V is for Vaccine

Image by torstensimon from Pixabay
My arm has often felt like a pincushion. A good example of this was during the SARS epidemic in 2002, when both myself and severe acute respiratory syndrome were at work in Hong Kong at the same time. Not that Hong Kong was at fault particularly -- the outbreak was first identified in Foshan in...
Germany Health Insurance

Corona policy highlights Germany weakness

Photo by Martin Sanchez on Unsplash
When faced with the threat of a new pandemic, ministers huddled together and etched ut their plans. The resolution they...

EU faces uncertainty as Brexit and pandemic hit hard

Photo by Habib Ayoade
As 2020 draws to a close, the EU unknowingly teeters on the brink. After a year of disastrous political posturing and...

Environmentalists should hope for quick economic rebound

We are seeing significant pollution and greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reductions as a result of the economic slowdown...

Earth Day Network was wrong to connect extinctions with global warming

Monday was Earth Day, an annual event celebrated globally since 1970. Dedicated to demonstrating support for environmental...

The Ukrainian mentality or why so poor if so smart?

Whenever Ukraine finds itself in the headlines of world news due to political scandals, or because of the actions or...

The Only Opposition Venezuela's Government Cannot Get Rid of Is Reality

As Venezuela faces its most chaotic situation in its 216-years of history, both government and opposition prepare for...

Bahar Mustafa and hate speech

Bahar Mustafa - diversity just got weird
In Germany, there is little tolerance of intolerance. That may come as a surprise to some, namely those who are ignorant...

Germany Surf Paradise?

Munich, every surfer's wet dream
The title alone is an eyebrow elevator for anyone who hasn't stepped foot in the asparagus epicentre of Europe (Germany...

Spitz saves '72 and more

The Spitz legend inspired generations
Being a child of the mid-sixties, most of my first real memories came to me in the early 1970s, with the exception of the...

A Summer of Sport

Sports Editor : Mark Lovell
First of all, a very warm welcome to the first print edition of The Munich Times. We take a look back on an exciting Euro...

Lovell's Lowdown

Mark Lovell - The Munich Times Sports Editor
I used to have the (dubious) pleasure of living next to Bayern Munich's training grounds. I say dubious because there is...

The week in review: 14.05-20.05 A thud, a whack, a strike and a blast

Not to be. Bayern loses a heart breaker, Americans would say keep playing
What a week it was. It started out with so much promise for the inhabitants of Munich and then it just went thud. Bastian...

Reimagining diplomacy in the post-COVID world: an indian perspective

We enter 2021, hoping to put the COVID-19 pandemic behind us. While each society has dealt with it uniquely, global...
Image by Markus Winkler

Women's shelters full, but male victims have even fewer options

Even before the pandemic, the numbers were dramatic: in 2019, more than 140,000 people apparently experienced intimate...
Photo by Deepak kumar

Repression of predominant-Sikh farm movement could stoke fears among Indian minorities

A nationwide farmers movement has punctuated one of the largest food producing countries in the world with millions of...

Yoga - the ancient key to a new way of life

Old words of wisdom are never fully realized until testing times creep unexpecedly into our lives, such as the Covid-19...

Extinction Rebellion, more hindrance than help

As Extinction Rebellion (XR) takes to the streets of various capital cities around the world, one can't help but wonder on...

Vietnam Visa Irregularities

China's tourism sector has witnessed a rapid growth during the last few years. As per the 2018 China Tourism Statistics,...

Mainstream Media and the Shameless Manipulation of Women

Over a year ago, Donald Trump was elected as the latest US president, in a surprise result which hit the mainstream media...

What Really Happens When the NSPCC Goes to UK Primary Schools

The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) in Britain undermines parents, teaches young...

Solution to the Stalemate in Kashmir

The Kashmir region in India is perpetually in the news because of the violence and anti-Indian agitation of the local...

Shamelessly Corrupt and Incompetent Pakistan

The recent incident involving kidnapping and the subsequent killing of two Chinese citizens during June in Pakistan is...

India is not a democracy but 'demon-o-cracy'

India as per its constitution, is a secular nation but secularism has been blatantly misused by the majority of political...

Indian Patriotism on Display

The Supreme Court of India came up with a ruling in November 2016 that all cinema halls in India shall play the national...
The public-private sector partnership is instrumental in crafting cost-effective policies against climate change in Africa

Crafting cost-effective policies against climate change

The Earth's Climate is changing. There is now one-fifth more carbon in the atmosphere than there was in 2000 and there few...
Why is German harder to learn than French?

German should be easier than French, but is it?

"French is prettier than German" Or "It's the language of love". "It's melodic, less harsh". "French is easier"....
Germany is right, Europe needs austerity

Don't Blame Germany

After attending an academic conference in 2011, I and my friend were on vacation in Miami, Florida. One evening we drove...
Lost in a Bavarian Laundrette

Lost in a Bavarian Laundrette

I thought I had quite a good grasp of German. Until I moved to Munich, that is. I had spent months diligently copying...
Organ donation: to opt-in or opt-out - that is the question

Organ donation: to opt-in or opt-out

Timothy Potenz asks you whether you think Germans should have to register to become organ donors, or the other way...
Forests are the future and must be treated with the respect they deserve.

Wise and focused leaders cannot give away forests!

I saw a young boy driving a huge horse along a narrow path directing it whenever it tried to turn around. I asked myself,...
Mark Lovell looks forward to hearing from you.

Lovell's Lowdown

Sports fans worldwide, not just in Great Britain, should be freely able to revel in Bradley Wiggins' stunning success in...
Mark Lovell discusses doping.

Lovell's Lowdown

Only a few days into the 2012 Olympics and the first cases of doping have already hit the headlines - a gymnast from...
Thorium powered reactors may be the future

The Energy Conundrum and the EU

The EU went down the path of a single common currency with the hope of progressing to full political and economic...
The evening's debaters and host at Schwabing's TamS Theater

Facebook, Twitter and Co.

I love Fridays. I really do. Not for the reasons you might assume. It's media-related - my reason. I really enjoy the...
Hospitality boxes will be doing a roaring trade. Photo wikimedia commons/Mike Rosenberg

Prawn sandwich brigade descends on Munich

The biggest game of the European club calendar is finally upon us with tickets for the clash at the Allianz Arena like...
Church, State and Traditional Media vs Social Media

Church, State and Media Empires Get Buzzed

Social media is finding its voice and redefining the pecking order in global power institutions. Michael Comte, a...