Berlin Before The Wall Tumbled, Germany, Part Two

I spent about a week in Berlin back in the mid 1980s. Berlin is certainly one of the world’s great cities, and at that time, the city was still divided by the famous, or infamous, “Berlin Wall.” For those unaware, following Hitler’s defeat in 1945, Germany was divided into occupation zones, with the Soviets, British, French and Americans each administering a zone. Berlin, the capitol and largest city, was a special case, in that it too was divided into occupation zones. The city had been captured by the Soviets in a bloody battle in the waning days of the war. During that episode, nutcase Hitler committed suicide in his underground bunker, the German military authorities surrendered the city just a couple of days later, and Germany surrendered about a week after that.

Berlin was located within the Soviet occupation zone, and the Soviets retained control over the eastern part of the city, which included the former government section, which dated back well before the Nazis came to power. This meant that the western part of the city was essentially an island in a Soviet controlled area. With the establishment of two German governments, one in western Germany, and oddly known to most Americans as “West Germany,” and one in eastern Germany, and known to most Americans as “East Germany” (hmm, DARN, wonder why we called them these names???). East Berlin became the capitol of East Germany, known officially as the German Democratic Republic (Deutsche Demokratische Republik, or DDR), but with West Berlin surrounded by the Communist dominated East Germany, the free part of the city was not a practical location for the West German capitol, which was established in Bonn. The official name of West Germany was the Federal Republic (of) Germany (Bundes Republik Deutschland, or BRD).*

The so called “Cold War” brought great tensions between the Soviet Union, along with the Communist dominated nations of eastern Europe, and the United States and much of western Europe. Over the next couple of decades, Germans fled the Communist “East” to the “West.” The continued loss of many highly talented, well-educated people became so serious for East Germany, that in the early 1960s, the East German government (certainly supported by, or coerced by, the Soviets) built a wall along the border between East and West Berlin, and between East and West Germany. It was a bit surreal for me, and probably many Americans visiting Germany, to see “the Wall,” along with barbed wire and guard towers, where heavily armed guards watched just about every move along the border areas. Communist propaganda announced early on that the wall had been built to keep aggressors out, but such talk fooled no one, including most East Germans (except those in denial of reality), and people knew the wall had been erected to keep East Germans from moving to the West. It was a terrible time, as many German families and friends were divided from one another. I don’t recall the actual number of Germans killed trying to escape over, under or around the wall. Every successful escape was proclaimed as a victory in the West, and every failed attempt, and especially if it ended in death, was cause for solemn moments. Eventually, West Germans erected tall crosses (and maybe other symbols, I just forget) to commemorate those who lost their lives trying to flee East Berlin (not sure about other border parts of Germany), and flowers were commonly brought by visitors to add their own remembrances. When I was in Berlin, there were large platforms on the western side, where folks could look over into Communist East Berlin.

I traveled by train from Frankfurt am Main to Hamburg, and then from Hamburg into East Germany and then into West Berlin. At the East German border I had to purchase a special transit visa to traverse East German territory to get to West Berlin. The East German authorities had learned much about escape attempts, and barbed wire entanglements were strung along the rail lines for maybe about a mile beyond the checkpoints to prevent East Germans from jumping aboard a train just before it entered West Berlin or West Germany. This would give them time to halt the train and search for the “offender.”

During the train ride through East German territory, I was naturally asked for my passport and transit visa, and the East German official simply asked why I was in Germany. I was in a compartment with a young West German from the Heidelberg area, if I remember right, and a middle-aged West German couple (I forget where they were from), but the husband was a teacher. When I arrived in West Berlin I had to find a place to stay, and I went to a little kiosk that provided info about the city for a fee. An old, heavy-set Berliner who reminded me of “W.C. Fields" gave me directions. I remember that at first I asked him in German if he spoke English. When it comes to business, I thought it best to conduct it in English, but he looked at me after my first German utterances and said, “Warum wollen Sie Englisch sprechen? Sie sprechen aber fantastisches Deutsch.” (“Why do you want to speak English? You speak fantastic German.”) I have to admit, that was a great compliment that did loads for my ego, and it was not the last compliment I received in Berlin, for a few days later when I went to the train station to purchase my return ticket to Frankfurt in advance, a little guy, reeking of alcohol, came up to me. He was looking for a hand out to quench his thirst, which obviously required a hell of a lot of quenching, and I swear, I got a hangover from just breathing in the fumes. In our little exchange (in German), he said to me, in German, “You must be from near Frankfurt?” I simply answered that I wasn’t. He said, “Well…you talk like someone from that area of Hessen.” Again folks, this is a major compliment. Germans love to talk about their language, and they are very proud of it. Proper German is difficult, as the grammar is enough to drive the sanest person towards insanity (far more complicated than English grammar). English and German are close cousins, but part of what separates the two languages is that English has “simplified,” for lack of a better term, from the Middle Ages, but German has retained many of the common characteristics the two languages shared back in those times. For instance, while we certainly still understand “thy” and “thine,” they are not a part of our every day speech any longer, but rather are relegated to old texts, often, but not exclusively, religious in nature, or spoken in plays, such as Shakespeare, which were written back in that era. German has retained these two terms, as “dein” (pronounced like “dine”=”thine”) and the improper (in standard German) “dei” (pronounced like “die/dye”=”thy”), used often in certain German dialects.

Right along the western side of the wall in central Berlin stood the former German Parliament building, the Reichstag. In early 1933, just after Hitler had become Chancellor of Germany, the building suffered a major fire started by the Nazis.** The former government sector of Berlin, including the various offices and buildings from the Nazi Era, at least any that still survived at that time, were in East Berlin, including Hitler’s bunker. Most, but not all, of the buildings from that time had been torn down, as most had been extensively damaged during the war.

More in “Part Three-Wiesbaden” (A word history is below the notes)

*While these separate German governments were established, along with military forces for each, the four occupation zones remained in existence, and thus the “Allied Powers” remained in military control of the two Germanys.

