fix: a few text parts

src/content/journal/2025/15-years-xing.mdx

@@ -302,7 +302,7 @@ Our cluster held an onsite event in Hamburg after travel restrictions were lifte
 
 New Work SE had a total of 8 locations at that time: Hamburg, Berlin, Munich, Vienna, Zurich, Barcelona, Valencia, and Porto.
 
-The company continued to lose money due to the post-COVID recession. Expanding the monetary supply by printing a trillion euros had led to massive inflation and the boom-bust cycle, as described by Ludwig von Mises in “[The Theory of Money and Credit](https://mises.org/library/book/theory-money-and-credit)” (1912). Additionally, shutting down all nuclear power plants was likely not a good decision, resulting in a 20% decline in industrial production. These factors, combined with the post-COVID recession, had negatively affected the job market and recruitment solutions. The stock price fell to €150, and layoffs occurred in Q1.
+The company continued to lose money due to the post-COVID recession. Expanding the monetary supply by printing a trillion euros had led to massive inflation and the boom-bust cycle, as described by Ludwig von Mises in “[The Theory of Money and Credit](https://mises.org/library/book/theory-money-and-credit)” (1912). Additionally, losing access to cheap gas from Russia and shutting down all nuclear power plants was likely not a good decision, resulting in a 20% decline in industrial production and a negative GDP growth for multiple years in a row. These factors, combined with the post-COVID recession, had negatively affected the job market and recruitment solutions. The stock price fell to €150, and layoffs occurred in Q1.
 
 <Figure caption="The Kietzkneipe">
   <Image
@@ -347,7 +347,7 @@ In late October, XING announced another round of layoffs planned for year‑end,
 
 ## Epilogue: Gratitude and Next Steps
 
-To be honest, I didn’t expect to be fired. I was uncertain about the future of the design system but thought my own role was relatively safe. A longtime colleague even joked about worst‑case scenarios. In the end, engineering roles in Germany were largely reduced, including many who had worked on shared infrastructure and foundations. Starting in January, the remaining engineering teams—primarily in other locations—planned to expand the use of AI‑assisted coding tools to help with knowledge transfer.
+To be honest, I didn’t expect to be fired. I was uncertain about the future of the design system but thought my own role was relatively safe. A longtime colleague even joked we would be too expensive to be severed and possibly the last to leave the company. In the end, engineering roles in Germany were largely reduced, including many who had worked on shared infrastructure and foundations. Starting in January, the remaining engineering teams—primarily in other locations—planned to expand the use of AI‑assisted coding tools to help with knowledge transfer.
 
 <Figure caption="XING Welcome Area">
   <Image
@@ -356,7 +356,7 @@ To be honest, I didn’t expect to be fired. I was uncertain about the future of
   />
 </Figure>
 
-All that remains is looking back to remember the good times. I don’t look back in anger; XING was the best company I worked for, with some of the most skilled people I’ve met. I wouldn’t have stayed so long if it had been otherwise. I’m confident the XING Design System is among the strongest in Europe, perhaps beyond. Reviewing the documentation, spec sheets, and product guides reminded me how skilled and innovative our designers are. From the challenging Superellipse profile image—[which can soon be built natively with CSS](https://nerdy.dev/superellipsed-pill-shapes-are-cool)—to bold colors, animations, and distinctive illustrations, icons, and stickers, the work stands out. Building a custom design system rather than theming an existing component library made a real difference. To all the developers, designers, QAs, and product managers I’ve worked with over the past 15 years: thank you for the learning and the projects we created together.
+All that remains is looking back to remember the good times. I don’t look back in anger; XING was the best company I worked for, with some of the most skilled people I’ve met. I wouldn’t have stayed so long if it had been otherwise. I’m confident the XING Design System is among the strongest in Europe, perhaps beyond. Reviewing the documentation, spec sheets, and product guides reminded me how skilled and innovative our designers are. From the challenging Superellipse profile image—[which can soon be built natively with CSS](https://nerdy.dev/superellipsed-pill-shapes-are-cool)—to bold colors, animations, and distinctive illustrations, icons, and stickers, the work stands out. Building a custom design system rather than theming an existing component library made a real difference. To all the developers, designers, QAs, product managers, tech, and non-tech people I’ve worked with over the past 15 years: thank you for the learning and the projects we created together.
 
