Dr Seán Ketchem
@cskwriter.bsky.social
An American/German in Berlin. Berkeley alum (Go Bears!). Erstwhile Texan. Credo: “There are other forces at work than those of evil. And that is an encouraging thought.”
Pinned
Dr Seán Ketchem
@cskwriter.bsky.social
· Jul 22
Reading "Berlin Command" by Frank L. Howley, the former commandant of the American Sector of West Berlin. He describes how there had been serious consideration to revise the London Protocols to allow the Western Allies to keep Thuringia, Saxony, and eastern Mecklenburg in exchange for their sectors.
![In the London Protocol signed on 12 September 1944, the Allies of World War II (then without France) agreed on dividing Germany into three occupation zones after the war.
EAC planning of occupation zone borders in Germany, 1944
The first zone protocol was drawn up at the meeting of the European Advisory Commission (EAC) on 12 September 1944 and signed by John Gilbert Winant (USA), William Strang (UK) and Fedor Gusev (USSR) at Lancaster House in London,[2] and described the first notions of the boundary between the zones to be created: Eastern, Northwestern, and Southwestern zones in Germany, and the three parts of the area of Greater Berlin. The basis of the ideas were the borders of Germany from 31 December 1937 and Greater Berlin from 27 April 1920.
The north-western and south-western zones in Germany and Greater Berlin had not yet been assigned as British or American sub-areas. The relevant text passages provided for this were only documented with spaces, whereas the eastern zone and the north-eastern zone of Greater Berlin were already marked directly with "USSR".
In terms of borders, the western borders of Thuringia, Anhalt and the Prussian province of Saxony were referred to. This meant that the areas east of the Werra and west of the Elbe were not - as was often published - "exchanged for West Berlin", but the areas in the west of the Elbe were already intended to be part of the Eastern Zone.](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:ndxd4h47nhylsdfke4x4arlk/bafkreihkoyhhjemwmw5o2u72tjml6sfk3orwuhgfq4ul57cjc77p2a2ole@jpeg)
If U.S. Brigadier General Frank L. Howley had gotten his way in the summer of 1945, I would never have been born.
I'll explain!
I'll explain!
The woman in the picture is the wonderful actress Marianne Sägebrecht, in the iconic role of Frau Holle. My mom looked nearly like her identical twin, which of course nobody in our Texas town was aware of. Watch Out of Rosenheim for a sample performance (or Bagdad Café as it is known in the States).
With Advent comes the "fairy tale" movie season in Germany. "Märchenfilme" were produced in copious quantities in postwar West and East Germany in the 1950s (and many of the newer ones are remakes of the 1950s originals), possibly as a way to look back with nostalgia on a less problematic past.
November 29, 2025 at 10:18 AM
The woman in the picture is the wonderful actress Marianne Sägebrecht, in the iconic role of Frau Holle. My mom looked nearly like her identical twin, which of course nobody in our Texas town was aware of. Watch Out of Rosenheim for a sample performance (or Bagdad Café as it is known in the States).
The name might conjure up some dive wino joint, but "Alkopole" was a little Berlin institution, a cozy pub with an impressive draft beer lineup that was a popular way station for travelers passing through. Grab a pint now though, because it is gone in January.
www.berliner-zeitung.de/mensch-metro...
www.berliner-zeitung.de/mensch-metro...
Schock am Alexanderplatz: Kult-Bierbar vor dem Aus
Am Bahnhof Alexanderplatz beginnt die Grundsanierung. Läden und Gastro müssen raus. Für die Bierbar kommt jede Hilfe zu spät. Berlin verliert ein Stück Kiez.
www.berliner-zeitung.de
November 29, 2025 at 10:05 AM
The name might conjure up some dive wino joint, but "Alkopole" was a little Berlin institution, a cozy pub with an impressive draft beer lineup that was a popular way station for travelers passing through. Grab a pint now though, because it is gone in January.
www.berliner-zeitung.de/mensch-metro...
www.berliner-zeitung.de/mensch-metro...
