Breakfast on the Titanic - Rise to Fall (Track 1)

July 16, 2014 - Yes, we made it! The champions of the world, oh, how proud Freddy Mercury would be of us. Pride is everywhere I am and walk these days, no matter where I turn or who I talk to, it is all about the victory of the German team at the Soccer World Cup. 

The heroes have returned home by now and even participated in a light scandal with their "Gaucho Dance" where they made fun of the Argentinians. Oh well, of course we are the Nazis again, we must be, when we make a little fun of another country. Anyways, as much as I should be, I am still not that impressed or riding on that wave of euphoria. Congrats to the boys, but really: why am I concerned? I did not even run 100 meters during any of the games, so why exactly is this MY victory? For that sole reason that we share the same nationality (and even that is not true when you look at the nationalities in the German team!). Anyways, I apologize, but I am not buying it. 

Allright, I admit, I can be happy for the team up to some extend. After all, I am not the Grinch who stole Christmas. However, the world does not stop turning because of festive sport events. It does not even stop on festive holidays. 

Happiness usually pairs with a certain "above the clouds"-feeling - you are floating high above the ground, space and time get this really slow, almost puff pastry like consistency - light and still with a lot of butter (and both feels good, right?). Even better - happiness is sweet and light as cotton candy, probably pairing with this state of neglecting time's natural speed and that everything moves on even though you could rest in this state of happiness for a lifetime. 

Then, there is the other side - that of grief, sadness and depression, the entire darkness of feelings. They appear just as thick as happiness, though in a complete different turn. Instead of flying high, you feel dragged down, heavy and sadly, most of the time it is a lot easier for us to feel in a negative than in a positive way. It always seems that happiness is hard work to achieve and sadness comes to you like an unexpected (and unwanted) guest. 

One thing that definitely controls the majority of our emotions and feelings is money. The difference between possessing all that money you possibly cannot spend in one lifetime and the debt you cannot pay back in a hundred years is huge, like swimming either in thick rich hot chocolate (at body temperature, mind you!) with little marshmallows floating on top, or (let's face it!) a lake of shit. 

Some people might want to argue that happiness or sadness is not only a matter of money and I totally agree with that. However, finding all those other things creation happiness (love, friendship, family) have a lot to do with either having the money - or being left out with an empty wallet. Sometimes, one and the other come and go hand in hand. Nonetheless, that is an entirely different story. 

In Germany, a law around a minimum wage for all professions has been in the making for several years now after debates and debates and rough drafts, finer drafts - you know the deal around complicated laws! The example of "Obamacare" comes to mind... in Germany, the minimum wage was just about as complicated and the actual law has almost the same result: no one is really happy with it. However, this law was one of the core aspects of the coalition contract between the conservative Christian Democrats (CDU and CSU (Christian Social Democrats) and the Social Democrats (SPD). The main goal of this law was to help employees in this country who are forced to receive welfare even though they work in a fulltime job. Chancellor Merkel (or Mother Merkel, as Germans love to sometimes call her sarcastically) said that work needs to pay off. Okay, not her exact words but you get what she said. What she meant though was even more important: work needs to pay off - on both sides! The exact reason why the CDU and CSU were very hesitant agreeing to such a law, moreover, they were against it. Germany only gets its minimum wage law now is because the CDU/CSU did not have another choice! Without the SPD there would not have been a coalition in the Bundestag having the majority of votes. 

It is clear why they did not want such a law: they say it is neither cost effective nor fair and probably they are right thinking that employers might shut down their businesses in Germany and start producing in countries with lower costs as in various countries in Eastern Europe. Sadly, they are not wrong with this prediction. 

Be it as it may, millions of people in Germany are working fulltime and have nothing left in their pockets but emptiness. Not at the end of the month like most of us when we spend too much money but on the very first of the month! They have their fixed costs and after that they have hardly anything left, not even to buy food. This situation is already tough as is when you are single; it is even harder when one has a family and kids. Children who will hardly get a higher qualification than their parents just because they do not have access to education as kids from wealthy families have. They come from the bottom of society - and will hardly ever be able to reach higher ground.

In an article I recently read about poverty in the U.S., it turned out that being poor is not always linked to being black or having a criminal record. Poverty in the United States wears the white face just as many times as it wears the black one, the truth about white poverty is just denied in America as it is an ugly image, an image far far away from the dream everyone has that you can achieve whatever you desire when only you work hard enough. The article talked about Baltimore, however, Germany has the same problem: we think that poverty and recipients of welfare are most of the times from an immigrant background. In reality, these clichés are nowadays part of an illusion trying to maybe calm ourselves as to think we will never be poor... if only we work hard enough. 

The Americans have faith in the idea that on can reach just about anything if he or she works hard enough and is clever. One question remains though: what if everything fails? You work hard year for year and you are certainly clever (be it that you are a first class graduate or you just possess a certain amount of intelligence between your two ears) and still you cannot get a job that suits your skills. Believe it or not, America: this happens! Not only in your country, but around the world. It happens everywhere, because life is not fair or works by certain rules. Now what can this intelligent, ready to earn a fortune man/woman do? Certainly, you can clean toilets just for the sake of earning money and make a "living" (if one can call that). After all, one can hope for the better while doing this job, right? Truth is, most people will stay down in a low paid job once they get to the bottom. It is simply hard to get up once you are down. The Titanic also sank and never saw the light of day again, so... it is somewhat comparable. 

Of course, you can hope... and pray... be positive... or do all in one. Whatever helps you through the day scrubbing toilets or sitting at a cash desk. One thing is certain though: we are not living in times where the right education or skin color pay off and get you the wealth you desire. Everyday I see people not worth the money they earn, and vice versa. Justice is not for the free market economy - or any court for that matter. Evidences are good in court just as the right education is good for your CV. However, you need to convince employers, be the right person, have the right age (at least for women!), be either unattached or attached depending on the job or (as in court) have a hell of a lawyer getting you out no matter how guilty or innocent you are. The difference on the job market is: employers have more and more candidates to choose from. In the end, it is not about having the right education, the employer must like you, your face, your voice, whatever you say. If you cannot do that, you will end up in a low paid job and be the jewel at the bottom of the sea, well hidden and practically invisible to the rest of the world. 

Maybe, just maybe, people might be right about money not being everything when it comes to happiness. Look at the people in the small country of Bhutan: they are called the "happiest country in the world" (and they did not even win the Soccer World Cup, imagine that!). Their system works quite simple: they work 8 hours a day, have free time 8 hours a day and sleep 8 hours a day. Would that be the solution for the West? I guess not, our society is too fast-paced, we are constantly in a rush and whatever we do, we always want too much of everything - not just money. Even when it comes to free time, a social life, being desired by the other sex (or same sex, whatever is preferred!), it seems like we can never get enough. Have one thing, want one more thing on top, the desire for the cherry on top of your ice cream. At the end of the day, this might be the main problem: we want too much and are never satisfied. We search happiness in wealth while it resides more in the state of mind when we let go of everything that is about money. 

Happiness might not be able to feed you and for the poorest amongst us, it is easier said than done to let go of the hunt for money. This advice would be more for the average employee with a good income. What we should do, in my opinion, is start thinking beyond borders and stop excluding those in society who do not represent the wealth and glamour we all desire. People should not be valued by their bank accounts but by their hearts. A true and good spirit can be worth more than a billion bucks. That to the song "Billionaire" by Bruno Mars... seriously, who really wants to have the burden of being a billionaire? 

I might dig a little deeper into this subject, for now, this is everything I wanted to get "off my chest". Cheerio and have a good week all you readers (the two, maybe three!).