It a sad state of affairs, when every time an alliance involves itself in, makes comments about or starts threads, it manages to turn it into a PR spectacle/disaster.
As an ex-member of TGE, a personal (real Life) friend of Del Monte and Diplomat to TGE (at a time when Freddie was going through one of his 'phases'), I had and still have a lot of contact with both TGE and ex-TGE members. So I am probably more up-to-date on the workings of TGE than many outsiders.
TGE is an alliance that has always attracted fiercely loyal members to its ranks, that is to be applauded and envied. Sadly it has also often character assassinated and destroyed many of them, chasing away and disillusioning many more.
The problems faced by TGE have been and are, still down to the leadership of one person. When Freddie is on the ball, he is really good. Sadly though, when he goes through one of his mood swings/U Turns/attacks of paranoia, he does untold and often irreparable damage to the reputation of what could and should be a great alliance.
He can consider himself lucky to have blindly loyal followers like Ivan III, it is what has kept him in power for so long. That however, does not detract from the fact that TGE membership has seen a steady decline over the past year and a half. If Freddie became more consistent or devolved his power TGE would always stand for The German Empire, rather than its present reality, They're Going Extinct .