The Swiss are on the Move!

Swiss forces have recently been sent to Tripoli to support the Swiss embassy, as well as support the people of Libya's mission towards Democracy. The number of troops and units has not been revealed for security reasons. But the Swiss troops are on the move. Many have questioned this move based on their general neutrality, but the troops have gone ahead, being assigned to protect people, troops, and facilities at heightened levels of risk.

It's quite surprising that the Swiss are sending out troops. It really is kind of shocking, based on most stereotypes that are made about the Swiss. They are a very powerful country, but they are known very much so for their neutrality. The fact that they are moving into a foreign country, to protect their embassy and people, and also to support the fight for democracy, is quite shocking. I'm not sure exactly what it means for Switzerland. But hopefully it creates a sense of urgency around the rest of the world. If Switzerland is noticing the urgency that has arisen in Libya, maybe the rest of the world will turn their eye towards it and help out. But maybe not.

I know that America has been dabbling in and out of helping with Libya. I'm not sure how Switzerland's involvment will effect America, but I hope it helps give us a clearer vision on how we can try to help Libya. It's a struggling country, and it needs help.

The Swiss troops marching is similar to that of the Ents march in The Lord of the Rings. The Ents were known to be a peaceful people, staying in their own place, and only defending inside their forest. However, when they realized the troubles that were brewing in Isengard, and even their own people that were at risk, they were willing to move in and take control. The Swiss seem to be having a similar reaction to the problems in Libya. It will probably be a lot less violent of a trip for the Swiss troops than for the Ents, but hopefully it will be a similar righteous crusade.

ANONYMOUS

The internet in Germany is in uproar from a new attack on the right-wing government websites. Hacktivist group Anonymous has taken on a new operation, called "Operation Blitzkrieg", in which they are attacking the right-wing government websites following their neo-nazi revelations of late, and the ties they may have had in relation to a recent 7 year killing spree of at least ten people. Anonymous released a website called nazi-leaks.net which has released sensitive information of the right-wing groups. They have also periodically been shutting down different right-wing websites. No legal action has been taken of yet, as it is an anonymous coalition of hackers, but there is rumor of attempted legal action.

This article has somewhat of a multi-cultural part to it. Anonymous has hacked groups around the world in the last few years. But it takes a more cultural turn towards Germany in that, the groups they are attacking are tied deeply with neo-nazi groups. It's kind of scary to think about neo-nazi groups still being around. It is a very segregational group that in the past has been found convicted of killing those that are not like them, similar to the nazis of World War II. It's hard to agree with a group of hackers that is attacking people, but I feel that they are not all wrong in what they are doing. Neo-nazi culture is a bad part of the German culture, something that hopefully can be one day expelled.

These hackings are quite similar to hackings that have taken place in America by these same groups. America had some if it's own government secrets leaked this past year on a site called wikileaks. When banks and credit card companies began to take away their support for this site, Anonymous went and hacked their sites. This group is very concerned about internet freedom, regardless of country and rules. It's crazy to think that they have taken things so secret to governments around the world and just set them free for others to read. America took quick action against wikileaks, taking down the website, and eventually jailing the person responsible. Germany has taken a much slower response; they have also still not been able to find the individuals responsible. Part of the Anonymous core being; being completely and totally unknown.

I think it could have a very negative immediate effect on Germany. People may be in uproar about the recent things found out about the government groups, which could cause riots. The hacking will create a lot of unrest between people on either side of the belief systems. However, ultimately I think it will be a good thing for Germany. It is showing the neo-nazis for who they are, which will hopefully lead toward the eventual eradication of the neo-nazi group from Germany. With them gone, I think Germany will have much more chance to prosper, find good leadership, and become a great leader in the world.

That's so GERMAN

When I think of "German", I usually picture a good friend of mine named Sam. I met him on my trip to Germany. He was very tall and lanky, had blonde hair, blue eyes, and always wore a tucked in wife beater with his pants up high. He was such a good friend. He was very friendly and always willing to help out with anything, regardless of whether he was first asked to or not. He was often quiet, but always willing to assert himself to get the job done and help out with people. He's a perfect image of what I view as "German".
Most Germans I have come into contact with are very friendly. I'm sure that's just a generalization, but I like to think of them as being a friendly people. American people aren't unfriendly, but not quite as friendly as most Europeans.
Obviously in Germany, not everybody wears the same style. But I like imagining that they all have somewhat of an amish style. Germany to me seems like it's still very old in style. I know they are classy and very up to date on things, but I feel like deep down they are all still ingrained in their old ways. Which is vastly different from Americans. We're all about the new. To me, I feel like Germans love a lot of the old. Not that they hate new. I would think they love a lot of new things, and make lots of new things. They just have that love of the old.