Okay, here is what I have to say to those 38 theses:
1. Nuclear power plants should be kept running longer than previously planned.
No. Operator Vattenfall has just proven, that they are unable to guarantee a save and stabile run of a nuclear power plant. All of our power plants are old and outdated, so they will only get worse in time. There will be no new ones either. So concentrate on finding replacements and get rid of them fast. It will take a huge effort to dismantle them anyway. And the problem with nuclear waste is still not solved, because noboday wants it. Who will be paying for dismantling the existing ones and the final disposal? Right, the tax payer -- and not the operating companies. Because if they had to, they wouldn't have built those plants in the first place.
2. A nationwide minimum wage should be introduced.
Yes, it should. It's a tendency in Germany that companies and bosses get more and more exploitative. More and more "cheap jobs" are created and traditionally well-paid jobs are being replaced. And it is a fact, that people are differently paid for the identical work - sometimes even in the same company and the same department. Everyone should be paid the same money for the same work. A minimum wage would also guarantee that jobs aren't taken by cross-border workers from the still poorer East European countries, where you simply get more for 1 Euro and therefore can manage with lower wages. Minimum wages work fine in other countries, so no need to be afraid of it.
3. The German military should leave Afghanistan immediately.
No. They went into that mess with flying colours, thinking "How hard can it be?", believing they could only watch the Americans fighting while playing peacekeepers and pacifiers for the population. Now they realize it's not that comfy and people are actually dying. Tough luck but running away and leaving Afghanistan to itself is neither the right solution, nor is it fair to the people there. Clean up the mess you created, then leave. Or don't leave at all.
4. Germany should leave the European Union.
Definitely not. We're probably the country that benefits the most from being integrated into a free European market. There are some disadvantages but they will be sorted out. And whatever we pay for the EU, we get back with a profit due to the benefits. Plus a Germany without being integrated into the EU will arouse suspicion and create anxiety in no time. The Poles still jerk, when somebody here coughs.
5. Companies should be free to decide how much to pay their executives.
Yes, but only if it is made public for everyone to see, so that there is more pressure for the managers to justify their income. Also I think there should be a clause that executives who failed in their job -- for example by ruining a company --, will be stripped naked and driven through town, while the population can throw foul fruits and vegetables at them. That should be a good motivation to do a fine job.
6. German authorities should be banned from conducting secret online investigations of private computers.
Yes. Pandora's box mustn't be opened. Once a civil right is loosened, it will never be tied up again and it
wouldbe misused, that is as certain as the Earth is rotating the sun.
7. Students should not pay tuition fees for their first university-level degree.
I agree. Not for their first degree and not if they study seriously. Everyone should get the chance to get out of their social background, no matter if they have money in the family or not.
8. All German states should implement obligatory language tests for preschool-aged children.
Yes. Not that I'm feeling too comfortable with it but obviously today's parents aren't doing their job right (and not only the immigrants!) in teaching pre-school knowledge to their kids. Language is the key to success and a career later. People who cannot articulate themselves right, have no chance at all with any personnel manager. You cannot start early enough to teach language skills and if parents are not able to take care of that, there should be an alternative method. Maybe that prevents our society from getting dumber and dumber, because that is what it feels like right now.
9. Ban animal testing without exceptions.
No. What do you want to use for tests instead? Children?
10. State ownership of private banks must be of a temporary nature only.
Definitely a yes. No explanation needed in the light of last year's events.
11. Trade relations with those countries abusing human rights should be terminated.
Wishful thinking. Even if we did that, some other country's leader would rub their hands and fill the gap. Sooner or later, when a country gets richer and more civilized, things will attend to themselves. There can be no general prosperity without freedom and human rights. Poverty always works into the hands of the totalitarians, so we should make any effort to help the rest of the world getting wealthy, too. Besides, how do you define a country that abuses huma rights? In the past decade the USA would have fallen under that category, too, and some say it does anyway, because it still keeps the death penalty and doesn't guarantee a monopoly on the legitimate use of violence by the state.