** I haven’t kept up with all of the information in more recent times, but for quite some time historians debated who actually started the fire. I’m sure there is plenty of info available for those interested, but with the caveat that this is from my recollection, there was a tunnel leading to the basement area of the Reichstag from the President of the Reichstag’s office building, which I believe was just across the street. The tunnel had been there for quite some time, giving private entry to the building for the president, and it was not a Nazi invention. The President of the Reichstag when the fire occurred was Hermann Göring, one of Hitler’s closest friends and associates, and a leading Nazi. Supposedly Hitler knew nothing of the fire plot, but, urged on by Göring and Propaganda Minister, Josef Goebbels, he used the fire to order a major crackdown on political opponents, having many a person shipped off to early concentration camps. The Nazis claimed the fire had been started by a halfwit Communist (or Communist sympathizer). Some historians believe that the Nazis had a stroke of good luck on the night of the fire, as they feel the Nazi claim that this man was found inside the Reichstag with flammable materials was true, and that indeed he had intended to start a fire, and may have even done so, but that the main fire was far too extensive for a one man job (the Reichstag is a huge building). Whatever the truth, this man provided the Nazis with cover, and the “culprit” was quickly tried and executed, certainly removing any chance of him telling his story. The Reichstag was so severely damaged (even its huge domed top collapsed), that future meetings of the legislative body (still called the Reichstag) were moved to the Kroll Opera House (German=Kroll Oper), and indeed, for those of you who have watched the historical footage in newsreels from the Nazi era, it was in the Kroll Opera House that Hitler gave many a speech, including his announcement of the attack on Poland on September 1, 1939, which launched World War Two. Within a short while of the fire, the legislative body became nothing but a Nazi rubber stamp for Hitler’s policies, eventually containing only Nazi Party members.

WORD HISTORY:
Heave-This word, related to "have," traces back to Indo European "kahp," which meant "seize, take." The Old Germanic offshoot was "khabjan/khafjan," which seems to have had the added notion of lifting or raising (when taking). This gave Old English "hebban," which meant "to lift, to raise." As the spelling changed over time, the word also took on the additional meaning of "throw," with the idea being that the object required a good deal of "lift" to throw it. That idea was also behind the notion of vomiting, as the stomach contents were "lifted and then then expelled." The familiar expression "heave-ho," came from nautical terminolgy, with the meaning "lift" still much in evidence. German has "heb(en)," Low German has "heven," Dutch has "heffen," Icelandic has "hefja," Danish has " hæve," Norwegian "heve," and Swedish has "häva," all with some meaning of  "to lift, to raise, to hoist, to heave."

More Reason For Anger

As a sort of supplement to the other day's thoughts on why we're angry, let's add another; the Supreme Court decision to allow corporations to spend all they want on elections. We're back to the libertarian idea of the best regulation is no regulation, the same basic idea that has helped put the economy in the tank. There has been some bipartisanship on the overall issue of campaign finance, with Senator John McCain being in the forefront of reform and limitations on spending by powerful interests, so this isn't just a liberal or Democratic idea. In fact, if I remember right, President Teddy Roosevelt, a Republican, strongly supported restrictions on spending by corporations on political campaigns about a hundred years ago. And taking corporate money is a bipartisan issue, too, with candidates in both parties grabbing what they can, although there's no question that Republicans tend to benefit much more from business interests, but there's also no question, the system is already tied up by special interest money. So folks, if you were angry at the banks and other businesses before, you'll have much more to be angry about now, and even more once the election campaign kicks off in the late summer. Everywhere you turn, big corporations dominate. The corporate powers are not afraid of anyone or anything. If you feel powerless, you're not alone, and the conservative members of the Supreme Court have just handed you another blow.

This President missed an opportunity to don the mantel of leadership of the economic populism that was seething when he took office. One of the criticisms of Obama is that while it's nice to have a president who "thinks," it is also nice to have a president who uses his heart, and he can seem distant at times. If he thought that cutting the banks and other bigwigs a break by not firing up the public against them even more would win them over, he's sorely mistaken. They think ONLY of themselves and whatever serves them at the moment. I hope I'm wrong, but I don't think the President can totally regain this issue, as to me, that ship has sailed. Franklin Roosevelt, a politician if there ever was one, was not afraid to use the populism spawned by the Depression against the bigwigs. Unlike Obama, Roosevelt was never mistaken for an intellectual, but he had intellectuals advising him, and HE made the calls on how to bring ideas of change to Americans, which often ran counter to what the wealthy interests supported. Many of the wealthy elites hated him, but much of the public LOVED him!

WORD HISTORY:
Anger-This goes back to Indo European "angg/angh," which had the notion of "narrow, constricted, tight; and thus also, painful." There were/are various forms of this base in many of the other Indo European languages, for instance Latin "angere," means to "throttle/strangle," and Greek "ankhein" means to "to squeeze/strangle." This base also gave Old Germanic "angus," which was passed on to its offspring, including Old English "enge," which meant "narrow," and also "painful, distressed." It seems the North Germanic Norse brought "angr" (from the same Old Germanic base) with them to England (the Danes), and their meaning for the word was "to grieve," but also "to provoke, to cause distress." That latter meaning then took hold in England and has developed into our modern meaning. German and Dutch, very close relatives of English, both have "eng," still meaning "narrow."

Why Are We So Angry?

It certainly seems that America is one angry nation. The question is, "Why?" Actually, there are lots of answers, as this is an individual sort of thing, but with some groups of angry Americans connected by the same or similar anger. The George W. Bush era, although not without some foundations produced during the Clinton Era and during previous administrations, seems to have brought about much of this anger, although some Republicans probably won't admit to that. The 9/11 attacks galvanized the country in support of the President. He decided to hit back by sending troops into Afghanistan to go after the bad guys. One problem was, he never asked us to pay for that war. It has gone on seemingly forever, and what first was a war supported by a huge percentage of Americans, has now sunk woefully low in public opinion polls. Then just a short while later, Bush ordered our military into Iraq and he didn't ask us to pay for that war either. That war continues, too. Within about a year, the Iraq war began to grate on the nerves of Americans as casualties mounted and there was obviously no plan on how to get our troops out of there. This war, especially, cast a shadow over the Bush Administration, as the announced reasons for going into Iraq changed as time passed. First we were told it was to get Iraq's weapons of mass destruction, which could be passed onto Al Qaida terrorists. When the weapons were never found, we were then told that it was to get Saddam out of power, as he had had ties to Al Qaida (something that has never been proven, and has been refuted in many ways) and then that was augmented by our desire to establish democracy in Iraq. The whole saga (which still has no final chapter) made many Americans skeptical of Bush and his advisers. The Afghan war was put on the back burner, but that didn't stop the pot from simmering; something we have come to realize within this last year or so. President Obama decided early on to send more American troops to Afghanistan, and to increase that number even more just recently. The President's decision has bumped up support for the Afghanistan war a bit in public opinion polls, but the last I saw, it was just barely over 50%.*

