Don't get me wrong, I don't want to spit in the soup of the ubiquitious "fall of the wall"-euphoria. Well, actually, I do.
Celebrating a peaceful revolution, especially these days, is all well and good. But shouldn't we all ask for more?
Many people say that they feel thankful, but thankful to whom and for what? Is our system today what the revolutionaries of '89 would have wanted and fought for? I don't think so. And I can't help but feel betrayed of an alternative vision that many people in East-Germany had for their future.
During the German re-unification the supremacy of the Western capitalist system was never questioned. As I think to the detriment of all of us. The reign of capitalism, the dogma of economic growth was thereby re-inforced and a window of political opportunity closed forever.
We didn't stand a chance. Our ideals that were not all false and failing were put to the trash. Our educational system overhauled. Our voices muted. People suddenly had to struggle to find a job to pay their bills.
Yes, we had won freedom. The freedom to obey the rules or not. But somebody else had made them for us. What began was the era of salesmen, impostors and petty-minds. People that knew how to sell things, or themselves.
I have never belonged to that tribe and I am proud of it. And oh, have I paid for this. By not getting jobs when I failed to present myself in a suitable way or even losing them when I was daring to speak up. I was not obeying the rules of the market and still today I feel a reluctance to do so.
I have always felt that this quest for ever more productivity and higher effectiveness is not an ideal every human being should pursue and even can adhere to. I ache for an alternative, but I still can't find it in today's world.
So when today twenty-year old Spanish hipsters celebrate that cool light installation in Berlin, I am all with them. Still I wonder: don't we all deserve an alternative?
Tinder is a very visual platform. So the first picture counts. It decides whether the thumb slides left or right. I have clicked through various pics for a day and a night now. So I feel ready to give some advice to all of you guys, especially.
1. Don't post a picture of an expensive car, a motor bike or a yacht. This just shows how small your self-esteem is and makes the ladies wonder about the size of your private parts.
2. Don't pose with a baseball bat or any other kind of weapon. You might not be the beating husband type but let's not raise any doubts here.
3. Don't include any ex-girlfriends,children or even friends. Please note: If you blur their faces with Photoshop it gives an even eerier impression. (Especially if it's a wedding photo and you are the groom.)
4. Don't wear a wedding-ring. It might get important to show that you're ready for commitment at some point, but this is a little early.
5. Don't take off your shirt, pleeease! Even if you've been working on these abs real hard. Women will assume you're superficial and basically only there to fuck. If that's ok with you: go for it.
6. Actually POST a picture! Avatars don't win hearts. Also don't post pictures of celebrities or Pixar characters. Everybody will know you're not Jude Law.
7. Try to be as accurate as possible when it comes to your age. Nobody will believe you're still in your thirties just because you hide your receding hairline under a cool cap.
8. I know it's tempting, because they're cute and cuddly and you can show your softer side, BUT: no dog pictures. It's too obvious and you always lose against a pup. (Btw: cats are out of the question)
9. No pictures where the background is more impressive than your face. So no Empire State/Spanish stairs/Eiffel tower-selfies. You can keep these for your private photo-show.
10. And finally no crazy, funny or sad faces. Come on, being on Tinder is weird enough, nobody wants to date a freak. Just smile like you mean it.
That's basically it. Thanks guys.
