"Chancellor of the Entrepreneurs"

Foreign policy: There is grumbling in the Red-Green coalition government. Chancellor Gerhard Schröder’s foreign policy is more and more often perceived as business-friendly, but lacking principles. Schröder claims he wants to further human rights by silent means, and refers to the SPD icon Willy Brandt. One cannot also export one’s own model of society, he rebuffs critics in Germany. What disturbs even well-meaning followers occasionally is Schröder’s snappy tone, which permits no nuances. The necessary distance to other leaders, of which he is capable in private disputes, is hardly discernible in his public appearances.

"The Third Generation"

Terrorism: The war in Iraq is reaching Europe. Hundreds of volunteers from Germany, France and Italy set out to fight the Americans, now the first insurgents are returning. The foiled attempt at assassinating Alawi demonstrates that there is also a risk of attacks in Germany. Particularly in southern Germany, a finely woven network exists that supports the mujahedin in Iraq by supplying logistics and volunteers, helping with money transfers or simply producing propaganda on the Internet. Aside from Munich, the Islamists from Kurdistan are also concentrated in the region around Nuremberg.

"Sultan on a Western Course"

Turkey: While the EU heads of government are this week concluding their discussions about holding membership talks with Ankara, prime minister Tayyip Erdogan is already preparing to run for the office of president. Critics are worried about a conservative revolution. Over the past two years Erdogan has used Europe as a lever to turn his country upside down, to marginalise the opposition, and to force the army and the "bureaucratic oligarchs" (Erdogan) in the judiciary and the administration up against the wall. According to the latest opinion polls, more than three quarters of Turks want EU membership. Europe is the cement of his power base. At the same time the common vision of the West is concealing a remarkable polarisation within the country. Paradoxically, Turkey has become more modern under Erdogan but at the same time also much more conservative. According to Tayfun Atay, an anthropologist at the University of Ankara, the true core of Erdogan's troops is a group that has only achieved political influence during his reign: the "Muslim bourgeoisie", arch-conservative businesspeople. Erdogan's critics claim that the reform premier wants to bring this increasingly affluent but deeply religious spearhead of the Muslim movement to power. The path to Europe is, they say, just a means to an end for him.

"Dreams in Shadowland"

Illegal immigrants: They scrub up dirt, toil away for a pittance on building sites, or nurse the dying - about a million illegal immigrants from all over the world live and work secretly in Germany, tens of thousands in the capital alone. Many of those in Berlin come from Eastern Europe: from Ukraine, Russia, Armenia. They are in the midst of things, yet excluded, inhabitants of a shadowland with its own special standards and rules. One of these rules is to keep quiet. When his employer refused to pay him an entire week's wages and even started abusing him verbally, Sergej S. would have liked to knock the man down. But then he thought of the potential consequences: the police being called in and asking to see his ID, an anonymous call to the immigration authorities. So he just packed up his things silently and left. He cannot afford to be deported again as he was last year.

"Promoting Human Rights"

SPIEGEL in-depth interview with historian Heinrich August Winkler about the Ukrainian liberation movement, the borders of Europe and the risks of Turkey becoming a member of the European Union:

"I get the impression that the young generation and those who are now demonstrating in Kiev have a very strong will. It's a matter of self-determination and liberation from a state of not being responsible for oneself, which was maintained in Ukraine by the oligarchs who were guided by Moscow. … Ukraine is where the decision is being made as to where the boundaries of the West lie. One half of the country belonged to Poland and Austria for a long time. And then there's an eastern part that has been guided much more by Russia, and still seems to be. So you could argue that the boundary of the Occident has always gone straight through the middle of Ukraine. If the country as a whole opens up to the political culture of the West, it will be a serious partner for the European Union. … That is a misconception of Realpolitik. If foreign minister Joschka Fischer declares that Europe is not yet the right size and needs to adopt Turkey so as to keep up with America, Russia, China and India in terms of its geographic extent, then he's confusing size with strength. A Europe that wants to play a role in the world has to be able to speak with a single voice. And that presupposes a certain degree of belonging together and a sense of ‘us'. A Europe that extends to the Euphrates could no longer draw on this resource. … If Turkey becomes a member of the European Union, it can no longer be a bridge to the Islamic world, as many geostrategists in the government would like to think; in that case it would become a bridgehead of the West."

"Greed without Limit"

SPIEGEL in-depth interview with Swedish best-selling author and expert on Africa Henning Mankell, 56, about the anatomy of poverty on the Dark Continent, the affliction of Aids and the failure of international foreign aid:

"The West's interest in Africa has changed dramatically particularly over the past 15 years. With the end of the Cold War, the continent lost its military and strategic importance for the world. And suddenly no one was interested in it any more. … The World Bank should simply take a close look at what is happening in these countries, for instance in the public health sector. If the last operational pillars of the health care system are torn down for the sake of financial aid, this inevitably means that many children die. That's why the World Bank's policies have in many cases come dangerously close to genocide. … The World Bank and other international foreign aid organisations too have not understood that the appropriate national solutions need to be found in each particular case. … The most important reading material in the battle against Aids, not just in Mozambique, is still the school primer. Knowledge and education, access to information and an exchange of opinions are the best tools, but for that poor countries need the necessary money."