To me, the Bush Era was filled by an American anxiety. The results of free trade policies began to hit home more and more, as American companies transferred a number of operations overseas, along with the jobs that had supported those operation here, to take advantage of cheap labor costs.** Wages and benefits for the average American worker stagnated, as home based companies struggled to compete against foreign goods, produced in countries where workers were often paid only a few dollars a day. This brought about enormous trade deficits of tens of billions of dollars each month; that is, America was importing (buying) more goods than we were exporting (selling).*** Tax cuts were enacted that benefited the very wealthiest Americans.**** Federal budget deficits soared. The stock market boomed, making the wealthiest Americans even wealthier. Oil and gasoline prices soared, making the wealthiest Americans even wealthier. Natural gas prices soared (temporarily), making the wealthiest Americans even wealthier. All in all, there was a massive flow of wealth from lower and middle class Americans into the bank accounts of the very wealthiest Americans (and foreign nations), who took their added money and further invested it in products, driving up the prices on everything in sight, from corn to wheat to dairy products. The tremendous surge in energy prices further drove up prices on EVERYTHING, picking the pockets of EVERY American, except for the very wealthiest, who earned more and more from such things. The income gap between the wealthiest Americans and the rest of us grew to levels not seen since the 1920s, and this was acknowledged even by Alan Greenspan, Ben Bernanke, and George W. Bush. The unemployment rate gradually dropped from the recession that followed 9/11, falling below 5% with about two years to go in Bush's presidency, but many Americans didn't feel secure. Millions of Americans were either in foreclosure, or had notice of such, and millions more were filing bankruptcy. Companies moved plants overseas or companies long established in an area changed locations faster than NBC changed Jay Leno and Conan O'Brien.

Then came the collapse. Banks teetered, and several big banks were merged into other banks to save them. One big bank, Lehman, failed. Panic hit, and Wall Street retreated; no "Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead" for those of the "sit on their ass class." Unemployment soared, federal budget deficits soared even more, budget constraints began affecting more and more states and local governments. The Bush Administration and the Federal Reserve moved to save the banking system from total collapse. The Fed lowered interest rates to zilch. They also gave protection to some non-banks, by calling them "banks," and entitling them to borrow money from the Fed to stay afloat. The Bush Administration pushed through Congress, with much Democratic backing, a bailout plan to save the American banking industry. Later we would find out that billions of dollars were given to banks with no conditions! Further, we also found out that wealthy banking officials were knocking down millions in "bonus" money each year, even though their companies were floundering. So, run your company into the ground, get rewarded! The Obama Administration came to office and essentially picked up where their predecessors left off. They moved to save the American auto industry with billions in bailouts, but also forced the auto industry to come up with plans to show how they could become profitable again.

With millions out of work, budget deficits mounting by the hundreds of billions of dollars, foreclosures escalating even above the already records numbers, the President and his advisers chose to spend political capital on reforming the nation's health care system, with potential costs around a trillion dollars or more over ten years. This, along with sending more troops to Afghanistan, with the added expense of doing such, and getting a Congress devised "stimulus" plan of about $800 billion passed, made many Americans feel that the President was trying to do too much.

From what I can see, there are a lot of different elements to American anger, and not everyone's anger is about the same things, except there does seem to be a consensus (many of the left and many of the right) that they are VERY angry at the bankers, and possibly big business in general. Some on the political right are upset over the deficits, although most were not as vocal about the mounting red ink when Republicans were in charge of the national credit card. Others are angry over government intrusion into "free markets;" that is, into the banking and auto industries, and attempts at reforming the health care system. Others still are angry about some homeowners getting help or special deals to try to prevent foreclosure.^ Some analysts have said they feel that some on the right have pent up anger from the Bush years, as they didn't like many of the things he did, but they kept their mouths shut. Now, with a Democrat in the White House, they have vented their frustration. Probably some truth to that. Others, hopefully small in number, but I have to include this, are just plain angry that a black man is president. They can't stand that a man of a black father and white mother could hold the highest office in the land. My "guess" is, some of these have latched onto one or more of the other issues I've mentioned as a form of cover. On the political left, many are angry that the war issues have not been totally dealt with, especially now that there is an escalation in Afghanistan. Others are angry that some advisers to the President have strong ties to Wall Street, or were involved in supposed oversight of Wall Street (I'd have to say that some on the political right, feel this way too). Others are angry that their own pet issues have not received high priority by the administration. Still others are angry that regulations have not yet been put in place to curb Wall Street or the businesses deemed "too big to fail" (although that "appears" to be changing).

So, there are a lot of things to be angry about, but we don't all agree on those things; in fact, some run counter to one another, as in a support FOR government regulation, and an opposition TO government involvement in business matters. We'll have to see how things develop. No doubt in my mind, IF unemployment does begin to recede, we'll see the anger level begin to cool. (A word history is after the notes)

* Public opinion polls DO MATTER! I know, lots of people don't like to hear that, at least not if those polls are contrary to their own position. Polls give us some idea of what Americans are thinking about on important issues. Yes, they can be flawed, or they can be skewed by how questions are asked, but if we take the main polls and compare them, it gives us a pretty good idea of public opinion. Unlike election polls that might show one candidate leading by a few points, only to lose the election, public opinion polls on issues don't rely on people actually having to cast a ballot, or changing their minds at the last minute (issue polls are typically an ongoing thing). I'm NOT saying they're perfect, but they're all we have, and they are NOT going away. In our system, political leaders who dare too much to ignore public opinion, especially if that opinion is heavily weighted to one side of an issue, can face harsh reality.

** This is not just a swipe at G.W. Bush, as much of the basic legislation on free trade was supported by, and passed during, the Clinton Administration, with support from all living ex-presidents at that time (Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan, Bush Sr.), and a televised debate with Vice President Gore in support of the free trade legislation, and Ross Perot in opposition. I think G.W. Bush took free trade to a whole new level, however, with little regard for American workers, except for duties on foreign steel for about a year.

*** I'm putting this simplistically, but previously, for instance, if a product was made in a country with cheap labor, we imposed a duty (tax) on it when it entered the country, thus driving up the price of that product, so that our own products remained competitive.

**** And not with 60 votes required in the Senate. They were ushered through in a process called "Reconciliation," which required only a majority vote. You've got to watch these politicians (in both parties). They tout certain procedures when those procedures advance their own cause, only to scream "foul" when the same process is used or threatened to be used by their opponents.