What was still only a year ago the paper of record for American politics is now just another MAGA clickbait outlet posting articles reminding people to go outside before you cut one.
Imagine posing for a photographer friend who sells your image to iStock and a year later, you see this is what The Washington Post has done with the image of you walking on a beautiful fall day
November 29, 2025 at 9:50 AM
What was still only a year ago the paper of record for American politics is now just another MAGA clickbait outlet posting articles reminding people to go outside before you cut one.
Yikes, my subway line is shut down for days due to a fire at Schloßstraße station on Friday (that I was just at the day before). Luckily nobody was hurt, but the fire damage destroyed multiple signalling systems apparently.
Not great timing for retailers on Berlin's second biggest shopping street.
Not great timing for retailers on Berlin's second biggest shopping street.
November 29, 2025 at 9:29 AM
Yikes, my subway line is shut down for days due to a fire at Schloßstraße station on Friday (that I was just at the day before). Luckily nobody was hurt, but the fire damage destroyed multiple signalling systems apparently.
Not great timing for retailers on Berlin's second biggest shopping street.
Not great timing for retailers on Berlin's second biggest shopping street.
Like Obama, I enjoy a Five Guys burger from time to time, but the prices here in Germany were insane. Not surprised they are likely exiting the market after booking over 60 million EUR in losses since they opened in 2017. Just not worth it compared to Burgermeister etc.
www.merkur.de/wirtschaft/b...
www.merkur.de/wirtschaft/b...
Burger-Kette droht die Insolvenz – jetzt schließt das erste Restaurant in Deutschland
Weiter rollt eine Insolvenzwelle durch Deutschland. Auch eine Burger-Kette ist in Schieflage. Jetzt schließt die erste Filiale in Deutschland.
www.merkur.de
November 29, 2025 at 9:09 AM
Like Obama, I enjoy a Five Guys burger from time to time, but the prices here in Germany were insane. Not surprised they are likely exiting the market after booking over 60 million EUR in losses since they opened in 2017. Just not worth it compared to Burgermeister etc.
www.merkur.de/wirtschaft/b...
www.merkur.de/wirtschaft/b...
Here are two people who have awesome and underrated Christmas albums (one you expect, one maybe you don't):
Annie Lennox and Seth MacFarlane. I went to his Christmas concert with the San Francisco Symphony one year and was just amazed. OK maybe with the voicework it could be expected, but I didn't.
Annie Lennox and Seth MacFarlane. I went to his Christmas concert with the San Francisco Symphony one year and was just amazed. OK maybe with the voicework it could be expected, but I didn't.
November 29, 2025 at 8:58 AM
Here are two people who have awesome and underrated Christmas albums (one you expect, one maybe you don't):
Annie Lennox and Seth MacFarlane. I went to his Christmas concert with the San Francisco Symphony one year and was just amazed. OK maybe with the voicework it could be expected, but I didn't.
Annie Lennox and Seth MacFarlane. I went to his Christmas concert with the San Francisco Symphony one year and was just amazed. OK maybe with the voicework it could be expected, but I didn't.
Flashback: Your Weekly History Quiz, Nov. 29, 2025
Can you sort 8 historical events?
www.nytimes.com
November 29, 2025 at 6:34 AM
The Berlin radio call signal Christoph 31, used for a rescue helicopter, is being retired. I know this service well (not because I have been on it!) but because it follows the Teltow Canal as a visual guide. It flew under the US flag from 1987 to 1990, when the area was part of the American sector.
November 28, 2025 at 7:07 PM
The Berlin radio call signal Christoph 31, used for a rescue helicopter, is being retired. I know this service well (not because I have been on it!) but because it follows the Teltow Canal as a visual guide. It flew under the US flag from 1987 to 1990, when the area was part of the American sector.
“That last day was kind of surreal. It felt like I was grieving something. I was saying goodbye to childhood, in a way.”
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/27/a...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/27/a...
Saying Goodbye to ‘Stranger Things’
www.nytimes.com
November 28, 2025 at 5:57 PM
“That last day was kind of surreal. It felt like I was grieving something. I was saying goodbye to childhood, in a way.”
