My Very Own Luxembourg Justice System Experience

My Orchids. Dendrobium "Whatever". Photo ET

My Very Own Luxembourg Justice System Experience

Dear victims of Madoff, Landsbanki, BCCI and many more:

You can only write about this justice system thoughtfully and credibly, if you have been a victim yourself at least once. Most people cannot. But even better, let the facts talk.

You find an excerpt of the judgment referenced here in French on the two blogs linked below. That verdict, that is even not final probably, took almost ten years to be reached. My damages were never repaired. The accused lived their lives and a lifestyle that I co-financed. Every trick in the box was used to delay the criminal proceedings. But wait. This is not even yet over. The two people sentenced to 12 and 24 months in prison, on probation, will appeal the verdict within the 40 days foreseen in the procedures. Which will delay the whole thing for another year or more. During which time all civil proceedings to recuperate my losses are halted.

So, dear Enrico Macias, and other victims of financial fraud in Luxembourg, such as from Madoff, Landsbanki and BCCI: stand in line. And if in the US there is a saying that you cannot win against Town Hall, you'll find out what your chances are to win against The Bank in Luxembourg. Keep pushing though. There is a new government, and I'm sure they are not betting on continued failure to do the right thing. Indeed there is that idea of nation branding floating around. I hope you and I don't have to come up with the slogans....

http://peckvillchen.blogspot.com/2014/03/maybolli-18.html

http://feierwon.blogspot.com/2014/03/la-justice-luxembourgeoise-une-lueur.html

Cargolux explained by Cargoforwarder

My Orchids. Cypripedium. Photo ET

Cargolux explained by Cargoforwarder

And here is a confirmation. The ABC of knowing it all:

BREAKING NEWS - ABCRestructures its Management

Cargolux: One moves in, two move out

My Orchids. Phalaneopsis. Photo ET

Cargolux: One moves in, two move out

While it has been reported that Dirk Reich will be Cargolux' next CEO, Board willing,  Robert van de Weg and Peter van de Pas will join ABC Cargo as of the 01st of May.. If my sources and my aunt Leontine are right.

The bottom line is a strong deficit on the talent side. And the restructuring at the top missed a chance to consolidate the existing team that because of the two who are leaving, was a winning team as documented during the crisis.

Cargoforwarder: Reich to head Cargolux

My Orchids. Phalaneopsis. Photo ET

Cargoforwarder: Reich to head Cargolux

..... if it so pleases the Board. Though CV needs way more key personnel to correct its recent flight plan.

Cargolux: Some good news, that could have been bad

My Orchids. Dendrobium. Photo ET

Cargolux: Some good news, that could have been bad 

It is reported that a Cargolux plane made an emergency landing at Shannon after report of fire in the cargo bay.  No one was hurt.

  To quote the Irish Examiner:

"The Cargolux-operated Boeing 747-400 was travelling from Puerto Rico to Maastricht in Holland when it encountered difficulties sometime after 5am, while the aircraft was over Wales.

It is believed there were fears that there was a fire in the plane's cargo-bay."

The story was confirmed by the Evening Echo.

The Luxembourg House in New York

My Orchids. Oncidium Rusty. Photo ET

The Luxembourg House in New York

Last Summer I strolled around Beekman Place and was shocked. The Luxembourg House, is sitting on prestigious Beekman Place, where real estate prices for this kind of building are approaching $ 50 million. I was shocked how run down the outside of The Luxembourg House looks. And I dutifully reported on it, in this blog, hoping for some kind of action. Like dipping into the development aid fund to make repairs to our own House. Or maybe find volunteers to clean the railings and door frames,  and give a layer of paint. We don't want to embarrass ourselves in this posh neighborhood, by looking like the pauper on the block.

Nothing was done. It is true, that Luxembourg rules the world at this moment, chairing the UN Security Council. That suffers no paint distraction.

                     

But my friends at the WSJ took over. The article " Beekman Place Makes the Most of Two Blocks" , a fake real estate story in last Sunday's edition, is used by WSJ as a pretext to plant an embarrassing picture of the "Luxembourg Mission". Rusted railing and soiled door front are sabotaging the much advertised new Luxembourg branding campaign about creating a new brand for Luxembourg. May I suggest that as long as the House looks neglected, we don't raise the Luxembourg flag on it and remove the coat of arms at the front door. You know, just because of the gossiping neighbors.

Out of the Shadows, a Tech Hub in Luxembourg

My Orchids. Phalaneopsis. Let a Thousand Flowers Bloom.
Photo ET


Out of the Shadows, a Tech Hub in Luxembourg

A well researched and documented feature story in today's New York Times. The story of Luxembourg's effort to diversify into high technologies.

It is not easy to move out of comfortable routines, and the article shows the obstacles that had to be overcome: there was no university until 2003, start-uppers are young and Luxembourg's natives are grey civil servants or blue grey bankers, all solidly paid. That's poison for the spirit of enterprise. 

It is remarkable how Luxembourg's incursion into high technologies outside steel evolved, a narration of which however is not in the article. The Big Bang was actually a small bang, when the precursor of Technoport Luxembourg, Centre Henri Tudor was born in the 1980ies. Under the unshakable confidence of Claude Wehenkel and a supportive Board, Henri Tudor managed to overcome the many hurdles from the grey and blue-grey doubters and critics. I guess that some of those critics will be very prominent, the day when the inaugural ribbon cutting at the new building occurs.

But looking forward, and thanks to important financial incentives, young companies are blooming, and some impressive success stories made their way out of Technoport or other incubating facilities. For the successful will be doubly rewarded: their success will be compounded by a generous tax code that leaves 80% of revenue based on IP tax exempt.

And this is important too, for those in charge of spending tax payer money wisely, and pondering a branding campaign for Luxembourg: there is no ad as effective as a good, positive feature story about Luxembourg in the New York Times.