^ I heard Joe Scarborough of "Morning Joe," on cable station MSNBC, the other day mention that some people are angry because they are part of "the 90% who paid their mortgages." Now, I like Joe, and he's a VERY smart guy, but that seems a bit nasty. After all, many of those who have been foreclosed on never dreamed their job would go overseas, or that they would get laid off, or their pay would be cut. Further, many Americans NEVER asked for help during their foreclosure process, past or ongoing.

WORD HISTORY:
Sound-This is the adjective form, as English has several words spelled and pronounced the same. This form, meaning "safe, sturdy, healthy," goes back to Indo European "swen," which gave West Germanic "gasundaz," which seems to have developed from Old Germanic "sundas." The West Germanic form (English is a West Germanic language) gave Old English "gesund," with the meaning of "healthy, safe, uninjured." Over time, English altered the spelling a little, and dropped the prefix. Close relatives Dutch and German kept the prefix, as Dutch has "gezond" and German has "gesund." By the way, German "Gesundheit," the word said after someone sneezes, means "health/healthiness." It can also be used as we use "Cheers," when having a drink. The idea of "health/safety" also gave English the extended meaning of something being "sturdy." So we have uses like "safe and sound," and also "that building is sound," and the financial meaning "that company is sound." This also seems to be the same word as in "sound sleep," I suppose with the idea being that good sleep is "healthy."

That Loud Squeal You Hear

I originally published this in January 2010 

 

That loud squeal you hear is from Wall Street bankers. We're about to find out if President Obama "gets it." We'll also find out how many Democrats AND Republicans "get it" in both houses of Congress. The President is supposed to announce new proposals to curb Wall Street and the "anything goes" philosophy turned loose on the American public by Republicans, but aided and abetted (even urged) by some Democrats over a decade ago. From what I understand, the proposals will move the country back toward the Glass-Steagall Act that separated traditional banks from investment banks; that is, banks that take lots of risk. Further, some "fees" will be imposed on the banks and possibly the bankers. Oh my...it's got to be tough contemplating how to get by on 40 million a year rather than 50 million, and boy would many of us like to find out how tough it is, for even less than that amount.

This President has shown that he can be pushed and shoved around, by both Democrats and Republicans, but let's see if he finally takes a stand on something and doesn't give away the store because of nasty rhetoric from some opponents. Proposals to curb the banks need to be supplemented by curbs on commodity speculation, especially in such essentials to the very survival of the nation as oil and gasoline. I'll throw in natural gas, too, for I see T. Boone Pickens is running new ads about switching many oil using items over to "plentiful" American natural gas. I've said here before that Pickens is using his own money to promote turning us away from oil (much of it imported from countries that don't exactly invite us to birthday parties), and I have to give him a big hand for that, but I just don't trust the "inve$tment cla$$," better known to me as the "sit on their ass class." Once we switch, or probably once we commit to switching many things to natural gas, the "plentiful" part will disappear, and we'll be told, "There's a serious shortage of natural gas and you'll be paying double...no... triple (do I hear quadruple?) what it costs now."

All of this will test many Republicans, too. Will those bulwarks of "free markets" turn against their philosophy? Will the threat of regulation of the financial system bring cries of how the Republic is about to end? This could get interesting.

The Dems Get Smacked!

For the better part of a year now, the Democrats have been marching down a path that leads to a sign with one word in bold letters: "SUICIDE." It's tough to say just who the leader of this merry band is. President Obama sometimes seems to be taking the lead, but then he often defers to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. This is what the President did on the "stimulus" plan, for instance, and what he has done on health care. With health care, he laid out some broad outlines and then let the members of Congress fill in the blanks; that is, when they were able to agree on what should go into those blanks. All the while, opponents threw everything they had at the President in hopes that some of it would stick. Well, some of it stuck. After all of these horrendous months of name calling and extreme partisanship (on both sides), this may all come to....NAUGHT!

This White House reminds me of the Bush White House, and trust me, that is NO compliment! They are not on top of things. I understand, in Bush's and Obama's cases, that news coverage (was) is so intense, that it's tough to stay on top of things, but they auditioned for the job knowing that, and they were hired. The Obama campaign was almost flawless and competent in the pursuit of the presidency, but since taking office, what happened?

The President and Democrats were handed the reins to deal with the economy first and foremost. The two wars we're involved in also played a part, and both do tie in to economic matters, as they were never funded, and thus have added to the national debt. As I noted, the President permitted congressional Democrats to develop the "stimulus" package that passed about ten or eleven months ago. A relatively small percentage of the package was really devoted to infrastructure issues, and to me, the whole package was "oversold" as a solution to the economic problems facing the country.

The President and his closest advisers chose health care reform as THE issue of 2009, his first year in office. Now, regular readers know I support MAJOR health care reform, but the mood of the country, no matter how noble the cause, and regardless of what the President or his people advocate, is NOT for this complex bill that has consumed the national agenda for most of this past year. Once the decision was made to go full speed ahead on health care, the President and Democrats had no good way of getting out of the predicament in which they had placed themselves. To continue meant going against popular will (read further), and to abandon a major health care bill would say that Democrats, even with big majorities in both houses AND a Democratic President, couldn't govern.

Polls have shown for months that only about a third of the country supports the health care overhaul. My guess is, many Americans don't know what is in the overhaul, and when we don't know something or if we don't understand some issue, we're against it. This shows that supporters have not been able to tell the American people in a clear and concise way why health care overhaul is important to the lives of individual Americans. The absolutely TERRIBLE atmosphere that has developed over the issue since last summer, and the process to fashion a bill in Congress, has just left many Americans "sick" over health care. Then came to special deals to get the votes of a couple of senators. Americans smell scandal, and this has only added another nail in health care's coffin. Democrats have been successful in one thing, they have ticked off virtually every demographic group in the American public over this very divisive issue, including senior citizens, once a highly reliable constituency. In fairness to health care supporters, polls have also shown individual aspects of health care reform (like prohibiting insurance companies from denying coverage due to pre-existing conditions) are much more popular with the public. The deeply disturbing thing about the existing Senate bill is, from what I understand, insurance companies and health care providers support it!!!* What does that tell you folks? It helps them!!! That in itself gives me pause. You will have people forced to buy insurance, providing millions of new customers to insurance companies, and to health care providers. When you have this extra layer (insurance) in the system that is profit driven, how will costs be held down?