12. There should be a legal quota of leadership positions set aside for women.
Discrimination doesn't work well for both sides. So no. Besides, I strongly believe that hardcore feminists are not working on getting equality for women but to gain superiority over men.
13. Corporate taxes should be lowered.
No. Wrong approach. The problem with our tax systen is, that it's way too complicated and offers too many loopholes for avoiding taxes. Make it simpler and get rid of the loopholes, that'll work just fine. Demanding higher or lower taxes for companies or rich people is only populism.
14. Voters should be able to decide national issues via referenda.
Leadership should be exercised by capable individuals. As tempting as the idea of a grassroots democracy might be, it is not suitable for practial use. It will always support populism and trying to keep the status quo, because the majority of people do not have the abilities a national leader needs to have. Also current events can influence the outcome in a major way, so no. Just no.
15. Parents choosing not make use of a day care spot should receive a childcare subsidy.
Why should parents get money for leaving the kids at home and do the job that has been appointed to them by nature? Getting a child these days is a matter of free will. They know what they get themselves into. So no.
16. Every youth should be guaranteed an apprenticeship.
And how will you force unwanted apprentices on workshops and companies? Great way to start a career by being unwelcome. Your boss will definitely make you feel that way and you can count on being out of a job again the day after you finish your training. And what about the achievement principle in the first place?
17. Job-protection measures should be loosened.
No, no, no. Our job-protection measures are one of the finest achievements of our still young democracy. We don't have the American kind of job culture, which is in general ruled by fairness and acknowledging good work. German companies are not able to act fair on their own or handle the responsibilities that come with it. They even have trouble acting responsible and fair as it is today, with all those regulations in place. Imagine what it would be, if they were loosened.
18. Turkey should be allowed to become a full member of the EU.
No. At least not yet. They still have to prove they are a worthy member. There is still a lot of religious fundamentalism in Turkey, that has a strong political influence and the EU has to be a religion-free institution in order to work properly. Also the social structures in Turkey are in wide areas still like in the middle ages. You'd get the whole package from pre-arranged marriages to family feuds and blood revenge.
19. There should be a general speed limit on German autobahns.
No. Because there is absolutely no reason for it whatsoever. It's just an ideology thing of the greens and some leftists.
20. Students and apprentices should have a right to financial aid (BAf?G) regardless of income of their parents.
No. Why should the tax payers pay for them, when their parents have the money? The responsibility for education of children should still lie mainly with the parents and only when they cannot handle it, the state should interfere.
21. The Deutsche mark should replace the Euro.
Bullshit.
22. Ecological farming should receive more aid from the government.
No. I'm against any kind of subsidies. If the German people shall eat healthier, it must be regulated within the market and by its rules. Stricter laws for listing ingredients on packages and a certification system based on nutritonal value could help with that, but it's blocked by the lobby of the big food companies.
23. Christian values should be the guiding factor for German politics.
Religion should stay out of politics. The values we cherish today, are not exclusive to Christian belief anyway. There are religions which are even more tolerant and don't have such a bloody history of violence. Should we exclude those in our system of values then? Christianity is fine as a religion but has proven throughout the last 2000 years, that it is incapable of being a paragon of humanity when it comes to leadership or guidance. So no.
24. German railway operator Deutsche Bahn should remain entirely owned by the state.
Yes, it should. Because it has been proven that privately owned companies cannot handle a task like public transport on a national level. See Great Britain as an example. Even though the German railway is still owned by the state and has yet only been trying to prepare for entering the stock exchange, there are already negative results, which effects the safety and functionality of the system. Berlin is currently suffering from problems with their surface S-Bahn system, because owner Deutsche Bahn has cut on the safety checks to save money, which resulted in broken axles earlier this year and now has produced the next problem with faulty brakes. The publically owned underground system, however, works perfectly well.
25. Military conscription should be retained in its current form.
Currently our military is in fact not large enough to sustain a compulsory military service. The sorting process of who to recruit will inevitably produce unfairness. However, the strength of German Bundeswehr has always been the complete integration into society, because every family contained members that served in the forces. This way it was guaranteed that Bundeswehr hadn't even the slightest chance of developing a parallel society within its ranks. When the conscription falls, that might change. So right now I am all for keeping it the way it is.
