Speed Over Time

 I have previously written about the quality of Dutch railway infrastructure, but Germany’s high-speed ICE network deserves attention as well.

I recently read that Czechia is planning to build a tunnel on part of the railway line between Pilsen and Prague to reduce travel times. What struck me was the timeline itself—the project will start after 2030. By contrast, Germany and the Benelux countries have been investing in modern railway infrastructure for decades. High-speed rail has long been a reality there, with trains operating at speeds of up to 300 km/h or with Eurostar in Benelux even more.

Looking at the pace of development in the Czech Republic, it is difficult not to wonder whether the country will ever catch up something from progressive and advanced infrastructure of Germany or Benelux. 

In the way of trains, a good example is the journey from Düsseldorf to Munich. Imagine comparing the same route under two different railway systems: one served by a Czech-style express train operating on conventional infrastructure, and the other by Germany’s ICE running on dedicated high-speed lines.

The contrast is striking.

Today, a direct ICE train completes the journey from Düsseldorf to Munich in approximately 4 hours and 33 minutes to 4 hours and 50 minutes, depending on the service.

If the same journey relied solely on infrastructure comparable to conventional Czech railway network—with maximum speeds typically between 120 and 160 km/h, numerous curves, and significantly lower average operating speeds—it would take roughly three hours longer. In the case of services such as the Berounka train between Pilsen and Prague, with an average speed of 80–95 km/h, the journey between Düsseldorf and Munich would take almost twice as long than with German's trains. 

This is not simply a matter of faster trains; it is a matter of long-term investment and system priorities. Germany’s railway network between Cologne, Frankfurt, Nuremberg, and Munich is built around extensive high-speed corridors designed for fast, efficient travel. In contrast, the Czech railway network remains largely conventional, with only limited sections capable of supporting speeds of 160–200 km/h.

While much of Western Europe has spent decades building infrastructure networks for the future, in the Czechia still seems to be debating projects that should have become reality many years ago. 

Beyond Populism

 It was undoubtedly tragic what happened in Berlin over the weekend. However, it was impossible not to notice that politicians, including representatives of the Czech government, once again used this incident to promote their own political narratives.

It is also highly speculative to claim that the people involved identified with the LGBTQ+ community. In reality, many of the current governing parties and their leaders have previously expressed opposition to various LGBTQ+ rights. They have rejected key demands, including marriage equality and the right of same-sex couples to raise children etc. etc... I do not want to go into this debate in greater depth here, but given their previous political positions, their sudden expressions of solidarity appear questionable and, in some cases, politically motivated. Even Vladimir Putin’s government uses similar rhetoric against LGBTQ+ people. Some of these politicians have also opposed gender equality, which makes their claimed support for LGBTQ+ victims even more difficult to reconcile.

The reactions I have seen in Czech media following the Berlin incident once again resemble a populist approach. These same political forces have often shown hostility toward Ukrainian refugees as well, both during their election campaigns and afterwards. Ironically, one could argue that if Ukrainians in the Czech Republic belonged to another minority group, they might receive a different level of acceptance from some politicians. Otherwise, the contradiction in their positions becomes increasingly visible.

Recently, I also referred to a statement made by a member of a government, a claim about wannabe safest country in Europe that does not reflect reality.

The further reactions following the Berlin attack once again led me to question broader claims about security and crime that are often associated with people from certain countries or communities. I therefore looked at murder statistics in Germany’s capital Berlin and compared them with those of the supposedly “safe” Czech capital Prague — a city where, according to some political narratives, there should be almost no influence from migration from Islamic countries.

   Prague vs. Berlin: 

What do murder statistics look like when adjusted for population size?

  When comparing the safety of European cities, absolute numbers of murders are often cited. However, these can be misleading because they do not take into account population size or differences in the legal definitions and statistical methods used by individual countries. A more accurate comparison requires calculating the rate per 100,000 inhabitants and understanding the circumstances that may significantly influence the statistics.

 Year 2025

Prague

* 23 intentional killings (murder/homicide)

* Approximately 1.41 million inhabitants

* 1.63 cases per 100,000 inhabitants

Berlin

* 108 completed cases of Mord + Totschlag (murder and manslaughter)

* Approximately 3.70 million inhabitants

* 2.92 cases per 100,000 inhabitants

At first glance, it might appear that Berlin had a higher murder rate than Prague in 2025. However, such a conclusion would be misleading without further explanation.

 An exceptional case that changed the statistics

Berlin’s 2025 statistics included 79 completed killings connected to a single extraordinary criminal case. Police are investigating a former palliative care "white" doctor suspected of serially killing patients. This single case significantly increased the city’s overall statistics. However, these deaths occurred over a period of several years, not only during 2025.

