The situation on Wednesday: Boris Johnson seeks the escape route

Today we are dealing with the climate package that is to be adopted in the Cabinet, with a new strategy by Boris Johnson and the mystery of the Limburg Trucking Act.

Plant of the few numbers

Christoph Soeder / DPA

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Issue 41/2019

The downfall of the Aztecs

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Today is a special day for the government cabinet in Berlin: It is visited by the apple queens of the most important growing areas in Germany, they form together with the chancellor and her ministers the "apple cabinet" . Since 1976, the German apple has received special attention from the Federal Government. With a per capita consumption of around 25 kilograms, it is also the most important domestic fruit.

After the visit, Cabinet members, presumably sitting between well-stocked harvest baskets, will pass the long-debated Climate Change Bill. The 173-page document, however, is a testimony of political despondency. It is a failed attempt to act decisively without hurting anyone.

Pragmatism triumphed over what was really necessary, as it always did in the past few months of German climate policy. The decision to set a price of just ten euros per tonne of CO2 is an example of this: he was quickly dismissed on the night of the agreement because the Chancellor looked at the clock and said that you only have half an hour left ,

It was the ten euros that the Grand Coalition was later held most critical of by its critics as evidence of their unwillingness. It was those ten euros that in the experts in unison led to the rating as insufficient.

The draft, which is now being voted on, clearly lacks many numbers. There is no information as to how much fuel-guzzling cars should be charged more with the motor vehicle tax, no information as to how much the state wants to make airline tickets more expensive.

Do not make unnecessary trouble, says this work, we'll take care of the painful details at some point. Exactly that was the big mistake of the previous climate policy: We will take care of it someday.

• Still with gaps: the final draft for the Climate Protection Act

Fire and Fury

Kirsty Wigglesworth / AP

In the past, it was not always easy to see which strategy was pursued in the Brexit simulation game by British Prime Minister Boris Johnson , and probably none at all. But what happened yesterday was easy to see through.

It could be seen in the reaction of the otherwise rather prudent EU Council President Donald Tusk , who took in a Tweet Johnson to the chest. "It's about the future of Europe and Britain, and the security and interests of our citizens," Tusk wrote furiously. "It's not about winning a stupid Black Peter game."

Earlier, Johnson had told Angela Merkel after an early telephone call that a Brexit deal between Brussels and London had become impossible. British media had spread content from the confidential phone call, which were described in Berlin behind closed doors as only partially accurate. But unspoken, the black Peter was the failed Brexit talks suddenly with the German Chancellor.

Boris Johnson, who would like to leave the EU without an agreement on October 31, but the House of Commons has forbidden him to do so by law, is now looking for an escape route: he may want to use his aggro strategy to deny the EU member states to vote. when it comes to a shift of the Brexit date. That would be his greatest triumph.

• The Johnson Strategy: The Saboteur

The tendency to terrorism

Yann Schreiber / AFP

A 32-year-old Syrian seizes a truck and rams several cars , nine people including the offender are slightly injured, today more details are expected in the act in Limburg.

It is still unclear why the young man apparently wanted to kill other people. This ambiguity seems to be unbearable for some media. They therefore create their own clarity, even before the police.

The ZDF spoke early on a terror suspicion, although up to the present time the investigating public prosecutor's office did not announce Islamist references. Even the Attorney General has so far shown no signs to take over the case because of suspected terrorists.

The "Bild" newspaper correctly quoted Hessian Minister of the Interior Peter Beuth: "Even if the crime resembles the terrible attacks of Nice or Berlin, the motive of the arrested man remains unclear." But one sentence earlier, the newspaper stated quite clearly a clear motive: "Germany has evidently escaped a murderous terrorist attack with much luck." There is hardly any contradiction in a few words.

It may be that during the investigation it turns out that Omar A. actually wanted to commit a terrorist attack. As long as there is no indication, any speculation prohibits.

• Limburg: How an affected person experienced the trucking act

Reading tip of the day

Christophe Gateau / DPA

There is much talk of protest these days and the question of what he can do. Thirty years ago peaceful protest with candles and chants created a new land. Today Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier travels to Leipzig to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Peaceful Revolution . One month after the big Monday demo on October 9, the wall had fallen.

The editorial team has published a SPIEGEL SPECIAL about 30 years since the fall of the Berlin Wall, with reports, essays, long talks and many portrayals of contemporary witnesses. The good thing about this issue is that it not only stays in the past, but also asks and answers the questions for the future in the relationship between East and West. I wish you a lot of fun with the reading.

The compact news overview in the morning: current and opinionated. Every morning (weekdays) at 6 o'clock. Order directly here:

The latest news from the night

• New escalation in the Ukrainian economy: The White House is now officially refusing any cooperation in the investigation of President Donald Trump. The Democrats are critical of this - "Mr President, you are not above the law"
• According to a ranking, Germany's competitiveness is falling behind in an international comparison : it looks particularly bleak with regard to information technology. Only in one category does the Federal Republic remain the front runner
• Uno may not be able to pay staff in November: According to its Secretary-General, the United Nations is experiencing the "worst monetary crisis in nearly a decade" - António Guterres is now calling on member states to pay their contributions

The SPIEGEL + recommendations for today

• Schmu in the green electricity surcharge: What the Scheibchen-trick of the companies costs consumers
• Harvard researcher wants to slow down aging: "Nothing bothers us that we're 200 years old"
• Scientist on groundwater deficiency: "Some regions will not recover"
• DER SPIEGEL Podcast on the fall of the Berlin Wall (Part 1): Why Stefan Aust expected the turnaround

I wish you an inspiring day!

Your Martin Knobbe