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Turkey transforms into a dictatorship. President Erdogan uses Islam to consolidate his power. So Turkey isn't a democracy any more. Is Islam to blame ...

Makes it wonder that a policitians whose policies are often refered to as "without alternative" turns to the man of the categorical imperative when it...

The Alpine neighbor of Germany was prepared to swear in a far-right leaning President. What the heck?...

Is Jan Böhmermann the German Jon Stewart? Steven Colbert? John Oliver?...

At least since the Apollo 8 mission humanity has known there’s no difference between races or religions. Trump, Le Pen, and co. are reverting back ...

When does a person get to be a human? At the moment this discussion is being carried out in Europe over refugees and their rights as they come to Euro...

On September 11th 2001 the world entered a new era of violence. In the end there will be less religion in the world, just like in Europe after 1648, ...

Angela Merkel’s chancellorship now depends on Mr. Edogan of Turkey and Mr. Seehofer of Bavaria. That doesn’t bode well for her. Meanwhile the Righ...

Author and Islam critic Hamad Abdel-Samad has unpacked the stereotypes about the prophet of the Muslim faith and compiled them in a new book. But this...

Yesterday, stubborn people made an erroneous choice because they are mislead enough to ignore the fact that their corrupt and inefficient domestic sys...

While Torsten Albig is having success within the SPD with abstruse ideas regarding the Internet, the Union is becoming a party of digital Titans. Phil...

Our plans for the future of this format....

Evolutionary theory has a major dictum: That humans won’t stay how they used to be....

We daydream about life in pristine, free, raw nature – where we would only survive for five minutes....

Are we still able to think of the future when technology binds us to living in real time?...

Journalists aren't lying to anyone. But our industry needs to stop deceiving itself – or it'll go under....

It is only tolerable when we do not call it by name. We tame death without ever being able to master it....

“Some say” – A Latin introduction to a specific argument and how it came to shape our culture of debate. ...

A single house of worship for a common God? In the capital of atheism? Berlin proves that its ambitious projects extend well beyond new airports and h...

An agreement between immigrants and the host country population is the foundation for peacefully managing new mass migration....

Germany bears responsibility for Greece. But that has nothing to do with World War II....

When states regulate markets, it often causes unintended consequences. This is particularly true in the housing sector, as examples from across the wo...

The relevance of Stefan Zweig's book The World of Yesterday” extends far beyond the disasters of the 20th century and into our present reality. It i...

It’s a brittle peace in Ukraine. Now Kiev wants to use Cold War relicts to stabilize the country: It is building a wall to protect us all from Russi...

In the 1950s, thousands of British homosexuals were tried and sentenced for indecency. They are still waiting for their rehabilitation. How embarrassi...

Putin and Erdoğan dream of a return to the grandeur of the past. Let’s hope their egos prevent them from cooperating....

The official residence of the Bishop of Limburg is now open for visitors. It should serve as a source of reflection on our culture's substance....

The German military is not equipped for emergency cases. Instead of operational readiness, troops are focused on the creative management of equipment ...

Protests seem to have come back into fashion in Germany. Our French neighbors can only laugh at our bourgeois revolt. ...

The sharing economy was celebrated as the end of capitalism as we know it. It is far from it....

Religion postulates that its rules apply to all. But free societies no longer respect divine directives....

Even today, Britons proudly sing “Rule, Britannia! Britannia rule the waves”; yet, for a long time, they haven’t ruled anymore. This is a proble...

The will to power has a negative connotation in Germany. Having a strong chancellor should make us rethink our assumptions....

If man can ask God for forgiveness of debt, we should be more generous towards Greece. There is more at stake here than just money....

Unless Germany charts a new business course, it will lose out to the rest of the world economy. ...

The Occident is neither a state nor a community but a simple narrative – one that is often misused ...

The weakness and desperation of Nigel Farage’s claims are the strongest arguments for Britain to stay in the EU....

What Islam is lacking is neither Reformation nor an Enlightenment. Rather, there are two neglected measures that could make Islam sustainable for the ...

Through acts of terror, militant Islamists want to avenge God but commit idolatry instead....

Neither Muslims nor Christians want to force our society into new religious conflicts. It is a third group that pits them against each other....

The battle of the sexes is the fiercest debate of our time, but to what end should it lead?...

Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has changed Turkish Islam and thereby influences Turkish people living in Germany. We Germans must ask ourselves if his brand of...

Abortion is an iniquity. The current discourse about it demonstrates humans’ willingness to reclassify themselves as goods....

