Published: 14 Aug 12 10:45 CET | Print version
Online: http://www.thelocal.de/opinion/20120814-44345.html
Are police needed at minor car accidents; a dent or a scratch? A German police chief says they are wasting their time on such matters. Is he right, or should a cop be there to ensure everything is done properly? Have your say.
What do you think? Leave your comment below.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives plan to woo voters with family-friendly promises and infrastructure spending worth tens of billions of euros in elections three months from now, said a new draft policy manifesto. READ () »
As the summer holidays approach, The Local is touring Germany's UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Today we visit the Martin Luther memorials in Wittenberg and Eisleben. READ () »
A German dentist who was so desperate for cash that he cut off his own finger for the insurance money has been found guilty of fraud and sentenced to a year in prison to be served on parole. The man said he was the victim of an attack. READ () »
President Barack Obama said Russian and US nuclear weapons should be slashed by up to a third in a keynote speech in front of Berlin's iconic Brandenburg Gate in which he called for a world of "peace and justice." READ () »
The Local met a colourful crowd gathered to glimpse First Lady Michelle Obama in Berlin on Wednesday - from the Dutch man who came all the way to Germany to see her, to the commuter annoyed to find his way to work barred by police. READ () »
Germany has the third highest population of millionaires of any country in the world, and according to a study released on Wednesday, their piles of gold are growing faster than the world economy. READ () »
Find movies playing in English in Germany with The Local’s cinema guide. READ () »
With temperatures creeping up into the high thirties on Wednesday Deutsche Bahn said broken air conditioning systems could see train cancellations across the country. The network is still battling to get back on track after the floods. READ () »
More news from France at thelocal.fr
More news from Norway at thelocal.no
More news from Sweden at thelocal.se
More news from Switzerland at thelocal.ch
See all ads | Join the Marketplace
909 jobs available
659 new jobs this week
82 new jobs today
Dating
Looking for your own blonde bombshell? Or is the strong, silent type more your
style? Find a German sweetheart here.
Weather
"After clouds comes clear weather," say the Germans. But what about after that? Find out in The Local's weather
section.
Blog
German stuff that's distracting us today.
Noticeboard
Whether you want to buy, sell, hire, announce or promote something, here's the place to do it - completely free of
charge.
Discuss
Debate the news, ask for advice, make friends - or just let off steam.
Register now for:
> Free use of noticeboard
> Special discounts
> Weekly news roundup
> Unlimited use of discuss
Your comments about this article:
I tend to think the Germans like submitting to authority and enjoy official procedures and bureaucratic red tape. I can't think of one person I know here (USA) who even begins to think like that. The president of the police force who is quoted for this article is absolutely correct. Or to put it another way: the German people do not always need authority figures to be present in order to act in a civil manner or to be their daddy if things in life don't go perfectly.
In the old days, it often came down to "he said, she said" arguments and the insurance companies were left to sort it out. Now, with cell phone cameras to document the scene, there's less of that simply because a quick picture will show who was out of their lane, etc. Usually, not always though, witnesses are willing to help should the need arise, and it's just not really a big thing.
On the other hand, an officer can be handy when it's clear that somebody ran a light or made an illegal turn. The problem is that most officers don't want to write those tickets, usually because they can't testify in court to what happened...because they didn't actually see it. Such is life.
Is Germany that different? How many times to these things actually become an "argument'" at the scene? The Germans I've met seem quite capable of sorting things out, even if they disagree about who was at fault. These days I suspect the police have better things to do a fair bit of the time.
wa
Ridiculous nanny culture.
@neilr:
don't get me started... people seem to think that somehow at all cost they must not alter the scene of the accident in any way, so even if it's just a busted taillight, they adamantly refuse to get out of the road, and they're often creating a sizeable traffic jam in the process. But when was the last time those self-important dolts actually saw CSI-style forensics teams home in on a fender bender...