If these 79 cases were excluded, Berlin would have approximately:

* 29 completed cases of Mord + Totschlag

* 0.78 cases per 100,000 inhabitants

What did 2024 look like?

The year 2024 provides a more suitable basis for a normal comparison because it does not include an exceptional series of deaths connected to a single perpetrator.

Prague (2024)

* Approximately 22 murders

* Approximately 1.40 million inhabitants

* ≈ 1.57 cases per 100,000 inhabitants

Berlin (2024)

* 53 completed cases of Mord + Totschlag

* Approximately 3.69 million inhabitants

* ≈ 1.44 cases per 100,000 inhabitants

What does this show?

After removing the exceptional impact of one large criminal case of a white man, or when looking at the year 2024, Prague and Berlin appear to have a very similar level of homicide crime. In 2024, the rate of completed intentional killings in Berlin was even slightly lower than in Prague.

Therefore, the claim that Germany is dangerous because it accepts migrants from Eastern countries, while the Czech Republic is safe because of the absence of migrants from Islamic countries, appears to me to be false. 

What happened?!

 Today I was deeply shocked by what happened on the Erasmus Bridge in Rotterdam.

I wondered whether I should write anything about this tragedy. I have a connection to Rotterdam and its community, and I simply can’t remain silent. I have also travelled by tram across the Erasmus Bridge many times.

This morning, a moving tram collided with a stationary tram on the Erasmus Bridge. The accident occurred while the bridge was open to allow a ship to pass.

Bridge openings like this are an everyday occurrence. During my visits to Rotterdam, I have often waited on a tram at the Erasmus Bridge while a ship passed underneath before continuing towards Wilhelminaplein. I wouldn’t want to experience something like this myself.

I was “surprised” that the approaching tram did not appear to slow down. The exact cause of the accident has not yet been made public. According to the available information, even witnesses did not immediately understand what had happened.

I have examined the situation using numerous available videos. One of my hypotheses is that a contributing factor may have been that the stationary tram was positioned just beyond the crest of the bridge in the direction of Wilhelminaplein. When approaching from the opposite side, the view over the bridge’s crest is limited. Based on my understanding of the bridge’s elevation, one possible contributing factor could be that the driver of the approaching tram was unable to see the stationary tram for much of the bridge, or perhaps not at all until the last moment.

This does not explain the accident itself. The actual cause may turn out to be something entirely different from my hypothesis. There are also safety systems in place, including signals and authorisation to enter the bridge. The accident could have resulted from a technical failure or another unforeseen circumstance. Hopefully, there was no failure to observe the signaling system or the bridge-opening procedures.

If the investigation were to show that the second tram had been authorized to enter the bridge while the first tram had stopped beyond the bridge’s crest, then the restricted visibility might prove to have been one of the contributing factors.

According to the available information, 15 people were injured in the accident. Seven were taken to hospital, and one person sustained serious injuries. The remaining injured passengers were treated at the scene and were able to return home.

Screenshots; 

Twee trams botsen op elkaar op de Erasmusbrug 

Meerdere zwaargewonden na botsing tussen trams Erasmusbrug Rotterdam

Lebensqualitätsindex

Den Haag

 To say a few more words about the Netherlands, it has already been mentioned on the blog that the Netherlands was ranked Best Quality of Life 2026. In my opinion, the recognition is well deserved.

The Quality of Life Index by City 2026 is also dominated by Dutch cities. My favorite, The Hague, holds first place, followed by Eindhoven in second, Rotterdam in third, and Utrecht in fourth. Groningen also appears in the top ten, ranking seventh.

Frauenkirche, Nuremberg

And it is not only Numbeo where these Dutch cities rank so highly. Similar conclusions can also be found in other sources, including Eurostat, the OECD Better Life Index, the European Commission’s Quality of Life in European Cities survey, Mercer Quality of Living, and others.

Beyond what I consider the obvious strength of the Dutch cities, the top ten also includes two German cities. Nuremberg ranks ninth.

I like Nuremberg and often make a stop there while traveling. I was therefore not surprised to see it receive such a high rating from Numbeo.

Nuremberg also has a great deal to offer from both an architectural and historical perspective. Although the city was heavily bombed during the Second World War and much of its historic fabric had to be reconstructed, it has retained a remarkable character.

Sometimes I think that Prague’s historic center itself is somewhat overrated when compared with German cities such as Nuremberg. (Prague is one hundred and fifteenth in the ranking of Numbeo.) At the same time, this also works in Nuremberg’s favor: it is generally less crowded with tourists, feels calmer, and is noticeably cleaner—cleanliness being one of the factors considered in Numbeo’s rankings. It is also less sprawling, another aspect reflected in the index, and its historic center is well integrated with the nice and strong modern parts of the city.

