looking a little further and are trying to recruit those employees who are also an asset for the company itself — regardless of whether they come from Böckingen or Shanghai.
And so it's hardly surprising if you don't just compare companies and services worldwide, but now also schools and universities. Such a comparison has been coming regularly from Shanghai since 2003 and is now being recognized globally. And regardless of whether this comparison actually corresponds to reality or not, it is read with great interest and with great pleasure.
And all those universities that don't make the top 1 places might even have an incentive to think about what they themselves could or should do better.
And our local university enthusiasts perhaps the realization that Heilbronn is not quite the hub of the world, at least in the education sector. I don't even want to talk about the fact that, especially in a school-bound society like ours, education only begins with level 7 of the European Qualifications Framework and that of the German Qualifications Framework, and a doctorate (level 8) is not automatically transferred to your spouse.
Oh yes, the current 2023 Academic Ranking of World Universities can be found here.
Two percent
Since our politicians think of themselves first — like most people do — and all they have to do is keep "their" voters happy, everything else, whether necessary or not, automatically falls behind.
That's why there won't be a halfway punctual train until 2070, the rest of the infrastructure will continue to fall apart, like social housing, the necessary environmental protection and nature conservation will be approached homeopathically, education will be replaced by documents and our national defense will be prepared to fly for active and illustrious tattoos for emaciated politicians reduced.
Consequently, all drugs are legalized and alcohol is made cheaper. This ensures that the "2 percent“ At least when the blood alcohol level in Germany reaches 2 and we citizens in permanent delirium also lick the feet of our representatives.
conversations
In the last few days there have been some very exciting and fruitful conversations. I like the ones best that I can lead with like-minded people, because they actually build you up and especially when the planned conversation turns into a longer, enjoyable evening because a few more people join the conversation.
And by the way, I was still able to add another restaurant to my list of restaurants — what was interesting was that we stopped somewhere else beforehand and, as it took a little longer, we decided in unison to change the location to eat.
What makes me realize again that after the quality of the food and drink and the location itself, and especially the service, are the main reasons why a restaurant can last longer. If one thing is wrong, it becomes quite difficult for the landlord as soon as there are other restaurants nearby.
I also believe that one never mourns bad pubs for long — unless they are so bad that they achieve cult status at the very end.
Those conversations that degenerate into true debates because the respective points of view are diametrically opposed are the most productive for everyone involved, but certainly also the most exhausting. I recently found that such discussions must be limited and, in particular, ended as quickly as possible if one side no longer adheres to the usual and generally applicable discussion standards. In addition, such discussions are extremely efficient if both sides have prepared for the discussion in advance.
And so I'm using every opportunity I get to draw attention to such talks and win my fellow citizens over to the 7th Hertenstein Talks. Some shy away from it a bit because the intensity and variety of conversations is more than enough for one day, but on the one hand we don't know where the limits of the individual participants' receptiveness lie, and on the other hand one can precisely because of the changing and also simultaneously taking place discussion groups put together his individual menu.
And as a treat, there is also the opportunity to find out about the Cistercians on site, who are to receive the European seal of cultural heritage because of their earlier achievements. But if you want, you can also discuss the meaning and necessity of a “2 percent law” with me there.
