I wanted to write this post in German, because I thought there would not be a good English equivalent to the word angenehm which means pleasant, more or less – so is pleasant a good category for thought, for culture, for judgement, for measuring art, people, the world? Or is angenehm the right word? Is there a difference between pleasant and angenehm? I would say so. Pleasant is more active, angenehm is more a qualification that you give to something. I would like to introduce today the category of angenehm for all kinds of aspects. One was the question of why Rammstein, apart from all aesthetic failures, is just not an angenehm kind of band. And if that is true – is there really any more need to talk about it? Isn*t it enough that you say this band, this music, this singer is not angenehm? For me, this is the end to all arguments. Angenehm is a word that is both an aesthetic and a moral judgement, delivered from an adequately everyday kind of level. The other aspect would be the personal level. It is very difficult to have an opinion about people if you listen to other people. One will say so, the other will say so. Best rely on yourself. Leave apart all that you heard from others. And boil it down to the question of: Do you find this person angenehm or not? This would be pleasant on a quasi metaphysical level. The category itself might seem a little weak, but the consequence is very strong. Angenehm or not is a decisive argument against any work of art, against any person. It is also an argument against thieves, as I was robbed today in Zurich by a pick-pocket, he took 1000 Swiss Francs. This is very unangenehm. It is the ultimate failure of any human being. It is just not good.