"The duel"

Glawischnig on 150 km/h: “Absolute nonsense!”

(Bild: krone.tv)

In the current krone.tv political duel, Eva Glawischnig and Andreas Mölzer have an extremely heated discussion about a possible 150 km/h speed limit on Austrian freeways, the future of the ORF and Donald Trump's plans to buy the island of Greenland as the USA.

The apparent "150 km/h ambitions" of the future blue-black government coalition were analyzed at the beginning. A topic on which, as expected, the two duelists' tempers flared.

(Bild: krone.tv)

Glawischnig: "I think that's absolute nonsense. It uses more fuel, it's less safe. And there will be more tailgating. Anyone who drives on our highways now is already familiar with this. This constant tailgating and overtaking. It's stressful. Anyone who has ever driven in the USA, where everything adheres to the speed limit of 110 miles, knows what relaxed and safe driving really means. It's just symbolic politics. I have absolutely zero understanding for it."

(Bild: APA/picturedesk.com/Roland Schlager, Krone KREATIV)

Mölzer, who travels from Carinthia to the krone.tv studio in Vienna every week, deliberately begins his argument laconically: "Yes, I'm ahead of my time. I always drive in this area if I can and if it's possible in terms of traffic. That's my cruising speed." Mölzer does not accept Glawischnig's arguments either: "Of course what you say is not true. I use less fuel when I'm gliding at 150 than when I have to constantly accelerate and brake at 110, 120." Glawischnig, laughing softly: "So you're not going to glide from Carinthia to Vienna at 150. There are a lot of problems with tailgating, tailgating and overtaking."

Kickl like Bumsti the dwarf?
Another point of discussion concerned the current Kickl bashing in some media, where Austrian writers are lashing out violently against the FPÖ chairman. For example in the FAZ, where Christoph Ransmayr states that Kickl reminds him of the dwarf Bumsti, a 'little man struck with an inferiority complex'. Glawischnig jumps into the breach for Kickl in this matter: "Personally, I don't like it at all when people make derogatory remarks about size or gender or anything else. I don't think that's necessary. But these cultural workers were once also attacked by Kickl. As inbred and I don't know what. So he's not a child of sadness in terms of his wording."

(Bild: APA/ROLAND SCHLAGER)

Mölzer, thoughtful. "It shocks me that these are Austria's great literati. They are the most exquisite minds in the Republic. Mr. Köhlmeier, Mr. Ransmayr. Robert Menasse and so on. That really shocks me."

White elephants at ORF
The planned austerity measures at ORF are also causing a stir. And also the question of whether the ORF should no longer be financed via the household levy in future, but from the budget. Glawischnig: "Well, I think it's wrong. On the one hand, there is already justified resentment among the population about these so-called white elephants and these top contracts, where staff are constantly being replaced. Which Westenthaler has now also announced. So Weißmann is to be replaced. He will then be paid until the end of his contract. I think that's the opposite of saving money. But we do need a public service broadcaster. We need properly checked news. We also need sport. It's part of the Austrian identity."

No Vorstadtweiber and Dancing Stars?
Mölzer, relativizing: "The situation has changed massively since ORF was founded. There is now also a wide range of private radio and television stations. I no longer need the ORF for entertainment. I don't need Vorstadtweiber. And no Dancing Star either. I'm in favor of public service broadcasting. It's like the calling card of our republic, representing our culture, our identity. Only that can be redimensioned. It doesn't have to cost a billion. It can be done with 500 million. The white elephants will just be sent back into the jungle."