2010 brought a number of surprises for those concerned about the future identity of the German-speaking lands.
In a sequence of events that rocked German politics, several leading politicians stepped out from the anti-Deutsch mainstream to speak their minds about Germany's war-guilt cult, immigration policies and the German demographic decline (1, 2, 3), thus temporarily lifting the taboo on all three subjects. Arguably, it was a Social Democrat politician, Thilo Sarrazin, the former finance minister of Berlin, who broke the silence in the mainstream.
At the end of August, Sarrazin released a book called Deutschland schafft sich ab (Germany does away with itself), which makes two important claims: first, that many Turkish and Arab immigrants are unwilling to integrate; second, that Germany is on its way towards Islamification. For these opinions (and others), Sarrazin was attacked by the press, his own party and politicians from the center to the far-left. Sarrazin was even pressured to step down from his position as an executive of Germany's central bank. Shortly after German Chancellor Angela Merkel joined in to blast Sarrazin.
Already in 2010, Merkel had made remarks suggesting that her party, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), should not be committed to securing Christianity's place in German society; one of the CDU's own ministers, Aygül Özkan, a child of Turkish immigrants, had even tried to ban crucifixes from the classroom. The last true Christian conservatives in the party had tolerated it all. But after Merkel's remark about Sarrazin, several leading figures left the CDU over party politics. Another member was thrown out of the CDU for speaking with Geert Wilders, the Islam critic from Holland.
It appears that the plan to isolate Sarrazin and diffuse his criticisms has backfired; instead of creating silence, more skeptics like Sarrazin have emerged from the shadows of the mainstream. Not surprisingly, all elements of the pro-German movement have come to Sarrazin's defense and rallied in his name. For instance, Udo Pastörs delivered a speech in Sarrazin's defense that compared the way political dissent was handled during the communist times to the way political dissent is handled now.
Of course, it had all been said before...that the restrictions on freedom of expression in the BRD resemble what existed under the communist regime in East Germany; that the ruling regime's interest is the pursuit of the post-1968 multicultural ideal, not the well-being, culture and community of the German people; that the main political parties continue to underestimate the danger of Islamification. The question remains: when will the German people wake up?
Well, according to one study, the public is aware of what is going on in Germany and sees the need for a change to pro-German politics. Nearly 20% of the German population supports the creation of a "Sarrazin party." Thus, perhaps the better question is: 'when will an existing, pro-German party earn the population's faith and support?'
One of the few parties to stand firm behind Sarrazin is the NPD. As of late, the NPD has been making news for it's effort to help German flood victims in the state of Saxony. So far, the party has organized a benefit concert and a relief campaign. By contrast, the mainstream political parties have done little to help. Instead, leaders of the CDU and SPD were writing checks for states recovering from earthquakes in Far East Asia. Politics seem to be behind every decision in Germany. But now it's anyone's guess what happens next.
In a sequence of events that rocked German politics, several leading politicians stepped out from the anti-Deutsch mainstream to speak their minds about Germany's war-guilt cult, immigration policies and the German demographic decline (1, 2, 3), thus temporarily lifting the taboo on all three subjects. Arguably, it was a Social Democrat politician, Thilo Sarrazin, the former finance minister of Berlin, who broke the silence in the mainstream.
At the end of August, Sarrazin released a book called Deutschland schafft sich ab (Germany does away with itself), which makes two important claims: first, that many Turkish and Arab immigrants are unwilling to integrate; second, that Germany is on its way towards Islamification. For these opinions (and others), Sarrazin was attacked by the press, his own party and politicians from the center to the far-left. Sarrazin was even pressured to step down from his position as an executive of Germany's central bank. Shortly after German Chancellor Angela Merkel joined in to blast Sarrazin.Already in 2010, Merkel had made remarks suggesting that her party, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), should not be committed to securing Christianity's place in German society; one of the CDU's own ministers, Aygül Özkan, a child of Turkish immigrants, had even tried to ban crucifixes from the classroom. The last true Christian conservatives in the party had tolerated it all. But after Merkel's remark about Sarrazin, several leading figures left the CDU over party politics. Another member was thrown out of the CDU for speaking with Geert Wilders, the Islam critic from Holland.
It appears that the plan to isolate Sarrazin and diffuse his criticisms has backfired; instead of creating silence, more skeptics like Sarrazin have emerged from the shadows of the mainstream. Not surprisingly, all elements of the pro-German movement have come to Sarrazin's defense and rallied in his name. For instance, Udo Pastörs delivered a speech in Sarrazin's defense that compared the way political dissent was handled during the communist times to the way political dissent is handled now.
Of course, it had all been said before...that the restrictions on freedom of expression in the BRD resemble what existed under the communist regime in East Germany; that the ruling regime's interest is the pursuit of the post-1968 multicultural ideal, not the well-being, culture and community of the German people; that the main political parties continue to underestimate the danger of Islamification. The question remains: when will the German people wake up?
Well, according to one study, the public is aware of what is going on in Germany and sees the need for a change to pro-German politics. Nearly 20% of the German population supports the creation of a "Sarrazin party." Thus, perhaps the better question is: 'when will an existing, pro-German party earn the population's faith and support?'One of the few parties to stand firm behind Sarrazin is the NPD. As of late, the NPD has been making news for it's effort to help German flood victims in the state of Saxony. So far, the party has organized a benefit concert and a relief campaign. By contrast, the mainstream political parties have done little to help. Instead, leaders of the CDU and SPD were writing checks for states recovering from earthquakes in Far East Asia. Politics seem to be behind every decision in Germany. But now it's anyone's guess what happens next.