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/27/a...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/27/a...
Reposted by Dr Seán Ketchem
It’s not a bias. It’s a transaction. Tens of millions of Ukrainian lives and the remnants of American respectability in exchange for an increase in the private fortunes of a few people.
President Vladimir Putin of Russia on Thursday defended President Trump’s special envoy against accusations of pro-Kremlin bias.
Putin Defends Witkoff Against Accusations of Pro-Russia Bias
The Russian leader called the U.S. special envoy “an intelligent man” who is properly representing his country in peace negotiations.
nyti.ms
November 28, 2025 at 5:00 PM
It’s not a bias. It’s a transaction. Tens of millions of Ukrainian lives and the remnants of American respectability in exchange for an increase in the private fortunes of a few people.
With Advent comes the "fairy tale" movie season in Germany. "Märchenfilme" were produced in copious quantities in postwar West and East Germany in the 1950s (and many of the newer ones are remakes of the 1950s originals), possibly as a way to look back with nostalgia on a less problematic past.
November 28, 2025 at 5:45 PM
With Advent comes the "fairy tale" movie season in Germany. "Märchenfilme" were produced in copious quantities in postwar West and East Germany in the 1950s (and many of the newer ones are remakes of the 1950s originals), possibly as a way to look back with nostalgia on a less problematic past.
Major improvements coming to the commuter rail network in Berlin's southwest:
-the S25 will be lengthened as far as Stahnsdorf, restoring S-Bahn service that was lost with the postwar closure of the "Cemetery Railway"
-restoration of the Stammbahn
-a second track between Südende and Lichterfelde-Ost
-the S25 will be lengthened as far as Stahnsdorf, restoring S-Bahn service that was lost with the postwar closure of the "Cemetery Railway"
-restoration of the Stammbahn
-a second track between Südende and Lichterfelde-Ost
November 28, 2025 at 5:38 PM
Major improvements coming to the commuter rail network in Berlin's southwest:
-the S25 will be lengthened as far as Stahnsdorf, restoring S-Bahn service that was lost with the postwar closure of the "Cemetery Railway"
-restoration of the Stammbahn
-a second track between Südende and Lichterfelde-Ost
-the S25 will be lengthened as far as Stahnsdorf, restoring S-Bahn service that was lost with the postwar closure of the "Cemetery Railway"
-restoration of the Stammbahn
-a second track between Südende and Lichterfelde-Ost
What the administration is doing by targeting entire ethnic groups and family members with persecution on the basis of a lone wolf act of violence is basically the Nazi response to the vom Rath shooting. And the Stephen Miller circle would love to be able to launch a Reichskristallnacht out of this.
🎁 link to the WSJ editorial that made Stephen Miller so mad.
"It would be a shame if this single act of betrayal became the excuse for deporting all Afghan refugees...
"Thousands are building new lives here in peace. Collective punishment won’t make America safer."
www.wsj.com/opinion/the-...
"It would be a shame if this single act of betrayal became the excuse for deporting all Afghan refugees...
"Thousands are building new lives here in peace. Collective punishment won’t make America safer."
www.wsj.com/opinion/the-...
Opinion | The Ambush on the National Guard
The alleged shooting by an Afghan ‘partner’ shouldn’t condemn all who assisted the U.S. and now live here.
www.wsj.com
November 28, 2025 at 5:29 PM
What the administration is doing by targeting entire ethnic groups and family members with persecution on the basis of a lone wolf act of violence is basically the Nazi response to the vom Rath shooting. And the Stephen Miller circle would love to be able to launch a Reichskristallnacht out of this.
Funny that even though Germany does not Thanksgiving (duh) it does have Black Friday, which only makes sense if you know that it was because many people in the US outside of retail and essential jobs have the day off and start their holiday shopping, putting stores "in the black" for the first time.
November 28, 2025 at 5:13 PM
Funny that even though Germany does not Thanksgiving (duh) it does have Black Friday, which only makes sense if you know that it was because many people in the US outside of retail and essential jobs have the day off and start their holiday shopping, putting stores "in the black" for the first time.
