Today Credit Suisse announced the appointment of a new CEO, Tidjane Thiam. He is currently the Group Chief Executive of Prudential, the British financial services firm made famous in 1850s England by its army of door-to-door salesmen who sold insurance policies to the working class population for premiums as low as one penny. These salesmen became […]
Lift off – Solar impulse is on its way around the world
Abu Dhabi, UAE – March 9, 2015: The Solar Impulse team in Abu Dhabi guided by Mission Control in Monaco, saw Solar Impulse 2 take-off this morning. André Borschberg flew the first stage of the round-the-world flight to Muscat in Oman. Piccard will take the reins in Oman and continue onward to Ahmedabad (India). Co-pilots Piccard and […]
Swiss eco tax and child benefit tax exemption votes rejected
Both of these votes delivered firm “No” results. Child benefit tax exemption Only 24.6% voted “Yes” for the proposed tax exemption for child benefit payments. The voting difference between the city and the countryside was low with around 3% more rural “Yes” voters. French speaking “Yes” voters were only 7% ahead of voters in the Swiss German […]
Geneva-based author Paulo Coelho slams Swisscom on Facebook
What can you do when you have a nasty experience with a phone company and can’t get things fixed? If you are the world famous Geneva-based Brazilian author Paulo Coelho with over 26 million Facebook followers you can do quite a lot! Early this morning he took to Facebook to vent his frustration at the […]
No French please. We’re Swiss…..
Two recent stories are reminders of the cultural and political importance of language in Switzerland. Choosing to learn English as a second language makes sound practical sense in an increasingly global world, however in Switzerland it is not that simple. Switzerland, a country with four national languages (German, French, Italian and Romanche), has to juggle […]
#sweaselpecker?
A scene captured by photographer Martin Le-May in a London park has taken off on the internet (#weaselpecker) at a rate much faster than any woodpecker with a weasel on its back ever could. The world soon started photoshopping all kinds on things onto the woodpecker’s back. John Travolta, Madonna, My Ray Cyrus, even a […]
Swiss vote: tax break for kids – Yes or No?
It is Swiss referendum time again this coming Sunday 8 March 2015. Some think that child allowances paid by the state to those with children should not be taxed. Currently they are taxed in the same way as any other taxable income. This vote entitled “Help Families” was launched by the Democratic Christian Party (PDC/CVP). […]
Geneva road show: fast Ferraris and hydrogen Hondas
The Geneva Motor Show opens to the public today so many will already be rushing to see the new Ferrari 488. This car follows the Ferrari 458 and beats its predecessor on nearly all measures. The new Ferrari is slightly lighter and produces more power from a smaller more fuel-efficient engine however with fuel consumption […]
The unseen environmental cost of Swiss farming
Farming makes a valuable and critical contribution to society. It creates a food surplus that allows civilization to develop – farmers produce more food than they need so that the rest of the population can work on things beyond food production. At the same time farming has an environmental impact. It involves bending nature to […]
Why Swiss farm produce is so expensive
Swiss farm produce is expensive. It is not uncommon to pay over CHF 100 (US$ 105) per kilogram for the best cuts of beef in Swiss supermarkets, a multiple of two to three times the price of many other countries. Similarly high prices exist for many other farm products in Switzerland. Why is this? Small […]