Where are you from?

 Given that I am among the people whose     more attractive appearance itself, stemming from the intellect and personality behind it, has become a problem for a significant part of society in a certain country around me, I am interested in the security of certain countries.

First of all, in my opinion, if a society is described as economically and culturally more advanced, while someone’s appearance alone becomes a problem, this claim appears to be untrue. Secondly, statements about safety for ordinary people in general are also misleading.

Because of these experiences, my experiences with other European countries, and statistical data, I was once again struck by the following statement:

“I know, and I think your people know as well, that the Czech Republic is the safest country in Europe and definitely one of the safest countries for people from Israel. And the reason is completely clear: we simply do not have any migrants from Islamic countries here.”

The statement was widely quoted by Czech media as part of appearance at a joint press conference with the Israeli Foreign Minister.

There are several false claims in this quote. First, the Czech Republic is not the safest country in Europe. It is not even among the top ten safest countries in Europe. Secondly, in my opinion, based on my experience as an “Aussie,” the Czech Republic does not necessarily have to be considered a safe country for Israelis, just as it may not be safe for people of Muslim origin or people of any other background. Thirdly, there are more countries in Europe that are safer than the Czech Republic, and their general populations include people from Islamic countries. One example is the Netherlands, and Switzerland is also among the top ten safest countries in Europe.

My examples of the Netherlands and Switzerland show that countries with a significantly higher proportion of residents with a migration background can also be very safe. The decisive factors are the functioning of institutions itself or the structure of society.

I could also mention that, due to “shortcomings” in the country mentioned above, I have experienced smiles and positive attitudes toward me from people of Muslim background as well, for example in the Netherlands. Therefore, someone could even argue that one may feel safer among these communities, just as the Netherlands or Switzerland itself is also statistically a safer country than Czechia.

How Migration Is Changing European Demography

 Perhaps some “environmentalists” may see a positive side when a population, civilization declines somewhere: less space is needed for people and fewer resources are consumed.

I sometimes smile at the fact that in the Benelux countries, France, or Germany, populations are growing, while elsewhere stagnation is taking place.

If immigrants and war refugees were also to leave, as many politicians suggest by appealing to widespread public sentiments, the population would decline by another roughly 10%. In an ironic sense, I have also thought that both mentally and because of a reduced population, this could become a political tool and might even help some countries in the event of a potential invasion.

This is about Czechia, where the population is declining, and Western Europe, where populations are growing and civilization in progress. I recently wrote about Rotterdam, where construction continues on a large scale, and about Luxembourg as well. In Czechia, less is being built partly because there are fewer people to build for, including as a consequence of migration policy.

Czechia is among the countries that have experienced a long-term population decline. The number of births is lower than the number of deaths, and demographic projections indicate that without sufficient migration, the Czech population will decrease over the long term.

On the other hand, Western Europe has growing populations. Countries such as Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, and, in recent decades, Germany have managed to offset population decline caused by low birth rates through immigration.

According to Eurostat, since 2012, the European Union’s population growth has been almost entirely dependent on positive net migration, which compensates for the natural decrease in population. Migration policy has therefore become one of the main factors shaping demographic development, alongside strong economic growth, as seen for example in Luxembourg.

In Germany, people with a migration background already account for approximately one-third of the population; in the Netherlands, nearly one-third; in Belgium, up to 40 percent; and in Luxembourg, the majority of the population consists of people born abroad or their descendants.

Baden

 I would say that I like Karlsruhe in Germany. Karlsruhe is located in the federal state of Baden-Württemberg, in southwestern Germany, not far from the French border.

I was also in Karlsruhe during one of the nights over Christmas in 2025. As usual, I walked to Karlsruhe Palace (Schloss Karlsruhe). Even from the park, you can see how long the palace is—it almost doesn’t fit into a standard iPhone photo.

On warmer days or nights, when approaching Karlsruhe Palace along the main road, you can often smell the nearby zoo. It is located just behind the fence next to the sidewalk, so its presence is usually quite noticeable. During the freezing Christmas nights, however, I noticed it mainly because of the interesting sounds of the animals. There are residential buildings on the opposite side of the street.

I also like that the walk to Karlsruhe Palace takes you past Platz der Grundrechte (Square of Fundamental Rights), which is located in the lower part of the Schlossbezirk, in front of the Federal Constitutional Court.

The square features 24 double-sided street signs displaying quotations from judges, lawyers, scholars, and ordinary citizens about law, justice, and democracy. Each sign places two different perspectives on the same subject face to face, creating a public dialogue about the meaning of law, justice, and democratic society. The entire installation forms a unique public reflection on law and democracy.