
Spaßbremse
Michelle and Ted dissect German politics from Spargel to the Schwarze Null, and tell us why Germany isn't as seen on TV. Support us at https://www.patreon.com/spassbremse
Latest episodes

Apr 18, 2025 • 60min
68 - Broken clocks (fascism debate pt. 2 w/John Ganz)
As a follow up to our previous episode on the "fascism debate", writer John Ganz argues for the "yes" side, addressing the points Danny Bessner and other critics have made. He and Ted discuss parallels between the current far right and interwar fascism, suggesting there are important similarities we can learn from.Listen to part 1 (episode 66) here: https://spotifycreators-web.app.link/e/fjeZVKb9ASbBuy John's book here: https://us.macmillan.com/books/9780374605445/whentheclockbroke/Read his Substack here: https://www.unpopularfront.news/*****Follow Spaßbremse on Twitter (@spassbremse_pod). Music by Lee Rosevere. Art by Franziska Schneider.Support us on Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/spassbremse

Apr 14, 2025 • 1h 1min
67 - Merz's Comeback w/ Lukas Hermsmeier
Over his long career, Friedrich Merz has gone from rising CDU star to Blackrock executive and back to the very top of German politics. To discuss his trajectory—and the country's likely future—Ted speaks with NYC-based journalist Lukas Hermsmeier to discuss the "back to the future" qualities of Merz's political outlook.Read Lukas' NYT piece on Merz here: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/04/opinion/friedrich-merz-germany-chancellor.htmlFollow Lukas here: https://bsky.app/profile/lukashermsmeier.bsky.socialRead one of the scary pieces on Germany and the A-Bomb here: https://www.br.de/nachrichten/deutschland-welt/braucht-deutschland-eigene-atomwaffen-analyse,Ug5NOIkWatch Merz's retro campaign ad here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XxuJekayt0M&ab_channel=FriedrichMerz*****Follow Spaßbremse on Twitter (@spassbremse_pod). Music by Lee Rosevere. Art by Franziska Schneider.Support us on Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/spassbremse

Mar 26, 2025 • 58min
66 - Is it happening there? ("fascism debate" pt. 1 w/Daniel Bessner)
Is America (and Europe) descending into fascism? And can the term ever be applicable outside the specific historical context of interwar Europe? To review the "fascism debate" of Trump I and revisit it given the political shifts in the US and Europe since 2020, Ted speaks with Daniel Bessner of the American Prestige podcast. Danny is a firm "no" and he tries to stop Ted from drifting into the "yes" camp. Listen and decide for yourself.Read Danny's piece in TNR here: https://newrepublic.com/article/170890/does-american-fascism-existFor one of the prominent "yes" voices, see John Ganz here: https://www.unpopularfront.news/p/the-march-on-rome-one-century-laterSee the meme Ted made that (re)started the conversation: https://x.com/ted_knudsen/status/1899556117916573975*****Follow Spaßbremse on Twitter (@spassbremse_pod). Music by Lee Rosevere. Art by Franziska Schneider.Support us on Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/spassbremse

Mar 24, 2025 • 11min
Premium 39: Debt and Defense (preview)
Support us on Patreon here to listen to the full thing: https://www.patreon.com/spassbremse****What does "military Keynesianism" portend for Germany and the world? On this subscriber-only episode, Ted breaks down the recent momentous changes in German attitudes toward debt and defense, with Merz's rewriting of the Schuldenbremse and a massive infrastructure and defense fund on the agenda.Listen to Tooze and Pistor here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whP2OD-VUQc&ab_channel=GlobalThoughtCUSee Ted's TV appearance here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikRr82K91Uw&ab_channel=Roundtable*****Follow Spaßbremse on Twitter (@spassbremse_pod). Written and produced by Ted Knudsen. Music by Lee Rosevere. Art by Franziska Schneider.

Feb 21, 2025 • 1h 8min
65 - Realism and imperialism w/Matthew Specter
Where does the international relations concept of "realism" come from? Can it be useful for promoting a progressive politics? Or does it support a more imperialist worldview? To discuss, Ted speaks with Matthew Specter of UC Berkeley about his book The Atlantic Realists. They discuss how the school of thought formed and what types of foreign policy mistakes it condemns—as well as other sins that it may condone.Buy his book here: https://www.sup.org/books/history/atlantic-realists*****Follow Spaßbremse on Twitter (@spassbremse_pod). Music byLee Rosevere. Art by Franziska Schneider.Support us on Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/spassbremse