Now a Republican has won a Senate seat from Massachusetts, one of the most left-leaning states in the country. Here again, the White House and Democratic leadership seem to have been clueless that this seat was competitive until it was too late. Whether this major smack upside the head will get the attention of the White House and Democrats remains to be seen. The point is, a political party cannot thumb its nose at the American public without paying a price. Look at the Republicans in 2006 and 2008.

* Further, stocks for insurance companies and health care related companies have skyrocketed in the last few months in anticipation of this bill, or something similar, going into effect. Wealthy investors would never put their money on such things if they believed these companies would in some way be hurt or curtailed by the legislation. They obviously see the bill as a big win!

WORD HISTORY:
Sound-We have several words "sound," but in this case, I mean the noun, "a channel of water." This goes back to an Indo European root word "sum/swem," which seems to have had the idea of motion. This gave Old Germanic "sundam," which seems to have meant "swimming," and indeed, is also the source of "swim" (of course swimming requires motion). This gave Old English "sund," which also meant "swimming," but also was used for a place where people went swimming; that is, the sea, water. Later, in the 1300s (one source says later), English took the more specific meaning from North Germanic, possibly from the related Danish word "sund," which was used for a narrow channel of water. German also has "Sund," with the same meaning.

Keep An Open Mind On Science

When I was a kid, I wasn't too thrilled by classes in science. At that young point in my life, I suppose I didn't see the relevance of science and in depth research into various aspects of life and the world around me. As the years ticked by, I began to have much more of an appreciation for that conglomeration of subjects we call "science."

Science can come into conflict with a person's religious views; after all, many folks are brought up on a set of religious beliefs, with the key word being "beliefs." They aren't called "facts," they are called "beliefs." I suppose most of you "believed" in Santa Claus, but at some point, you gave up on that "belief." Many people keep telling me I should give up on that "belief," too, but they can't fool me, I know there's a Santa Claus, because who else would have the nerve to ride through a parade in a sleigh drawn by a team of reindeer, wearing a red suit, and yelling "ho, ho, ho," like the Jolly Green Giant, or Tiger Woods (oops, wrong kind of "ho, ho ho!"). Besides, the judge in "Miracle On 34th Street" ruled there is a Santa Claus, and you can't fool Hollywood!

Actually, science and religion have much in common, as they both have "theories," sometimes about the same subject, like for instance, how humans came to be here in our present form. I'm not writing this to say "agree" or "disagree" with one side or the other. I'm writing this to say, "keep an open mind," and don't be afraid to find out that your long held "beliefs" may have flaws. Those with super strong, fundamentalist "beliefs" loathe many aspects of science,* until "perhaps" they need special medical treatment, or until scientific research might benefit them. Challenging our basic beliefs is a tough one for many (maybe all) of us to accept, but challenging such beliefs is what has moved mankind forward, but there are still those who seem to want to live in, or take us back to, the Stone Age, if not before. Science isn't perfect, but neither is religion, otherwise we wouldn't have religious fanatics cutting off people's heads, or trying to light their underwear on airplanes. (Hmm, I wonder if this guy's mother told him to always wear clean underwear in case he ever tried to ignite explosives he had hidden in them?)

* I'm NOT saying that all religious beliefs are the same. Some folks' religious "beliefs" have evolved to include modernized ideas, often based upon science, and these folks are perfectly comfortable with such "beliefs."

WORD HISTORY:
Moot-This word, closely related to "meet," traces back to the Indo European base "ma/me," which had the notion of "measure." This gave Old Germanic "motam" (noun) and "gamotan" (verb), the noun meant "meeting," a gathering where ideas were "measured" one to another; that is, discussed and decided upon (this same word is also the ancestor of "meet/meeting). This gave Old English "gemot/gamot," I assume the verb forms, and also "mot," with a long "o" sound, which also meant "meeting." It "seems" the modern spelling occurred during the 1100s. The adjective form developed during the 1500s, as law students used the term "moot" for test/mock legal cases (again, the idea of discussing, considering is present, and the term actually had been around in legal matters in Old English times, in a verb form, meaning "to plead in court," and as a noun to mean "a meeting to mete out justice" ). Eventually, the idea of mock legal cases gave us the idea of "debatable," with the notion of "not worth serious debate," or "only legally debatable," as in "a moot point," developing during the 1600s. Other Germanic relatives of both "moot" and "meet(ing)": Low German Saxon has "Mööt" (meeting), Dutch "ontmoeting" (meeting), Danish and Norwegian "møde" (meeting), Icelandic "mót" (meeting, tournament; that is, "meeting in competition"), Swedish "mote" (meeting).

The Economic Fallout Continues

The Obama Administration likes to tout the fact that, during their first year in office, the economy "didn't fall off the cliff." Okay, I'll give them that, and I'll remind regular readers that I said prior to the 2008 election, that whoever won the presidency would probably end up being the loser, as the economic plunge and its aftermath would make life difficult for them, politically (not to count millions of Americans suffering the direct consequences). So, as we begin 2010, where are we, economically speaking?

Well, the economy has stopped plunging downward, and it even has seen some minimal growth, but the emphasis has to be on "minimal." A year ago the nation was losing in excess of a half million jobs every month. Now the unemployment rate sits at 10% (although counting people who have gone to part time work, it may well be in the mid to upper teens), and the number of job losses has slowed considerably, to "only" 85,000 in December 2009. We always have to remember that if YOU are one of those 85,000, "only" is not an important word to you. So, while things certainly are not great, economically speaking, there has been some improvement. So what troubles me?

I'm a chronic worrier, and one of the things that has me worried (notice I said "one of the things") is the dire situation in many states and local communities. State and local government budgets, including for education, are in deep trouble. When the stimulus bill was passed early last year, there was a certain amount of money that went to help state and local governments in an attempt to prevent layoffs from these entities. I guess, at least to some extent, it did help on that front, but now the "medicine" has been cut or stopped, and whether the patients can now get by on their own is very doubtful in my mind. California's budget has been a mess for years, and now they are really under the gun. All over the country state and local governments are trying to bring revenues and expenditures into balance, but at great cost to many people, and to the overall economy. This whole situation could prove to be more than just a thorn in the side of the economy, but it may even help cause a "double dip" recession.