26. Germany should allow the production of genetically modified food.
Sure and why not? There is no fundamental difference with changing the genom directly and wittingly, instead of bombarding a plant with radioactive radiation in order to see how it mutates (which is how it is currently done). There is a lot of irrational fear involved in this, which mainly results from the misconception that the food we eat today, hasn't been manipulated. Well, it has -- and massively so. And what's worse, it has been modified with chemicals, using more harmful methods, than genetics can ever offer.
27. Gay couples should have fully equal rights to adopt children.
I have difficulties with generalising that. I still believe that a child should be the natural result of a man and a woman having sexual intercourse and that both genders should contribute their part to the child's upbringing. However, I have nothing against gay couples, fully support gay marriage and have sympathy for their desire to raise a child. And it surely is better for a child to be grown up by two women or two men, than having no parents at all. I believe this is the kind of thing that has to be decided individually case by case. So I stay neutral here.
28. Germany should reinstate a tax on wealth.
No. Punishing people for being successful in life is not the right way, besides this demand comes only from envy and I hate envy.
29. Education policy should be determined at the state level.
No, definitely not. That system is outdated. It's unacceptable today that it depends on which state you made your degree in, when you apply for a job somewhere else. For example with a graduation diploma from a high school in Bremen you might not be able to get a job in Bavaria, because they have different demands. Every child should get the same level of education all over the country and thus have the same chances when applying for a job.
30. It should be made easier to receive asylum in Germany.
We already have a sufficient system for that. No need to change it.
31. Co-payment fees for doctor visits should be eliminated.
Yes, it should. I suffer from migraines and despite my health insurance covering the doctor's fee, I still have to pay 10 Euros in cash to my doctor every 3 months for a phone call and a small piece of paper with his signature, so I can get a discount on the pills I need. And what makes matters worse, is that those 10 Euros are only valid for my house doctor. If I have to go to the dentist, I have to pay
another 10 Euros!
32. If wages sink, state pensions must be cut accordingly.
No. Because we have a "generation contract", that says you receive a certain pension for your life-long payments into the social welfare system. If you cancel that contract, you have to install an alternative system instead. However, it's never wrong to take care of your monthly income as a retiree with additional private precaution and that already works fine.
33. German firms should not be allowed to export weapons.
I'm against exporting landmines and all stuff that mainly effects civilians. But apart from that, why shouldn't we export weapons? In some areas we are even leading (Tanks, conventionally powered submarines, guns) and why should we be the only country that doesn't trade in weapons?
34. Germany?s structured school system with Haupt, Real and Gymnasium secondary schools should be retained.
In its current state, no. And it's been explained above by other why that is so.
35. Everyone with permanent residency in Germany should be allowed to vote in municipal elections.
No. The right to elect shouldn't be something that is given to people for free. You have to either have the birthright by being born and raised here, or you have to earn the right to vote by participating and becoming a valuable member of society. I can imagine a rule where someone who contributed a lot to a community, can be rewarded with being able to vote, though.
36. Unemployment benefits known as Hartz IV should be raised significantly.
No. The system is designed to make it undesirable to be out of a job. Before Hartz IV was introduced, people often received more money from the state, than they would receive for a job. Let's keep it that way. Those who are willing and able to work, have a good motivation to find a new job. Those who aren't, will sooner or later live from social welfare anyway. I have a cousin who went through this with his family. It was a hard time for all of them, they had to move from southern Germany to northern Germany but in the end he prevailed and now has a BMW X3 as a company car
37. The German military the Bundeswehr should be deployed domestically to fight terrorism.
No. Using the military against the own population (even if it is against violent radicals or terrorists), is an absolute no-go in a democracy. It also would alienate the Bundeswehr from the rest of the population and lower the acceptance. Currently the Bundeswehr is very respected and trusted that should remain this way. We have police forces for that who do a fine job and haven't been overcharged with keeping the internal peace yet.
38. The type of democracy Germany has is the best form of government there is.
It isn't perfect, it has its flaws, but yeah... I guess it is as best as it can get.