Feb 12, 2025 • 1h 10min
64 - Bundestagswahl 2025 w/ Ingar Solty
Ahead of the next German federal election on February 23rd, what are the main issues for voters, how is the Left doing, and where does Germany find itself in the world? To explain all this and more, Ted speaks to Ingar Solty, a researcher at the Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung, about what to expect a week from Sunday and beyond.Follow Ingar here:https://x.com/IngarSoltyBuy his book here:https://www.vsa-verlag.de/nc/buecher/detail/artikel/usa-nach-der-wahl/*****Follow Spaßbremse on Twitter (@spassbremse_pod). Music byLee Rosevere. Art by Franziska Schneider.Support us on Patreon herehttps://www.patreon.com/spassbremse

Feb 2, 2025 • 53min
63 - The Merkel Memoirs, pt. 1 (w/ Dominik Leusder)
What can we learn from Angela Merkel's recently-published memoir, Freiheit/Freedom? To discuss this massive 700-page book, Ted is joined by Dominik Leusder of Eurotrash. This is part 1, reaching from her childhood to her early political career. Subscribe to our Patreon to hear part 2.
Listen to our original Merkel episode "Wir schaffen...was?" here: https://spotifycreators-web.app.link/e/jYZlNuSyDQb
Follow Dominik here: https://x.com/NewLeftEViews
Read Dominik's 2021 Jacobin article on Merkel here and Ted's piece from the same year in Project Syndicate.
*****
Follow Spaßbremse on Twitter (@spassbremse_pod). Music by Lee Rosevere. Art by Franziska Schneider.
Support us on Patreon here https://www.patreon.com/spassbremse

Dec 31, 2024 • 46min
62 - The life, death (and rebirth?) of the Habsburg Empire w/ Natasha Wheatley
How did the Hapsburgs form a massive, multiethnic empire out of some disorganized principalities? Why was Austria-Hungary a thing? Did the Habsburg Empire really collapse because it was an anachronistic "empire of nations?" And is the Habsburg Empire coming back through a dynastic marriage with future "American Caesar," Barron Trump?
To get answers to these pressing questions, we speak with Natasha Wheatley of Princeton University about her book The Life and Death of States: Central Europe and the Transformation of Modern Sovereignty. Ted and Natasha discuss the early history of the empire, the pressures of the 1848 revolutions, and legal innovations of the empire, and speculate as to why people are still compelled by monarchical structures.
Buy the book here: https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691244075/the-life-and-death-of-states
Read her Dial piece here: https://www.thedial.world/articles/news/issue-20/eduard-habsburg-the-habsburg-way-review
See the insane Twitter thread about Barron's potential princess wives here: https://x.com/Shahenshah_Chud/status/1789716792325062871
Follow Eduard here: https://x.com/EduardHabsburg and (preferably) Natasha here: https://x.com/natasha_wheatl
Thanks so much to everyone who listened to Spaßbremse in 2024! Wishing you a Happy New Year and looking forward to a great 2025 (for the podcast and its listeners at least, if not the world at large).
*****
Follow Spaßbremse on Twitter (@spassbremse_pod). Music by Lee Rosevere. Art by Franziska Schneider.
Support us on Patreon here https://www.patreon.com/spassbremse

Nov 13, 2024 • 53min
The Christian Lindner Episode (UNLOCKED)
***this is an unlocked episode from our Patreon, subscribe for more bonus content***
On our first premium bonus episode, Michelle and Ted talk about one of the most exciting, innovative, and "dynamisch" people in German politics: the one and only Christian Lindner, leader of the FDP and likely next German finance minister.
This episode's reading is courtesy of Politico: Christian Lindner - The Radical from their 2018 list of "the 28 people who are shaping, shaking and stirring Europe."
Our boy Lindner's been catching a lot of people's attention lately, and our competitors over at Deutsche Welle beat us to a profile earlier this week. You can check it out (if you must) here: Christian Lindner - The FDP's clever tactician
To see some of the incredible Lindner photos mocked on this episode, check out the biography page on his website. You can find the oft-mentioned TV spot from 1997 about the young Lindner's ad business on YouTube.
Produced by Isaac Würmann. Music by Lee Rosevere. Art by Franziska Schneider. Follow Spaßbremse on Twitter: @spassbremse_pod. Subscribe to our Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/spassbremse

Nov 8, 2024 • 1h 33min
61 - Napoleon and Hitler? w/ Everett Rummage (Germany and Napoleon pt. 3)
Happy 18 Brumaire! In the honor of the anniversary and this week's election, Spaßbremse has a "guys who don't like democracy" special with special guest Everett Rummage of the Age of Napoleon podcast.
We discuss whether comparisons between Hitler and Napoleon are valid and what any traits they share might say about rightwing strongmen in general.
Listen to The Age of Napoleon here: https://ageofnapoleon.com/
*****
Follow Spaßbremse on Twitter (@spassbremse_pod). Music by Lee Rosevere. Art by Franziska Schneider.
Support us on Patreon here https://www.patreon.com/spassbremse
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