Berliner Pfannkuchen

Ich bin ein Berliner

 http://www.princeton.edu/~pkrugman/berliner.jpg

Berliner's originally were eaten only as a New Year's Eve dessert. It is a funny and common prank to give someone a Berliner filled with mustard.

Berliner's are Germany's version of doughnuts. They are traditionally fried in lard and injected with filling using a syringe. They are then topped with some sort of sugary topping, whether that be powdered sugar or a sugar glaze. The different kinds of fillings vary, with fillings such as Plum-butter, jams, custard, and chocolate. The filling determines what kind of topping will be on the Berliner. For plum-butter filled Berliner's, powdered sugar is used. Raspberry, strawberry, and cherry Berliner's call for regular sugar. All other fillings would require a sugar icing.

Most people believe that when JFK visited Germany and said the famous words, "Ich bin ein Berliner," that it was translated literally as him saying "I am a doughnut." However, he did in fact use an appropriate sentence, which addressed his relation with Berlin. In Berlin, the call Berliner's Pfannkuchen, so no one from Berlin would have misunderstood him.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berliner_%28pastry%29, Dec. 11

Baader-Meinhoff Follow Up Questions

The first generation of the Baader-Meinhoff group were the more civilized of the three generations. They had set rules and guidelines for themselves- they did not want to harm any people that they found to be innocent. This was made clear when they called the newspaper office several times trying to warn the workers of a bomb attack. Their main forms of attacks were using bombs to terrorize the government and using published media to justify their attacks and gain supporters.

In the beginning of the movie, I was able to connect somewhat with the main characters, identifying them as the protagonists of the movie. As the movie continued and their actions more out of hand, I started to withdraw from them and lose connection. I was no longer rooting for the main characters. It felt like only 30 minutes into the movie and I no longer understood what they were fighting for or what they were protesting.

I feel that without Andreas Baader in the picture, this terrorist group would have never become as prominent as they were. It as his determination and his almost lack of caring of what others think that seemed to push the group forward to continue to do bigger and "better" things.

Der RAF

In the 1960's, World War II had been over for only 20 years. Some of the important leader figures in the government, police force, and the schools were people who had been leaders during the Nazi regime. The chancellor himself had been a part of the Nazi party. The baby boomers were just starting to mature and were the first people who began to question why this was possible. They were under the belief that their country was continuing to be a fascist state, even after the Third Reich had ended. Because of this belief, the new generation felt the need to bring it upon themselves to stop the fascist state from continuing.
The first generation of the RAF was founded by four main people- Andreas Baader, Ulrike Meinhof, Gudrun Ensslin, and Horst Mahler. They were originally referred to as the Baader-Meinhof Group. Using training they gained from working with guerrilla's in Palestine, they sabotaged and terrorized Germany, pulling bank robberies to gain money and bombing police stations, buildings which belonged to the Axel Springer press, and US military forces. They criticized their country for helping America in the Vietnam war, and drew inspiration from people like Che Guevara, Lenin, and Marx.

The second generation of the RAF arose when the first generation was in prison. The second generation consisted of people who sympathized with the original four, but were not actually connected to them. They kidnapped Peter Lorenz, who was the CDU candidate for mayor of Berlin, in an attempt to pressure the state to release several inmates. Their demands were met, and so Lorenz was released. Several months later, members stormed a West German embassy in Stockholm and took hostages. Two of the hostages were killed when their demands were not met. Two members of the RAF died due to a explosives they planted detonated. More attacks continued to take place through out the trials of the first generation, including the shooting of a federal prosecutor and his body guard while they were sitting at a red light.

1980 was the time the third generation of the RAF was formed. They continued their attacks, bombing places like the US Air Force Rhein-Main Air Base near Frankfurt, and targeting government officials and important businessmen. In 1990, after the reunification of East and West Germany, the RAF was receiving both financial and logistical support from a security and intelligence organization in East Germany. Their last action was bombing a newly built prison in Weiterstadt.

April 20th, 1998 marked the end of the RAF. An eight-page letter was written up and sent to a news agency, declaring that "the urban guerrilla in the shape of the RAF is now history."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Army_Faction, Dec. 10

Today's current forms of terrorist attacks resemble the RAF in their reliance on using bombs. Of course, all terrorist groups are forms of extremists, ready to go to any extent in order to force change in their government. While I am not the most well informed on today's terrorism, it appears to me that most of the attacks made today are on civilians, where as the RAF originally made it very clear that they did not want to hurt civilians.

Der Baader-Meinhof Komplex

Der Baader-Meinhof Komplex is an intense movie, with some similarities to modern day America. In the very beginning, with the protestors and their signs, it reminded me of the Wall Street protests which happened not too long ago, with people shocked by police brutality towards the protestors. The entire movie, from what we have seen, appeared to me to be a bad drug trip spiraling downwards, and fast. At first, there was a clear problem that the Baader-Meinhof group was against. As their attacks became more intense and they began to train themselves in guerrilla warfare, I wasn't sure what they were fighting for, or if they themselves even knew what they were fighting for. This movie is unique in the way that the viewer starts off with a clear protagonist, but as it continues, you begin to question who is the "good guy" and who is the "bad guy." As more and more people are killed and hurt in the Baader-Meinhof pursuit of something, I am begin to distance myself from the main characters and begin to support the government, which was originally established as the antagonist.

Berlin Calling

1. What do drugs mean to Ickarus? 

 Drugs in the beginning seem to be just a way for Ickarus to socialize with people. You can't have a normal conversation without snorting some cocaine beforehand. Drugs are a form of escape from an otherwise disappointing life. It seems to be what he draws his inspiration from, relying on drugs to help him create new songs. As we see, the drugs were only able to get him so far before he started to fall flat.

2. Why, when, and how are his fans taking drugs, and which drugs do they take?

People attending the shows were taking drugs either in the bathroom, snorting cocaine off of cards, or on the floor and taking pills which were ecstasy or a new mixed drug that a drug dealer had came up with. Drugs are just the first step towards being able to interact with these people. They take it to be able to let loose and experience the music in a new way.  

3. While we can see that his drug habits get him ill and into a psychosis, and while we witness his relapse and inability to work successfully, why does the subculture Ickarus is in focus on drugs?

Drugs are a form of escape, and the subculture that Ickarus was involved with were low on their luck. They used the drugs to temporarily relieve themselves of all the burdens of their lives.

4. Compare the standards you know from your home society with the people you see depicted in this 
movie. Which are the stark differences and contrasts?

There are so many people casually taking drugs, and that is very different from the groups that I would hang around with while growing up. Growing up in a suburban town, I never saw the inside of clubs or filthy public bathrooms. Drug use was something that people were ashamed of and would try and hide, not take drugs with friends as a bonding experience.

5. Germany is considered a strong industrial nation the world over. Do you think that the youth culture as depicted here could change that? How about work ethics of Ickarus and of Alice, the label director who fires and then re-signs him?

 It seems to be that the youth culture in this movie would not be beneficial towards Germany's industry. I'm not even sure if half of these people were employed, to begin with. Ickarus would definitely not be considered a stand-up employee, and would probably not make it in an industry job. Alice seems like she could contribute more to the industry, however I question why she didn't fire Ickarus sooner, and why she decided to re-sign him after his outburst. Giving people like that second chances does not usually pay off.

6. Which similar "cult movies" of US origin have you seen, if any?

This movie reminds me a lot of Requiem for a Dream, which is a movie that follows three people and the extents they go to to get their drug fix, even after being thrown in jail. One man goes so far to get his fix that his arm becomes infected and eventually needs to be amputated. 

German Literature/Media

German Health/Women