For the "free marketers," they'll say, "It will weed out unnecessary and inefficient programs," and there is a certain amount of truth to that. Of course, some also have argued that Uncle Sam should have just stood by and let nature take its course with the overall economy. To me, that's a bunch of nonsense. Remember folks, those at the top don't worry about their next meal, or their child's next pair of shoes, or their kids' schooling. It is easy for them to make these "do nothing" arguments, and I understand that. What troubles me is that some middle class/working class folks seem to be on that same page. If nothing had been done by Uncle Sam, including the Federal Reserve, my guess is, many of these same folks would be wondering about those things I just mentioned above, because they would now either be unemployed or underemployed.

I know many Americans, including this one, are concerned about the terrible budget deficit, and with good reason. That's one of the reasons the "winner" in 2008, may end up being the "loser." The Bush Era left the country in terrible debt,* unable to properly finance an "anti depression/recession" package. So, the private credit bubble that so helped ravage the economy is now being combated by a trade off to public credit. Not good, but something had to be done. The overall outcome is still to be determined, but in the meantime, watch those state and local situations, and keep your fingers crossed.

* The Afghanistan and Iraq wars were never paid for, nor was the Medicare prescription drug plan. Of course that didn't stop Bush from cutting taxes, and the wealthy benefited tremendously from Bush's tax cuts and his administration's lax regulatory philosophy. Income inequity grew ever wider, with many middle class folks actually losing ground.

WORD HISTORY:
Nimble-The roots of this word go back to Indo European "nem," which had the notion of "dividing, dealing out." The Old Germanic offshoot was "neman(an)," but rather than the notion of "dividing," the meaning veered to the result of something being divided or dealt out; that is, "take, accept." (See note below) This gave Old English "naemel," with the notion of "take" still very much present, as it meant "quick on the uptake/take in knowledge quickly." By the 1300s, this "quickness to learn" began to fade, as the meaning broadened to "quick afoot," and then also, "agile," and the spelling changed to "nemel." Later still (1400s or 1500s) the spelling changed again and the "b" was added, presumably because it made pronunciation easier, although some believe it was copied from the spelling of "limb."

Note: In Old English the verb "niman" meant "to take," but this was later replaced by "take." Modern German has "nehmen," which still means "to take."

Frankfurt-am-Main, Germany

(September 12, 2016) Just a note: I published this in early 2010 and some of the information, especially regarding immigration, is now outdated, but I chose to leave it as is. Back then I made a note in this article (note *), that I would give explanation to who or what is a German, which, thereafter, I proceeded to do in a series I called, "The German Question." Originally I thought I would do about half a dozen articles on the subject, but, as I often do, I got carried away and I did a basic history of the Germans in their various "forms," and the series went from a half dozen articles, to more than 150!!! The series drew many, many thousands of views from all over the world, and it was so popular, I have re-run it a couple of times since. My first paragraph below quickly became outdated, when I began writing "The German Question."  

Much of what I intend to write here will be from firsthand experience or recollection, and I have no intention of writing a history of the Germans, nor a travel guide for those inclined to visit, as there are many great books and online sources available in great detail for these subjects. I will try to give some historical background on various subjects, if for no other reason than to provide a perspective for the topic at hand.

Frankfurt am Main (pronounced like "om mine") means Frankfurt on the Main (River). It is frequently called this extended name because there is another Frankfurt in Germany, just east of Berlin, and to differentiate, it is called "Frankfurt an der Oder;" that is, Frankfurt on the Oder (River). Frankfurt am Main (hereafter I'll use just "Frankfurt" in this article) is the city of the famous "Frankfurter," or what we commonly call hotdogs or franks (the abbreviated version of frankfurter) in the United States. German areas beyond Germany itself, including Austria, much of Switzerland, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein, Alsace, and South Tirol,* all have sausages of different shapes, sizes, and flavors, and they are sold everywhere! To my knowledge, it was in the United States that putting a sausage inside a split bun became popular, as in German areas the various sausages are typically served separately on a small plate with a dab of mustard and a roll. My German relatives look on a bit perplexed when I get ketchup with mine. They seem to think I'm strange...ah...I'll leave that statement alone. Actually, Germans do eat ketchup with one sausage dish called "Currywurst," a recipe they picked up from Turkish and Middle Eastern foreign workers after World War Two. It is simply a bratwurst type sausage (usually cut into bite-sized pieces) with ketchup and curry powder on it, although after it gained more popularity, the ketchup and curry were often already pre-mixed and simply squirted on. While certainly not uncommon elsewhere, they are especially known in Berlin.

Frankfurt is located in the German state of Hessen, often referred to as Hessia or Hesse in English. It is THE financial hub of Germany. I've often thought, even many years ago, how much we could learn about public transportation from the Germans, and especially Frankfurt, which offers so many ways to travel around the area: light rail, street cars, buses. Germans use trains, including what we call "light rail," much more than most Americans do. The trains are efficient and well maintained, or at least they were in the many times I was there, although I haven't been back to Germany since 1995. If you want to take local light rail in Frankfurt, you don't necessarily have to stand in line to get a ticket. You just go to one of the many self-serve machines, check out the map to see your route number, insert the proper fare, and out comes your ticket.** Frankfurt is my favorite city of all. Why? Maybe because it reminds me of many American cities, with lots of tall skyscrapers ("Wolkenkratzer," or literally, "cloud scrapers" in German), but it also has something of "old Germany" still in existence, too. The city was absolutely devastated by Allied bombing during World War Two, but the Germans often found former architectural prints and rebuilt parts of the city based on these old records.*** Frankfurt was the city where many of the German emperors of the old German Empire were elected, and then a bit later, the emperors were even crowned there.****

Frankfurt also is a huge transportation hub, and the Frankfurt airport (Flughafen is the German word for airport, and, incidentally, all German nouns are capitalized, thus the capital "F") is one of the busiest airports in the world; perhaps even the busiest. On a couple of occasions I remember the plane I was on had to circle the city waiting for permission to land, as there were so many other planes ahead of mine. The airport is connected to other parts of the area, including downtown Frankfurt, by rail. The Frankfurt railway station (rail station in German is Bahnhof, and the Frankfurt station is called the "Hauptbahnhof," or "Main Train Station") is an absolute delight, with lots of little shops, and you can get a train to go just about anywhere in Europe from there. Of course, if you're traveling more local, like to Wiesbaden, which I'll guess is about 25 miles away, you can also depart from the Frankfurt rail station. I traveled between Frankfurt and Wiesbaden many times.