"Victory over Coincidence"

Gambling: A trio of gamblers has relieved the casino of London's Ritz Hotel of several million euros, by entirely legal means. Their tools: a mobile phone and a hand-held computer. In March it was claimed that the three had secretly analysed the game. A mobile phone with a laser unit measured the rotation of the wheel, the course of the ball. A pocket computer then worked out at lightning speed what number the ball would probably land on. This allowed the accomplice at the gambling table to place his bet at the last moment - croupiers usually stop accepting bets after the ball has made its third circuit. Last week, after nine weeks, Scotland Yard finally announced the end of the investigation. The result: nothing had happened. The gamblers, who had been released on bail, are allowed to leave the country. According to a spokesman they did not manipulate the game in any way, and the law had therefore not been breached.

"Phantom of the Anus"

Medicine: Doctors and patients mistakenly attribute many anal complaints to haemorrhoids, and treat them incorrectly, until eventually itchiness does indeed set in as a result. Henning Rohde, a professor of proctology, explains that "haemorrhoids are a vastly overrated illness." In support of his claim, Rohde points to a study published in the medical journal "Deutsche Medizinische Wochenschrift". 344 people with "unclear abdominal and/or anal symptoms" were referred to him by other doctors. Only in 18 percent of these cases did Rohde indeed find haemorrhoids.

"Lifelong Phone Service for 999 Dollars"

Internet: Internet telephones are conquering the mass market. Within ten years the old landline units will be superfluous. Technically speaking this is a revolution made in Germany - but the regulatory authorities are delaying the triumphal march of the Net phone. The big business is therefore being done abroad. The telecommunications industry is being shaken up by the "Voice over Internet Protocol", or Voip, as the technology for making phone calls over the Internet is called. In Germany the number of customers phoning over the Internet, with the help of providers such as Sipgate, Web.de or Freenet, is estimated to lie around half a million. They use special Internet phones which are available for under 100 euros, or else analogue adapters which allow them to continue to use their conventional phone. The price per minute is dropping towards the zero mark, and the telephone industry is in a state of utter panic. Matthias Kurth, head of the Bonn regulatory authority RegTP, admits that Internet phones have enormous potential, but he does not yet see them as being a replacement for conventional private telephones; too many technical issues remain unresolved. Even major advocates of the technology do not deny that Voip is still suffering from a number of teething problems.

"Rap Means Survival"

SPIEGEL interview with American hip hop star Snoop Dogg, 33, about his past as a crack dealer, unruly women and his business dealings with porn videos:

"My life is like a good movie: drama, action, something to laugh about and something to cry about. It was always more probable that I would one day become a big drug dealer or a big gang leader. … I had good people around me who wanted to prevent my downfall. … I'm always being falsely accused. I haven't done anything wrong. Many people look askance at me because of where I come from. Drugs and gang violence are my past. Now Snoop Dogg is something totally different. … I only know of one war, and that's happening in Iraq. It's dumb to describe misunderstandings between hip hoppers as a war."

"A Preacher Who Builds"

Careers: In Berlin, architect Daniel Libeskind fought for the Jewish Museum for 13 years; in New York he has been struggling for two years to push through his design for Ground Zero. His weapons: light, faith and in particular his own biography.

"Wellness on a Dicey Hill"

Luxury: The most controversial hotel in Germany is to open shortly. The new Intercontinental on the Obersalzberg is built to be in close contact with nature - also in terms of its artwork. Hans-Jörg Holubitschka, 44, once a pupil in the master class of world-famous Gerhard Richter, is one of six artists commissioned to contribute works. The hotel's operators claim its location "couldn't be better", but they appear to be mistaken. The site will not readily be able to shake off the memory of its former inhabitants: Göring lived on precisely this hill, and his Führer lived just round the corner. The building itself is made of stone and plenty of glass and is of rather monotonous harmlessness. The new, modern luxury, as revealed by the slightly exaggerated details of the hotel's furnishing and service, is almost droll: heated mirrors and rainwater showers in the bathrooms, not to mention the in-and-outdoor pool and the rest of the wellness zone with its walnut-furnished resting area. The old attractions are also the new ones: those of untouched, archaically homey nature.

"Greetings from the Demimonde"

Crime: For over a month the mother of Brazil's young soccer hope Robinho has been in the hands of kidnappers. Security experts are worried that Argentinean conditions could spread to neighbouring Brazil. In Buenos Aires, kidnapping is a routine affair in the soccer business. Kidnapping has turned into a flourishing industry, and the kidnappers are becoming more and more brazen. In Sao Paulo alone, the police registered 83 abductions this year. Football players and their families are still comparatively easy prey for gangsters compared with the situation in Argentina. Many openly parade their wealth, and wander around naively in the nightlife of Rio and Sao Paulo accompanied by dubious acquaintances from the demimonde of the mega cities.