Verschiebebahnhof wird nur gespielt

English translation: (The government is) rearranging the deckchairs on the Titanic

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)
German term or phrase:Verschiebebahnhof wird nur gespielt
English translation:(The government is) rearranging the deckchairs on the Titanic
Entered by: philgoddard

09:51 Jul 21, 2009
German to English translations [PRO]
Social Sciences - Economics
German term or phrase: Verschiebebahnhof wird nur gespielt
Full sentence: Verschiebebahnhof wird nur gespielt, um der Bevölkerung den Eindruck eines aktiven Krisenmanagements vorzugaukeln.

I know that a Verschiebebahnhof is a shunting station, but that doesn't really seem to fit with the context, particularly in relation to 'spielen' - am hoping someone can help me. Thanks.
Kate McCane
Germany
Local time: 13:54
(The government is) rearranging the deckchairs on the Titanic
Explanation:
This might be what you're looking for. It means making minor cosmetic changes in the middle of a major crisis.

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Note added at 3 hrs (2009-07-21 13:26:56 GMT)
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The whole sentence could be "The government is trying to give the impression of active crisis management, but is simply rearranging the deckchairs on the Titanic".
Selected response from:

philgoddard
United States
Grading comment
Thanks, definitely helpful.
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
4 +1(The government is) rearranging the deckchairs on the Titanic
philgoddard
2shifted to and fro like in a marshalling yard / switchyard (see full sentence below)
Kerstin Green
2...playing musical chairs
Erich Friese


Discussion entries: 4





  

Answers


50 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 2/5Answerer confidence 2/5
shifted to and fro like in a marshalling yard / switchyard (see full sentence below)


Explanation:
This is a figurative meaning, suggesting that something is done repeatedly back and forth to create the illusion of something actually happening.. More context would be needed for an accurate translation, but I would suggest something like:
"Responsibilities are just shifted to and fro like in a marshalling yard to delude the people into believing [...]". Depending on context replace 'responsibilities' with a more appropriate word.
Marshalling yard is AmE and switchyard is BrE.

Kerstin Green
United Kingdom
Local time: 12:54
Native speaker of: Native in GermanGerman

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
neutral  polyglot45: marshalling yard is UK, classification yard is US and "switchyard" is.... nonsense - you said it was BrE - and that is untrue
3 mins
  -> "switchyard" is in Pons, Langenscheidt, Routledge, Ernst Wörterbuch der industriellen Technik (well known for not containing nonsense), and many more... and if you google "switchyard trains" you will get lots of American sites that use it this way.
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3 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +1
(The government is) rearranging the deckchairs on the Titanic


Explanation:
This might be what you're looking for. It means making minor cosmetic changes in the middle of a major crisis.

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 3 hrs (2009-07-21 13:26:56 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

The whole sentence could be "The government is trying to give the impression of active crisis management, but is simply rearranging the deckchairs on the Titanic".

philgoddard
United States
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 20
Grading comment
Thanks, definitely helpful.

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Inge Meinzer
14 mins
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3 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 2/5Answerer confidence 2/5
...playing musical chairs


Explanation:
...changes without really changing anything....

........just a guess....

Erich Friese
Australia
Local time: 23:54
Works in field
Native speaker of: Native in GermanGerman, Native in EnglishEnglish
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