A year ago this guy was the German Finance Minister. And now come January he's a used-car salesman.
www.spiegel.de/wirtschaft/c...
www.spiegel.de/wirtschaft/c...
Neuer Job für Ex-FDP-Chef: Christian Lindner geht unter die Gebrauchtwagenhändler
Eigentlich gilt der frühere Finanzminister ja als Porsche-affin. Nun wechselt Christian Lindner die Preisklasse: Er steigt in den Vorstand eines Autodiscounters ein.
www.spiegel.de
November 27, 2025 at 11:26 PM
A year ago this guy was the German Finance Minister. And now come January he's a used-car salesman.
www.spiegel.de/wirtschaft/c...
www.spiegel.de/wirtschaft/c...
Eddie Izzard takes on the Thanksgiving story:
"The Pilgrims sailed from Plymouth and landed in--Plymouth! How lucky is that?"
www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrOg...
"The Pilgrims sailed from Plymouth and landed in--Plymouth! How lucky is that?"
www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrOg...
Eddie Izzard "The Plymouth Colony" Sketch from Dress to Kill
YouTube video by Eddie Izzard
www.youtube.com
November 27, 2025 at 5:04 PM
Eddie Izzard takes on the Thanksgiving story:
"The Pilgrims sailed from Plymouth and landed in--Plymouth! How lucky is that?"
www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrOg...
"The Pilgrims sailed from Plymouth and landed in--Plymouth! How lucky is that?"
www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrOg...
"We honestly couldn’t have asked for better timing. Grandma had just finished making her famous stuffing, which we still get to eat. My sister was delayed by traffic, so no one has to try to explain what bisexuality is to a Catholic octogenarian. Win-win for everybody.”
theonion.com/grandma-than...
theonion.com/grandma-than...
Grandma Thankfully Dies Before Sister’s Girlfriend Arrives
KNOXVILLE, TN—In a development her family began referring to as a “stroke of luck,” local 81-year-old Gloria Martin reportedly died Thursday before her granddaughter arrived to Thanksgiving dinner wit...
theonion.com
November 27, 2025 at 4:38 PM
"We honestly couldn’t have asked for better timing. Grandma had just finished making her famous stuffing, which we still get to eat. My sister was delayed by traffic, so no one has to try to explain what bisexuality is to a Catholic octogenarian. Win-win for everybody.”
theonion.com/grandma-than...
theonion.com/grandma-than...
A reminder that without the Columbian Exchange, there would be no potatoes in Germany, no chocolate in Belgium, no tomato sauce in Italy, no corn/maize anywhere in Europe, not one cigarette or cigar, and the list goes on. And what did the indigenous populations get in return? Smallpox and malaria!
November 27, 2025 at 4:13 PM
A reminder that without the Columbian Exchange, there would be no potatoes in Germany, no chocolate in Belgium, no tomato sauce in Italy, no corn/maize anywhere in Europe, not one cigarette or cigar, and the list goes on. And what did the indigenous populations get in return? Smallpox and malaria!
Fun facts to know and tell--even though it is now extinct, the Powhatan language encountered by the Virginia colonists remains the single largest source of indigenous word borrowings into the English language. Hickory, muskrat, raccoon, moccasin, tomahawk, persimmon and many more were all loanwords.
For a lot of people it is Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, but in the Ketchem household required Thanksgiving viewing is Terrence Malick's masterpiece The New World, the establishment of the first permanent English colony in 1607, some dozen years before the Pilgrims.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFky...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFky...
The New World - Vorspiel
YouTube video by tgureckis
www.youtube.com
November 27, 2025 at 3:51 PM
Fun facts to know and tell--even though it is now extinct, the Powhatan language encountered by the Virginia colonists remains the single largest source of indigenous word borrowings into the English language. Hickory, muskrat, raccoon, moccasin, tomahawk, persimmon and many more were all loanwords.
Abusing Federal police authorities to settle family scores and lock up her own nephew's mom, just before Thanksgiving no less. What nasty pieces of work these Leavitts are.
