Michael When a colleague asked me one day if I wanted to go shooting with him over the weekend, I naturally agreed. We have previously reported ( Rundbrief 01/2001 ) that in America, it is quite normal for private individuals to have handguns in their homes.

Angelika The American election campaign machine is in full swing, and for months the media have been bombarding us with forecasts, debates, and commercials of the candidates for the American presidency. At the end of the primaries, two candidates emerge, one for the Republican Party and one for the Democratic Party -- and one of them will become the President of the USA in the actual elections in November. Usually, interest in these primaries is relatively low, and voter turnout is extremely low, but this year everything looks different.

Michael How do you buy a used car from a private seller in the USA? A few months ago, we bought a PERLMAN successor and can share our experiences with you today.

Michael In our series "San Francisco Views," today we visit the notorious twin neighborhood "Bayview/Hunters Point." It is located so far south that no tourist ever wanders there, and that's a good thing. Long-time residents of San Francisco cringe at just hearing the name of the neighborhood, would never drive there under any circumstances, and strongly advise any newcomer against even approaching the area.

Michael Currently, commercials are haunting television, in which even our beloved Gouvernator Arnie Schwarzenegger is urging people to vote "Yes" in the upcoming referendum on so-called "Indian Gaming." We’ve already covered the principle behind these so-called propositions in Rundbrief 08/2004 : they are public votes on all sorts of local political odds and ends. However, they also exist at the state level, and the current Propositions 94, 95, 96, and 97 -- the ones Arnie is talking about in his unmistakable Styrian accentconcern an agreement that the State of California has worked out with the Native American tribes, under which the tribes will pay higher fees from their highly successful casino operations than they have in the past.

Angelika There aren't many American cities that really blow you away, as many get lost in the monotony of suburbs and skyscrapers (San Francisco and New York are, of course, not included here). Since many people have repeatedly told us how amazing Chicago is and I had never set foot in this city, we thought, why not just fly there for New Year's Eve?