I don't understand this comment. A quick look up of the `Morgenthau plan` seems to indicate it was focussed on removing Germany's military power by crushing their industrial output and various other economic restrictions.
Russia cutting off oil doesn't seem to be synonymous with the intent of Morgenthau, it may have a similar side-effect but it's not the same as far as I can see.
I'm not sure about this...with Russian gas gone wouldn't Germany pay a lot more for energy? I think the best solution is to build nuclear power plants but that is more about long term.
I agree it is a good thing - but it happened too early to be painless to Europeans. Or, to put it in other words, we should have been prepared for it a long time ago.
That's been my argument to friends and family this week. If an extra dollar per gallon is what it takes for fewer Ukrainian children to die then that's what it takes.
We all had the extra dollars and did spend them in places where these abuses were not happening when we had a robust economy that was not just centered on knowlage and service work.
When you can get cheap goods from somewhere, then you can buy more. We outsourced and promoted cheap products for the benifit of Wallstreet and busniess at the expense of our future wages and global human rights.
There will be no blackout due to gas issues. Power generation from gas is not a problem. Heat generation from gas could become one though. Luckily Germany will likely mandate a switch to electricity driven heatpumps for all buildings soon.
Not even that. I am a German myself, and I can tell our heating habbits are on a luxurious level. It is very common in Germany to heat the full house/appartment 24/7 to a comfy level just so you can walk around in light/comfy closes. It is common to not wear thick closes at home and especially not in bed etc. Gas is also used for the water boiler, and it is considered "standard" to shower every day.
Now, if I go back to the generation of my grandparents and to some extend even my parents when they were in their childhood, that was unheard of. You would only heat the main living room during cold winters, and the family would gather. For sleeping you wore pyjamas plus socks etc, and you took a tin with hot potatoes to bed. Showering was not a thing, you would wash daily and maybe bathing on Sundays.
Now that annoys me a little about the whole "Germany needs gas from Russia urgently!" narrative. If you cut out gas for heating/boiling (not electricity), not a single german will die this winter, or next winter. We will lose a lot of comfort, and might have to change our habbits, but we do not have siberian grade winters where having no heating means having to freeze to death.
Oh it's not just Germany. In the Bay Area, California, US, (where you could easily go without any heating or cooling year round like myself) every 10 posts on Nextdoor during the winter is:
"Why is my gas bill $500? This is outrageous. I have 2,400 sq ft. (232 sq. m.) house and keep it at 70F (21C) at all times, so what?"
Germany is the country with most expensive electricity in Europe, and gas deals from this mafia is a near instant cash.