The economic news from Germany is bad. But is the reality as dire as it's portrayed? To find out if Germany is really the "sick man of Europe" again, Ted speaks with Professor Sebastian Dullien of the Hans Böckler Foundation's Macroeconomic Policy Institute (IMK). They discuss the problems Germany faces and what it needs to do to escape them. For background, listen to Episode 1 on Hartz IV here and Episode 8 on the Schuldenbremse here.  Prof. Dullien's podcast is here: https://www.boeckler.de/de/podcasts-22421.htm  And the Adam Tooze piece Ted referenced at the end is here: https://a ..read more

Acknowledging and atoning for the crimes of the Third Reich is now an essential part of Germany's national identity. This process is comparatively straightforward for ethnic Germans, whose family members may have been complicit during the Nazi era. But where does this "emotional social contract" leave post-WWII immigrants to Germany, particularly those of Muslim backgrounds? To explore these tensions, Ted speaks with Esra Özyürek, professor at Cambridge University, about her recent book Subcontractors of Guilt: Holocaust Memory and Muslim Belonging in Postwar Germany. They discuss the ways in ..read more

What explains Germany's steadfast support for Israel? Even as Israel's response to the October 7th Hamas attacks has drawn increasing international condemnation, Germany has doubled down on support, proclaiming that Israel's security is its Staatsräson and cracking down on speech deemed insufficiently supportive of Israel. To answer this question from a historical perspective, Ted speaks with Daniel Marwecki, a lecturer at Hong Kong University, about his book Germany and Israel: Whitewashing and Statebuilding. He argues that German support for Israel did not always stem from guilt and the ..read more

German media and politicians say that the country is experiencing another "migration crisis." But has it ever not been? To explore the history of migration politics in the BRD, Ted speaks with Lauren Stokes (@laurenstokes), a historian at Northwestern University, about her book Fear of the Family (2022) and article "The Permanent Refugee Crisis in the Federal Republic of Germany" (2019). They discuss the recurring arguments and contradictory policy responses that surround the German migration debate. -Buy the book here: https://global.oup.com/academic/product/fear-of-the-family-9780197558416 ..read more

What is the NATO alliance really for? Grey Anderson's recent book Natopolitanism offers some hints, and the answer is (shockingly) not always what proponents of the Alliance say it is. On this episode, we speak with Grey—an editor and historian based in New York—about the book, the history of NATO, and what the future of the transatlantic relationship might look like. Buy his book here: https://www.versobooks.com/en-gb/products/3093-natopolitanism Read his NLR piece here: https://newleftreview.org/issues/ii140/articles/grey-anderson-weapon-of-power-matrix-of-management Read his NYT piece her ..read more

What is the NATO alliance really for? Grey Anderson's recent book Natopolitanism offers some hints, and the answer is (shockingly) not always what proponents of the Alliance say it is. On this episode, we speak with Grey—an editor and historian based in New York—about the book, the history of NATO, and what the future of the transatlantic relationship might look like. Buy his book here: https://www.versobooks.com/en-gb/products/3093-natopolitanism Read his NLR piece here: https://newleftreview.org/issues/ii140/articles/grey-anderson-weapon-of-power-matrix-of-management Read his NYT piece her ..read more

During a demoralizing year for Twitter, there's been one notable bright spot: the relentless and inspired posting of Austrian economist Gunther Fehlinger (@GunterFehlinger). With political opinions (and matching selfies) ranging from #exRussia and #exChina to the need for Austria to join NATO, Gunther has risen quickly to become one of the world's most legendary commentators on geopolitics (my favorite "NATO is our sunscreen" Tweet is here). To further explore Fehlinger Thought, we speak with Gunther about how he transformed from a free market economist to one of the most passionate advocates ..read more

The far-right Alternative für Deutschland party is surging across Germany and the CDU seems increasingly willing to cooperate with them. Is the "firewall/Brandmauer" taboo of working with the radical right finally crumbling? To answer this, Ted speaks with historian Ned Richardson-Little (@HistoryNed) about the postwar history of the far right in both East and West Germany. They discuss how the AfD emerged and evolved and speculate about how its role in German politics might change in the coming years. -Read the AfD's most racist comments here: https://www.dw.com/en/afd-leaders-and-their-most ..read more

Talk is heating up of an impending split in the German Left Party, Die Linke. Sahra Wagenknecht, who has long been a controversial figure in the party, is now openly considering forming a breakaway party. On this episode, we have Loren Balhorn of Jacobin Germany and the Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung on to discuss what this would mean for the Die Linke and the potential new party. Ted and Loren also go beyond the recent developments in the party to give more context for the party rift and discuss how the divide could play out, both for Die Linke and the German political landscape more broadly. They a ..read more

With the finals of this year's Eurovision Song Contest taking place this evening, we thought it would be a perfect time to reflect on the weird and sometimes surprising political and cultural history of the world's most-watched non-sporting event. Ted is joined by Kat Friege, a modern European historian at the University of Oxford. For some more info about Eurovision, check out this article that Isaac wrote last year: https://xtramagazine.com/culture/music/eurovision-geopolitics-queer-trans-representation-222579 -- Co-hosted by Ted (⁠@ted_knudsen⁠) and Michelle (⁠@shhellgames⁠). Produced by Is ..read more