We should learn to deal differently with our Nazi past, for the perpetrators of the time were human beings like you and me. That does not mean, howeve...

My adoptive parents called me Alexander and raised me as a Catholic. But my origins lie elsewhere. ...

Angela Merkel achieved the best election result since the German reunification and she will lead the country, yet again, for four more years. Her part...

Pope Francis has condemned gay networks inside the Vatican. But despite the conservative doctrine of the Catholic Church, its institutions often offer...

The start-up experience, compressed into eight songs. ...

“Never stop learning.” It’s one of the few mantras that remains unequivocally true. ...

Introducing a European citizenship option is a brilliant idea – not because nation-states suck, but because Europe is awesome. ...

Journalists who attack the media business bite the hand that feeds them. Yet it's a well-deserved bite. ...

The gloves are off in the start-up industry’s fight for the brightest minds. And a new controversy has erupted between the tech communities in Berli...

Secularism does not imply the prohibition of individual religiosity or of public displays of faith. It merely begs us to abandon any hopes for divine ...

In Germany, the state has taken responsibility for increasing broadband coverage throughout the country. ...

The conclave has gathered in Rome to elect the next pope. For the future of the Catholic Church, let's hope they don't choose an Italian. ...

Countries like Ireland already court emerging start-ups. It’s time to craft our own narrative. ...

The resignation of the pope illustrates a key lesson for budding businesses: Overzealous internationalization complicates company management. ...

The pope’s resignation has broken with the traditions of Roman centralism. The Catholic Church is moving towards a more democratic era. ...

Berlin’s start-up scene often felt like one big family. But competition is increasing, and the fight for market share is heating up. The next big th...

The market for online news journalism has dissipated. It’s time to reconsider journalism as a project of the commons....

Life is dull without music. Dustin Hoffman’s movie “Quartet” is the perfect occasion to dust off your old instrument and start playing. ...

We’ve heard it for years: the web will change everything. Here’s what will stay - and we can expect for the next big innovation cycle. ...

A strong character and assertiveness are often praised as good character traits. But just as important is the ability to reflect on one’s arguments....

When the times are a-changing, introspection becomes important. There’s no better moment for resolutions than the waning hours of the old year. ...

Early January is the time of cluttered desks and busy schedules. But the big picture is important, too: The definition of goals for the coming month, ...

Companies that remain satisfied with second-best solutions won’t succeed in the long run. ...

Traditional companies often rely on strict hierarchies; responsibility is concentrated at the top. But the future of a company depends on the entrepre...

"The debtor must pay the creditor" - one of the most basic mantras of economic theory is being turned on its head by anthropologists and sociologists....

Every good start-up is built on good management. Even traditional businesses can learn from the expertise of the New Economy. ...

Investment rounds are like trips to the theater: you might not expect much of the performance, but you'll be glad that you went. ...

A lesson from our forefathers: we have the obligation to remit debt....

Failed companies are often regarded with suspicion: "Look who didn't make it!" But the problem isn't failure itself: it's the failure to learn from ha...

Is the start-up world merely the newest incarnation of (digital) consumerism? Yes and no. Many products are the result of genuine innovation rather th...

Thomas Sedlacek's book is an important reminder that the separation of economy and society is disadvantageous to both. ...

We underestimate the strategic importance of the internet industry – and stand to repeat a mistake of the industrial revolution. ...

Old and new economy intersect everywhere. It's time for closer collaboration to navigate the digital revolution. ...

Facebook and Groupon are struggling on the stock market. Skeptics are already counting down the days until the next tech bubble bursts. They are wrong...

A selection of entrepreneurs from Berlin meets with the city's mayor. The goal: to foster closer collaboration between city hall and Berlin's emerging...

Germany's start-up industry has fought hard against the termination of tax breaks that foster innovation. It's paying off: Germany's parties are now u...

Six years ago, the soccer world cup in Germany was accompanied by a big promotional campaign under the motto "Welcome to Germany." Now, the campaign i...

For centuries, Italy's main focus was on its domestic affairs. Today, the country can no longer afford such parochialism. An essay on Italy for Linkie...

Berlin's original spirit has been lost to mass culture and tourism. But one sector has preserved the city's spirit of optimism and enthusiasm: The sta...

The start-up industry has grown into a viable ecosystem. Now, the German government wants to eliminate vital tax breaks – retroactively. ...

The start-up industry needs its own lobby to articulate its interests in the political arena. ...

A recent trip to Silicon Valley included a conversation with one of psychology's living legends, Albert Bandura. But is old science keeping up with te...