Bruna Caroline Ferreira, who was brought to the U.S. as a child and is the mother of Leavitt’s nephew, was arrested near Boston earlier this month and taken into ICE custody.
Woman With Ties To Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt’s Family In ICE Custody
Bruna Caroline Ferreira, who was brought to the U.S. as a child and is the mother of Leavitt’s nephew, was arrested near Boston earlier this month and taken into ICE custody.
www.forbes.com
November 27, 2025 at 3:12 PM
Abusing Federal police authorities to settle family scores and lock up her own nephew's mom, just before Thanksgiving no less. What nasty pieces of work these Leavitts are.
For a lot of people it is Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, but in the Ketchem household required Thanksgiving viewing is Terrence Malick's masterpiece The New World, the establishment of the first permanent English colony in 1607, some dozen years before the Pilgrims.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFky...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFky...
The New World - Vorspiel
YouTube video by tgureckis
www.youtube.com
November 27, 2025 at 3:07 PM
For a lot of people it is Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, but in the Ketchem household required Thanksgiving viewing is Terrence Malick's masterpiece The New World, the establishment of the first permanent English colony in 1607, some dozen years before the Pilgrims.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFky...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFky...
A Thanksgiving reading! 🍁🍾🦃🥧
November 27, 2025 at 1:55 PM
A Thanksgiving reading! 🍁🍾🦃🥧
Amen. Having also grown up in the South and seeing the scourge of racism rear its ugly head again, I am thankful for all the courage shown by decent people who know that what is happening to the U.S. is deeply, deeply wrong.
OPINION: "As a white woman who openly rejects the worst of Mississippi, I am blessed to have siblings, nieces and nephews I can gather with who do not bring hate to the dinner table," Donna Ladd writes.
buff.ly/g7ajAHh
buff.ly/g7ajAHh
Editor’s Note | What I’m Thankful for in 2025: The Rough Cut
Donna Ladd writes that 2025 has been a good year. Despite the ongoing challenges, there is plenty to be thankful for.
www.mississippifreepress.org
November 27, 2025 at 2:40 AM
Amen. Having also grown up in the South and seeing the scourge of racism rear its ugly head again, I am thankful for all the courage shown by decent people who know that what is happening to the U.S. is deeply, deeply wrong.
This administration would have literally arrested my own mother and sent her to a detention center.
"It was supposed to be a celebratory milestone. Instead, as each interview wrapped up, agents swooped in, handcuffed the foreign spouse and took him or her away."
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/26/u...
"It was supposed to be a celebratory milestone. Instead, as each interview wrapped up, agents swooped in, handcuffed the foreign spouse and took him or her away."
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/26/u...
Green Card Interviews End in Handcuffs for Spouses of U.S. Citizens
www.nytimes.com
November 27, 2025 at 12:16 AM
This administration would have literally arrested my own mother and sent her to a detention center.
"It was supposed to be a celebratory milestone. Instead, as each interview wrapped up, agents swooped in, handcuffed the foreign spouse and took him or her away."
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/26/u...
"It was supposed to be a celebratory milestone. Instead, as each interview wrapped up, agents swooped in, handcuffed the foreign spouse and took him or her away."
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/26/u...
I heard that going into S5 without rewatching any of the previous episodes or the recap videos is known as "raw dogging", as in "Did you guys watch any of the TikTok recap videos?" "Nah, we're going to raw dog it tonight".
Season 5 of Stranger Things will drop at 8pm EST (US East Coast time) tonight. This is a global release so the episodes will be available here in Germany beginning at 2am on Thursday.
Of course, by now those quirky middle schoolers are well into their 40s...
Of course, by now those quirky middle schoolers are well into their 40s...
a red sign that says stranger things 3 on a black background
ALT: a red sign that says stranger things 3 on a black background
media.tenor.com
November 26, 2025 at 2:10 PM
I heard that going into S5 without rewatching any of the previous episodes or the recap videos is known as "raw dogging", as in "Did you guys watch any of the TikTok recap videos?" "Nah, we're going to raw dog it tonight".