 <Figure caption="For a better working life">
   <Image

src/content/journal/2025/ok-boomer.mdx

@@ -9,7 +9,7 @@ cover: /assets/images/cover/ok-boomer.webp
 tags: ["politics", "personal"]
 ---
 
-I hadn’t planned to write another essay this year, but one topic has been on my mind for the past few weeks. Due to the impending collapse of the German pension system and the Baby Boomers’ complete lack of understanding or willingness to address the issue, there has been significant back-and-forth between the Boomers and the younger generations. Some boomers believe they have “paid into” a pension system and now expect to receive payouts. This is a misconception. They contributed money to a pyramid scheme, which was immediately distributed to the retirees at that time. Nothing was invested or increased. The pyramid scheme relied on a redistribution model that had already failed when the boomers were children.
+I hadn’t planned to write another essay this year, but one topic has been on my mind for the past few weeks. Due to the impending collapse of the German pension system and the Baby Boomers’ complete lack of understanding or willingness to address the issue, there has been significant back-and-forth between the Boomers and the younger generations. Some boomers believe they have “paid into” a pension system and now expect to receive payouts. This is a misconception. They contributed money to a pyramid scheme, which was immediately distributed to the retirees at that time. Nothing was invested or saved. The pyramid scheme relied on a redistribution model that had already failed when the boomers were children.
 
 Much of this exchange has been filled with hate and spite. Their proposed solution is simply to raise taxes on everything—taxing private pensions, investments, and self-employed individuals more heavily to fund the pensions, while the generations following the Boomers will likely receive no pensions at all.
 
@@ -36,7 +36,7 @@ My paternal grandfather was shot in the arm in Russia and lost it up to the shou
 
 My grandaunt was evacuated as a child from Hamburg to the countryside due to the extensive firebombing that devastated large parts of the city. However, even in Wolfsburg, there were raids on the tank farms of the Volkswagen factory. My grandmother recalls roof tiles flying off their house from a nearby explosion. After the war, she returned to her family’s partially destroyed flat in Hohenfelde, where a bomb had created a large hole in the ceiling, which is still visible. She lived with multiple families squeezed into one flat for a while and remained there until her death at the age of 92 in 2023.
 
-I know very little about my grandmother’s life during the war, but it was difficult. She had to work in the fields alone, with some help from Russian prisoners of war. I know even less about my paternal grandmother, who was born in Bratislava. She had to leave her home, likely due to the approaching Russians or because she was expelled. I believe they first went to Berlin, where she worked in civil service, and later moved to Wolfsburg after the war.
+I know very little about my grandmother’s life during the war, but it was difficult. She had to work in the fields alone, with some help from Russian prisoners of war. I know even less about my paternal grandmother, who was born in Bratislava. She had to leave her home, likely due to the approaching Russians or because she was expelled. I believe she first went to Berlin, where she worked in civil service, and later moved to Wolfsburg after the war.
 
 After the war, my maternal grandfather worked tirelessly every day from 4 a.m. to 7 p.m., including weekends. He aimed to expand the small carpentry business his brother had founded before the war into a large drywall and construction company. My maternal grandmother assisted in the office daily.
 
@@ -96,7 +96,7 @@ To summarize, Boomers often exhibit narcissistic and needy traits, requiring con
 
 I don’t see a solution. The AfD is already the strongest party among all generations except the Boomers, who will live for another 5 to 20 years. Their voting power and large numbers block any change or reform. I never expected to receive a pension, so I invested for myself. I used already taxed money that I earned, and practiced abstinence from consumption for a better future. Now, the state takes 25% of my investment gains and plans to take 30% or more. Germany has already the lowest pensions in the EU and we won’t probably get pension at all (or with 80 years) and we are called upon to make private provisions. And when we do, they steal that money. The pressure will continue to build until it explodes, potentially leading to massive emigration, civil unrest, or worse. The generations following the Boomers will no longer accept a bleak future where they constantly have to pay for declining services. At some point, the anger will be unleashed.
 
-One of the most important tasks, in my opinion, is to dismantle the stranglehold of public broadcasting. It must be dismantled, privatized, and destroyed. People shouldn’t be forced to pay for their own propaganda or to be insulted and mocked by an elite group of presstitutes.
+One of the most important tasks, in my opinion, is to dismantle the stranglehold of public broadcasting. It must be dismantled, and privatized or destroyed. People shouldn’t be forced to pay for their own propaganda or to be insulted and mocked by an elite group of presstitutes.
 
 I recommend converting as much worthless fiat money as possible into assets, preferably gold or Bitcoin in cold storage, where the government cannot access it. At some point, the entire system will fail, and the euro will either hyperinflate or be replaced by a CBDC, resulting in a digital financial prison. After the Third Reich and the GDR, Germany is attempting socialism once again. The government quota has already exceeded 50%, and the only sector still growing in employment is the government.