Saturday morning's ceremony overtheRhine was briefly delayed because Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi was deep in conversation on his mobile phone.
Karl Timmermann became the first American officer to cross the tottering Ludendorff Bridge overthe Rhine when "the inner door to Germany had swung wide, never to be shut again" and on to the final German surrender at 2 a.m. on Monday, May 7.
Investigations into all waste-disposal contracts in North-Rhine Westphalia overthe past decade have already turned up other cases of suspected malfeasance in towns run by the Social Democrats.
Voters in North Rhine-Westphalia won't experience automated calls or be asked to donate overthe internet, but the votes they cast will have an impact on the future course of Germany and its role within Europe.