The German author Martin Mosebach has demanded to taboo and punish blasphemy. Russia is already taking him by his word. ...

Young start-ups are similar to the world of small businesses, the "Mittelstand": Both are innovative, efficient, adaptive, and driven by strong person...

Male circumcision pits two fundamental rights against each other: bodily integrity, and freedom of religion. But don't look to the legislature for a s...

It's as true for Ai Weiwei as it is for German start-ups: The internet is a fascinating thing. The sooner we embrace its potential, the better. ...

Islam and the start-up industry go hand in hand: Islamic ethics strive for investment into ventures whose returns on investment vary with entrepreneur...

The cultural industry is on life support. Without money from Big Business, journalism, the arts, and academia are not sustainable. We are witnessing t...

Innovation is everywhere: While new countries push to the forefront, Germany must avoid being left behind. ...

The euro is far from dead. Following successful integration, it will be nothing less than the next reserve currency of the world....

Driven by its start-up industry, Berlin has become a hotspot for international investors. Even Germans are beginning to realize that the internet has ...

Instead of thinking about the present and future of Muslims in a pluralistic Europe, we are suffocated by misdirected sympathy and historical baggage....

On June 29th, Catholics around the world collect the so-called “Peter’s Pence” to provide financial support to the Pope and the Vatican. This ye...

Political disputes between Right and Left are mirrored in the Catholic Church. Five hundred years after the rise of Protestantism, little has changed....

The French are keen on a European leadership position; Germans are eager to step away from the helm. We don't want a return to German power phantasies...

Revolution is in the air in Russia – or so we think. But a closer look illustrates that a repeat of the Arab Spring is less than unlikely in Moscow....

The German president has stepped down, the nation has lost its head. It's a good time to abolish the vestiges of monarchic thought. ...

Turning thirty-five is neither here nor there: Not quite on the summit of one's life, but clearly beyond the years of young adulthood. ...

For years, a Muslim student fought for his private prayer room – all the way to the German Constitutional Court. The case shows: The debate is not a...

Italy has outlived its bizarre prime minister. Now the country must come to grips with the havoc he wreaked and rebuilt its political culture. A eulog...

Having a youth movement is good. But what are the demands of the occupy protesters? Without a message, they might as well occupy their local playgroun...

Across Europe, pundits demand a new narrative for the EU. But our foundations remain strong. We must only broaden our gaze: We used to say "never agai...

Violence against Christians is the latest sign of the precarious state of the Arab Spring. Unless moderate liberals can modernize Islam, atheism is th...

Pope Benedict XVI has rejected the idea that the Church must have worldly power. What matters are not one's worldly actions but one's faith before God...

Three days after it opened, the Ground Zero memorial had already turned into a tourist destination. Spectators flood the area to pose in front of anyt...

The 9/11 attacks are the most important event since the fall of the Berlin wall. Ten years later, we are beginning to realize their significance as th...

Has the Left been correct all along? Frank Schirrmacher has asked that question in Germany, Charles Moore asked it in Britain. And I ask myself the sa...

Can we talk about objective, irrevocable truth? Or merely about claims to truth that are contested by the statements of others? Truth or opinion – t...

Germans are discussing whether the military should be used to protect trade routes overseas. The Minister of Defense Thomas de Maizière and Social De...

Financial capitalism has lost its legitimacy. The spiral of ever-increasing national debt and Wall Street speculation must be broken. And we must spea...

America is shifting its attention to the East - away from Europe and towards the Pacific region. The EU is dropping down on the priority list. There m...

We talk about the Egyptian revolution as if it happened a hundred years ago. Yet it is far from finished. When will elections take place? How democrat...

The civilized West likes to look down on archaic Muslim countries. But a proper trial of Bin Laden would have done more to bolster the standing of the...

The people on both sides of the Mediterranean Sea have had little contact since northern Africa came under Islamic influence many centuries ago. The c...

Egyptians are freeing themselves from the yoke of despotism. One can only hope that they can avoid another authoritarian reign: The Muslim Brotherhood...

The longing is great. But we cannot return to the Deutschmark. The political unification of Europe must now be followed by an economic unification. We...

Wikileaks strikes again: an obscure, opaque bunch under the leadership of a white-haired weirdo embarrasses the superpower USA. The American ambassado...

The influence of the internet presents man with a new array of great challenges. Existential philosophical questions must be posed anew in light of ra...

"You love life, we love death." The credo of the suicide bombers must not scare us. The bearded fundamentalists signal the last uproar of the Islamic ...