Political conflicts

In the Süddeutsche Zeitung, the culture of political debate is saved from the abyss by 10 tips for conflict management (at the end) which includes the request three times, „not to call for mum“.  Thank you, Süddeutsche. But there are even better tips!

Ignorance summit

As an enthusiast about the good journalism of Perspective Daily has another article for you today „for free“, which deals with questions of conflict management in the broadest sense: „This syndrome has us firmly in its grip “
Part of any learning process is to climb to the summit of ignorance and, at that moment, to reach the greatest possible potential for blathering on about stupid things and thus causing conflicts!

„The fundamental cause of unrest is that in the modern world the stupid are dead certain, while the intelligent are full of doubt. “ - Bertrand Russell in 1933 on the rise of Hitler (British mathematician and philosopher, 1872-1970)

Fear – Psychology or culture?

Does terror make us afraid or do we cultivate it ourselves as a group? A historian and a psychologist talk about the basic feeling of fear – and what it causes in or for conflicts.

Florentine traditions

Sporting activities and certain sports today remind us that armed conflicts were completely normal, almost natural: Military riding is not just called that and biathlon did not come about as an idea and without context. Rather, people didn't always wait for war, but simply wanted to maintain and train the relevant skills in sport.

But In Florence, the situation is somewhat different: Every year on 24 June, people fight, brawl and give each other a good thrashing on the Piazza. And that was also the case when the city or town had been at war – for more than 400 years. And why? For one single reason: For the love of Florence! We understand that.

The video is recommended for those who are not squeamish, otherwise just watch the Text in the ZEIT online – about one of the most incredible sporting events of our time, spilling over from the old world.

News on consumer dispute resolution

• Concept of voluntariness in alternative dispute resolution proceedings: The ECJ on 14/06/2017 ruled that the requirement of voluntariness in a consumer dispute (within the meaning of EU law) is also met if national law provides for a mandatory „preliminary procedure for the judicial procedure“ insofar as this preliminary procedure can be cancelled at any time. The right to take legal action is therefore limited to a certain extent in order to make the alternative dispute resolution methods effective. You can find more details on theProcedural Law Blog of the Research Centre for National and International Law.
• New commentary on the Consumer Dispute Settlement Act from Metzner-Verlag: At the beginning of June the new commentary on the Consumer Dispute Settlement Act published (in which we also participated). The VSBG, enacted in April 2017, creates the first nationwide range of arbitration centres in Germany with uniform standards for the out-of-court settlement of disputes arising from consumer contracts. As an instrument of state law, it has a paramount importance for the change or expansion of the conflict culture in Germany.
• New law on alternative consumer dispute resolution in Luxembourg: Luxembourg now also has a own law for the settlement of disputes involving consumers. First experiences have already been made. But of course there are also initial difficulties.

Mediation dispute?

The Section 18 of the Consumer Dispute Resolution Act (VSBG) provides for stipulates that a consumer dispute can also be settled by way of mediation. This refers to mediation as defined by the Mediation Act of 2012 outlined above. The VSBG also contains a number of provisions that result in the Mediation is a special procedure in the context of the VSBGwhich can no longer be described as „traditional mediation“ within the meaning of the Mediation Act. The Details can be found in a new blog post on the INKOVEMA website described. Nevertheless, there areThere are also similarities between these two mediation processes.