Downtown Frankfurt has a shopping district that is closed to motor vehicle traffic during certain hours (only late night and early morning can vehicles enter to clean up trash or make deliveries). This area, called the "Fussgängerzone," (more or less literally "foot goer zone," or "pedestrian zone") is lined with shops, large and small, and in good weather, it is not uncommon to see musicians playing various instruments or people with some acrobatic skills hopping and tumbling around, although always with a cup available for "donations." (Hey, they've got to make a living, and they aren't manipulating prices or trying to lure anyone into risky investments, and you don't have to give if you don't want to.) In Frankfurt this pedestrian zone has the name the "Zeil." The shopping area is very busy, even at times, well into the evening. Frankfurt is a major European convention city, and many convention attendees can be seen looking for souvenirs in this area. Not far away from the shopping area is the Frankfurt Zoo, and my love of animals has taken me there on numerous occasions. At various places around town you might also see open displays about sexual books, magazines, "devices," or "places." They aren't necessarily hidden on back streets or alleyways, and to my knowledge, no German has turned into a pillar of salt because they are there. It is also not uncommon to hear a guy out in front of some "establishments" calling "Peep show!!! Come in and peep!" For those unaware, they aren't selling recently hatched chickens.

My visits to Germany mainly took place when the United States had a major military presence there, although we still have some military facilities located in Germany, but far, far fewer than during the Cold War and the immediate years following its end. The Frankfurt/Wiesbaden area had lots of Americans (military personnel, their families, and tourists), and hearing (American) English was not at all uncommon, and all German shop clerks, waiters, waitresses, and hotel employees could speak English on a range of fair to excellent. I assume it is still the case, but Germans (then "West" Germans) were required to take either two or four years of English in school (I just forget).^ One German hotel manager I became friends with many years ago told me a funny little story. He was born near the end of World War Two in an area that became part of the Soviet-dominated part of the country, but his family escaped to the West and settled in the Frankfurt area. He is retired and lives in suburban Frankfurt. Anyway, he studied English in hospitality school. He got a job at a Frankfurt hotel. The hotel was frequented by many American servicemen and women, and many, many American tourists. He said, "I was young and cocky. On my first day, we had several Americans check in and out, and I had understood them very well, so I told my boss, 'I want to handle the check in for the next American who comes in.' The boss gave his approval. The next person through the door was an American...and he was from Texas." I started laughing as soon as he told me this. He said, "I didn't understand one damned word that man said!"

As Germany recovered from World War Two, especially by the late 1950s and the 1960s, they began to experience a labor shortage. Thousands of foreigners went to Germany looking to find work. Many of these people came from Turkey, but also from a variety of European countries (I once knew an Italian from Taranto who had worked for several years in Germany, and then came to the U.S., where his sister was already living). At first the Germans welcomed these folks who often took jobs at the lower end of the employment system. Gradually a problem arose, as the flow of foreigners continued, with many men having gone "home" and returned to (then West) Germany with their families. A culture clash was inevitable, and as mainly Turks moved into some neighborhoods, Germans moved out, eventually leaving whole parts of some cities, including Frankfurt, as basically Turkish neighborhoods, with Turkish shops and other businesses dominating those areas, and Turkish being spoken in place of German. This brought about a nasty reaction from many Germans (including some foreigners being beaten or killed), and I just don't recall everything that has happened over time, but there was an effort to put severe restrictions on immigration from certain countries, but eventually there was an attempt to get foreigners living in Germany to learn German. Where all of this stands at this point, I really don't know. I haven't heard lately, but if I remember right, by the late 1980s, something like 25% of Frankfurt's population was non-German.

Frankfurt and much of Hessen is noted for apple wine, or hard cider (called "Apfelwein" in standard German, but "Ebbelwei," "Ebbelwoi," or "Appelwoi" in Hessisch, the particular dialect of Hessen, and the dialect of my relatives there, but even it has sub-dialects, depending upon location, and thus the various renditions for "Apple Wine"). My hotel friend mentioned above, told me how he loved to go home in nice weather and sit outside with a bottle of this fine product and "get feeling pretty good!" It is available in some American import stores, or in wine sections of some supermarkets, although I'd guess the availability is often limited to large metro areas. Of course it is sold throughout Frankfurt and is standard fare in food establishments there. Further, traditional Hessian foods are hearty, with lots of pork used as a main course, or in recipe preparation. One of the better known Hessian specialities is "Kassler Rippchen," cured pork rib. Another specialty is "Zwiebelkuchen," or "onion cake," which is a flat cake topped with onions, eggs, sour cream and bacon. One of my favorites is "Backes Grumbeere," which is in Hessian dialect, not standard German, and is a potato dish cooked with lots of onions, bacon, pork shoulder, white wine, some seasonings and cream or sour cream.^^

Of course, when many folks think of Germans, they think of beer! And it is sold EVERYWHERE! Some shops even have little side windows for walk-up take out orders, including beer. Go to McDonalds or Burger King in Germany, beer is on the menu! (Please, please! If you go to Germany or any other country, don't go to the American food places there. You can patronize them on just about any street corner here in the U.S. Try the local foods and beverages. If you want coffee, okay, go to McDonalds or Burger King, although they'll have German coffee, which is much stronger tasting than most American coffee, and I'd say with more caffeine. Buzzzzz!!!) [A word history is after the notes]

* I'll get to explanations about "who or what is a German," somewhere along the way in this series, as it is highly relevant to history.

** How much of this may have changed since I was last there in March of 1995, I don't know. Since that time, however, Germany has switched to the "Euro," the form of money agreed upon and used by many European countries. Formerly Germany used the "Mark," its own money. Today, if you travel within the countries that use the Euro, you needn't go through currency exchange. When I was a kid, and I'd guess up until sometime in the early 1970s, the "Mark" had a fixed exchange rate of four to the dollar, thus making a Mark worth a quarter in American money. When many national currencies were allowed to "float;" that is, find their value versus other currencies by "free market" principles, the rate varied, as is now the case with the Euro.

*** This reconstruction using old records was not unique to Frankfurt, but was used extensively by many heavily damaged German cities and towns after World War Two.

