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The story
Regarding a rockfall accident on a hiking trail in southern Germany, Bavarian broadcaster BR (br.de) reported that a court ruled “responsibility lies with the hiker who was walking there.” In the German-language Lemmy community c/dach, which picked up the article, commenters voiced agreement with the ruling itself, saying things like “otherwise hiking and climbing in Germany would basically be finished.” Meanwhile, the discussion gradually drifted into a joking back-and-forth over the size of the fallen rock (2.5 meters), measured in units like “Saarlands” and potatoes.
Rockfall lawsuit on hiking trail: court rules “responsibility lies with the hiker”
Source: br.de / Read the original article here
What people said
How many Saarlands is that?
2.5 potatoes' worth?
Obviously, it's a 'stone.'
And it was even shaped like a rock, no less!
But 'stone' is a unit of weight, not length, isn't it?
Background and key points of this discussion
Under German trail-liability law (Wegehalterhaftung), hazards arising from nature — such as rockfall — are generally treated as risks hikers accept themselves, and courts have often ruled that trail operators are exempt from liability unless clear negligence is shown. This ruling follows that established pattern, and commenters on the thread voiced understanding, saying things like “otherwise hiking and climbing itself couldn’t function in Germany.” The unit-based joking that followed hinges on a bit of wordplay: the German word “Stein” means “stone/rock,” but in English-speaking countries it’s also the name of a unit used to measure body weight — “stone.” This double meaning is what produces the off-kilter humor of bringing up a weight unit to describe something measured in length (2.5 meters). The “how many Saarlands is that” line is likewise a parody of a running joke in German media, which habitually compares area measurements to the size of the state of Saarland.
*This article is excerpted from the thread “Gericht zu Felsabbruch am Steig: Wanderer selbst verantwortlich” on the overseas forum Lemmy c/dach, and has been freely translated into Japanese by our editorial team. Responsibility for the translation rests with this site.
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