The Last Post Game!!!!

[Swatopluk]

Let me put it this way:
He is one of the rather rare cases where limitless ambition* plus extreme competence minus any kind of moral principles** or scruples did not lead straight to disaster or shameless elf-enrichment.
Ironically those things he instituted as pure emergency measures proved the longest lasting while the stuff he intended to last fell apart rather quickly.
I have rather mixed feelings. On the one hand the guy was a monster, on the other there is so much good in his legacy (not just for Germany) that we still have to be grateful. And it would be unfair to blame him for those parts squandered by his successors***

*"It burned everything else out in me"
**"If I had principles, it would be like jogging through the wood with a long pole in my mouth"
***that's not just code for Wilhelm II. In hindsight he was right to dismiss Bismarck (although it should have been handled with more act) because Otto had begun to turn into a loose cannon with a high potential for inciting a civil war (trying to persuade Willy to do a coup d'etat to get rid of parliament and other democratic elements; advocating for the merciless application of brute force against strikers, unions and the political left in general).

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Addendum: I doubt that anyone could have a similar effect as Bismarck today (In Germany or Europe). On the other hand there is a lot of room on the continent for a few Mussolini wannabes and localised de facto fascist regimes (just look at Hungary; Poland under the Kaczynskies was also leaning in that direction).

[Sibling Zono (anon1mat0)]

Last _{a happy monster then?} Post

[Swatopluk]

He was not actually a very happy guy. Like Darwin he suffered from almost constant maladies (partially self-inflicted given his dietary predilections). His constant threats of suicide were not all empty for he had seriously considered it several times. Praise or blame his wife for him not going through with it. She must have been quite remarkable in that regard.

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[Griffin NoName]

...........did not lead straight to disaster or shameless elf-enrichment.

How about gnomes? Did it lead to gnome enrichment?

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[Swatopluk]

The echo-gnomy went a bit up and down under O.v.B but two gnome factories opened in 1872 (the year after the German unification) and the boom did not end before WW1. In the form we know them today they seem to be an English invention but under O.v.B became seen as quintessentially German. Interestingly the Nazis were not unconditionally pro-gnome and banned them from certain regions (without a progrom though).

Last _{the offical term btw is Hartbrandwichtel} Post

[Griffin NoName]

If there had been pogroms, would the gnomes have melted?

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[Swatopluk]

Actually I have no idea about the melting point of common terracotta

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[Sibling Zono (anon1mat0)]

Cast them in Mount Doom and they will surely melt.

Last _{unless you want to meld with them} Post

[Swatopluk]

Have you one handy? Volcanoes are so hard to come by these days.

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[Sibling Zono (anon1mat0)]

I thought that wast the reason behind your learning of Icelandic.

Last _{otherwise Hawaii is always an option} Post

[Swatopluk]

The difficulty is to get there when in need. It's a wee bit remote (at least since passenger jets have enough reach to not have to do a tank stop there anymore). And it's so damned costly.

Last _{and I have no idea, wether gnomes can get legally imported, terracotta or not} Post

[Sibling Zono (anon1mat0)]

I doubt there would be any problem taking a terracotta gnome on a plane.

Last _{and you can get a flight for less than 500 euros} Post

[Swatopluk]

Rich elitist!

And the plane is not the problem but whether the Icelandic authorities will allow foreign gnomes in

Last _{just look at their horse policy} Post

[Sibling Zono (anon1mat0)]

Are you honestly telling me that you can't get a terracotta into Iceland???

Last _{heck, I bet you can buy one at the local IKEA!} Post

[Swatopluk]

I haven't checked but I would not be surprised.

And I first had to check that IKEA has a store in Iceland (there is a single one).

Btw, don't try to sneak garden gnomes into Germany. You could get into serious trouble at the border. No, they are not banned here but most models are trademarked/copyrighted/protected and most of what comes from outside is plagiarized. Iirc there is a special taskforce dealing with the smuggling problem.

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