**** Most people have heard of "the Third Reich," the Nazi term for Germany under their rule, but the old German Empire was the "First Reich," if you will. Most Germans tend to refer to the original empire as dating back to Charlemagne, although others date it a bit later. Charlemagne was the French rendering of his name, as his (Germanic) Frankish name was Karl, and he indeed spoke Frankish. He was crowned emperor in 800 A.D. and was such an honored and revered figure that his name was rendered in Latin as "Carolus Magnus." The French version was "Charlemagne," and the German "Karl der Grosse." All of these mean the same thing, "Karl (or Charles) the Great." There is a display of pictures of all of the German emperors in the restored building where many of the emperors were crowned in Frankfurt. If I remember correctly, his picture is displayed as the first German emperor, although he was not crowned in Frankfurt, but in Rome. So the "First Reich" dates from 800 until 1806, when it was dissolved by Emperor Franz II after Napoleon's successful invasion of Germany. The "Second Reich," was the German Empire created by Bismarck and lasted from 1871 until the end of World War One.

^ After World War Two, Germany was divided into occupation zones (American, British, French, Soviet). The British occupied the area up around Bremen/Hamburg and the North See (interesting coincidence that this is where the Anglo-Saxons left to sail to Britain and found England), and the Americans had a large swath of central/southern Germany. So much of western Germany was exposed to English on a daily basis. There was even a television station in English.

^^ The standard word for "potato" in German is "Kartoffel," but there are many regional dialect terms, including "Erdapfel," literally "earth apple," and the above "Grumbeer," which is used in some parts of Hessen. The "beer" part, pronounced somewhat like English "bear," means "berry," but I don't know what the "Grum" part means. Remember, this is not standard German, but dialect, and when I asked some German college students studying in Cleveland if they knew what "Grumbeer" meant, they both answered, "No." (One was from southwestern Germany and the other was from the Dortmund area, if I remember correctly.)

WORD HISTORY:
Tug-This word traces back to Indo European "deuk," which meant "to pull, to pull along (lead)." The Old Germanic offshoot was "teukh," which meant "pull." This gave Old English "teohan" also meaning "pull." By the 1200s, the modern spelling began to emerge. The noun seems to have developed in the 1500s, but it wasn't until the early 1800s that the more common modern usage of "a small boat used to pull larger vessels" came about. German has the related "ziehen," meaning "to pull, to tug" (the "z" is pronounced as if "ts," as in the end of "hits."). Interestingly, the English developed noun form came to be used for a boat that tows a larger vessel, but the German form, "Zug" (the "u" pronounced to rhyme with "food," and the "g" pronounced like "k") came to mean an engine for a train; that is, a vehicle that pulls a number of rail cars. So the idea of "pulling/towing" is still much alive in both languages. (Actually, "Zug" is also used just as the general German word for train.)

Will We Let Them Destroy Us?

The serious economic crisis that we have been experiencing didn't just decide to pay us a visit for the hell of it. It happened because of unchecked greed. The philosophy that the best regulation is no regulation came back to bite us on our behinds, and the bite was so severe, we still can't sit comfortably. Government, at whatever level, can't stop human beings from our various desires, but it can put a clamp on how those desires manifest themselves. Libertarians will say that this is stifling freedom, and the wealthy beneficiaries of the "no regulation" philosophy love that kind of talk. The neighborhood burglar would love the repeal of breaking and entering laws, too; after all, those laws are stifling his desires. Of course, there IS a difference. There isn't much of a constituency for burglars, but the wealthy investors of the country have lots of money to toss around to convince the public that if there are laws to control "the sit on their ass class," that this is not in the interest of the average American. I'd say that to a great extent, they have succeeded, even though this nonsense is NOT in the interest of non-rich Americans. Remember folks, the upper level income groups are able to hire the absolute best public relations people in the world. We are bombarded on a daily basis with all sorts of advertisements telling us how one product is better than another. These people know how to make a case, no doubt about it. They are good at what they do, but that doesn't mean they should be left to run over and flatten many other Americans.

The "sit on their ass class" also has the resources to hire the best financial and legal minds in the world to help them with their "desires." With a certain segment, those desires are insatiable. With those less aggressive, they can't let the others get ahead of them, or they will lose status, and thus the merry-go-round continues, but the rest of us are paying the fare. Even if during these last three decades of massive deregulation, the government hadn't been so lax about regulation, it could never have kept up with these folks, as they have people working the system for them 24/7. Government is overwhelmed and so is the public. And don't get the idea that government at some level could pay some of these financial experts lots of money to join in an investigation of the financial system. There would be ads run telling us how our tax money is being spent and wasted on such things, and my guess is, many Americans would agree. As I've said here numerous times, this isn't actually a conspiracy, it is self-interest, and the wealthy KNOW what is in THEIR own interest. Many in the public don't understand, nor do many people want to take the time to understand, the complex nature of the financial system that the "sit on their ass class" has fashioned. The less we know, the better for them. That's why we need strong government regulation and regulators who have the desire to regulate. It may not be perfect, but we've got to get a handle on this situation. Even after this terrible crisis, the rich are still running the country and the "too big to fail" businesses are even bigger.

At a time when the economy is struggling to make a comeback, "the sit on their ass class" has gotten oil and gasoline prices way above what they were just a year ago. They are pushing gas prices toward $3.00 a gallon, and trust me, if we don't do something to stop these greedy bastards, $4.00 and $5.00 a gallon is not far off. That siphons money from the rest of the economy right into the pockets of...I'll give you one guess. These same folks, and people like them, didn't put petroleum products on futures markets because they thought it would help YOU or the country or the world, they did it, just as they did with complicated mortgage investments, to help themselves. With few people to speak up for the rest of the population, they have made a bundle. Many of these same people didn't push for "free trade" because it would help American workers, rather I'd say, just the opposite, they wanted to circumvent American labor. Now, I'm not saying making money is bad, but they have just ramrodded us and stuffed their pockets and bank accounts, using their gains to make more money, while average Americans have been falling behind, some way behind, even after working harder than ever (less pay and benefits for more work).

During the late 1960s and then the 1970s, Americans came to realize that government couldn't do everything that we had come to expect of it. Now Americans must recognize that free markets have the same problem, or will we let them destroy us?

WORD HISTORY:
Simmer-A pretty common word in today's English, but not much is known about it. Prior to the mid-1600s, it was "simperen," or "simber(en);" I found both. Where it came from is unknown, but some speculate that the original word was imitative of the sound of bubbling liquid. By the 1700s, the word also began to be applied to human emotions "being agitated." About a hundred years later, this meaning brought about the opposite meaning of "simmer down;" that is, "get emotions, usually anger, under control." Now this is just MY question: Could it be related to "simper?"