Update 07.06.2018:
Due to the new EU data security laws, I've disabled comments for this blog.
After having been banned by Facebook four times (last time for 30 days), I've decided to blog again. This is for now limited to my German blog.
The bilingual Editrix' Facebook "Fanpage", however, may be interesting for my Anglophone readers.
Update of the update 12.03.2018:
I've changed focus and design of my style blog "The Evil Style Queen" and there is a new one "Die böse Stilmutter" (something like "The Evil Stylemother").
Enjoy!
Showing posts with label ThusSpakeTheEditrix. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ThusSpakeTheEditrix. Show all posts
January 09, 2018
September 08, 2015
The Editrix Retires
Dear friends and readers,
I'm done with blogging. Too old, too tired, too depressed. Those who want to follow my latest more spur-of-the-moment brain waves, please go to my personal Facebook page
https://www.facebook.com/editrix.roncesvalles
or to "The Editrix" Facebook page
https://www.facebook.com/die.editrix
where I've uploaded the best and still topical entries from all my blogs.
Thanks to all my faithful readers of many years. Some of you have become real friends.
Nora -- The Editrix
I'm done with blogging. Too old, too tired, too depressed. Those who want to follow my latest more spur-of-the-moment brain waves, please go to my personal Facebook page
https://www.facebook.com/editrix.roncesvalles
or to "The Editrix" Facebook page
https://www.facebook.com/die.editrix
where I've uploaded the best and still topical entries from all my blogs.
Thanks to all my faithful readers of many years. Some of you have become real friends.
Nora -- The Editrix
November 11, 2010
Ideological Hotchpotch -- I told you so!
At the sound of the word "freedom" Americans tend to react with an appreciative Pavlovian drool. Recently, a new German party named "Die Freiheit" (Freiheit=freedom/liberty) is triggering this effect. The party hold its inaugural meeting on October 28 in Berlin. Chairman is René Stadtkewitz, a member of the Berlin parliament who used to belong to the parliamentary group of the Christian Democratic Union until his expulsion some weeks ago for hosting the Dutch politician Geert Wilders. (We reported.)
Stadtkewitz is clearly modeling his party after Geert Wilders' "Partij voor de Vrijheid" (Party for Freedom) with a strong focus on the threat an ever-increasing Islamisation poses to the West and a pronounced solidarity with Israel.
For what else does it stand? 28 "core demands" (Kernforderungen) taken from the party platform, may shed some light on it:
At least a third of those "core demands" have no place in a party platform anyway and one wonders whether Stadtkewitz (who is a decent enough fellow) and his team are unable to pay an editor or whether they REALLY think this is something on which some common understanding can be built.
Stadtkewitz is clearly modeling his party after Geert Wilders' "Partij voor de Vrijheid" (Party for Freedom) with a strong focus on the threat an ever-increasing Islamisation poses to the West and a pronounced solidarity with Israel.
For what else does it stand? 28 "core demands" (Kernforderungen) taken from the party platform, may shed some light on it:
1. for a direct democracy after the Swiss modelFrom the laudable, via the indispensable to the sensible to the superfluous to the ridiculous and finally to the potentially dangerous. See Americans? They are NO "conservatives". Everybody who demands "animal rights" has lost any credibility, generally and specifically as conservative. As far as points 18 and 19 are concerned, one could as well vote "green". And if I see a demand for "no cruelty and killing out of traditional reasons" all my alarm bells start ringing and I smell a hunting/shooting ban. It's the old German besottedness with "nature", pretty pictures, romanticism, idealism, rising ity ugly head again. "Conservatism" has no place here.
2. for a new constitution for Germany -- decided directly by the people
3. for better voting rights by referenda
4. for the election of the President by the people
5. against exertion of political influence by the political parties via the media
6. for the sanction of tax-wasting by politicians
7. for the protection of the unborn life
8. for a salary for the parent who stays at home to look after the children
9. for a child-related bonus to the pensions of parents
10. for a flexible retirement age, depending on health and job performance
11. for a national school system and national education standards
12. for the support of teachers by so-called co-teachers
13. for performance-orientated dole-money with the entire career as assesment base
14. for the introduction and realisation of the "workfare concept", i.e. charitable work instead of welfare money without return service
15. against local business tax, for a reform of the municipal budgets
16. against car tax, for car toll
17. for the inviolable dignity of the animal - no cruelty and killing out of religious and traditional reasons
18. for non-discrimination of complimentary treatment methods -- recognized by the health insurance
19. for traffic light labelling on food products to make it easier for the consumer to identify the ingredients
20. for a modernisation of the health insurance system aimed at a statutory insurance for all citizens with freedom to choose (i.e. private insurance)
21. for the establishment of the Kirsten-Heisig-Scheme in all federal states
22. for better infrastructure for and against staff cuts of the police force
23. for a zero-tolerance strategy in the case of Islamic influence, no creeping sharia
24. for a stop of immigration now, at least until a solution to the integration problems has been found
25. for new guidelines for residence permits for family members of migrants
26. for strict public participation at mosque building projects
27. for the deprivation of the German citizenship in cases of terrorist activities and felony
28. for Europe as a contract between independent partners, against EU-dictatorship from Brussels
At least a third of those "core demands" have no place in a party platform anyway and one wonders whether Stadtkewitz (who is a decent enough fellow) and his team are unable to pay an editor or whether they REALLY think this is something on which some common understanding can be built.
June 29, 2010
My German Blog
I have decided to staple my German blog together with my English language ones. In can be found here now.
It has no comment functionality because it has by far the biggest readership of all my blogs (several hundred single visits per day, about twice what this blog clocks up whose biggest visitor count has been 400 so far and that was only because I got a link from a major German blog), and I don't intend and can't afford to make blogging a full time endeavour.
"Die Editrix auf Deutsch -- Unerwünschte Nachrichten aus der Provinz", means "The Editrix in German" and the rest is stolen from the header of this blog.
It has no comment functionality because it has by far the biggest readership of all my blogs (several hundred single visits per day, about twice what this blog clocks up whose biggest visitor count has been 400 so far and that was only because I got a link from a major German blog), and I don't intend and can't afford to make blogging a full time endeavour.
"Die Editrix auf Deutsch -- Unerwünschte Nachrichten aus der Provinz", means "The Editrix in German" and the rest is stolen from the header of this blog.
May 29, 2010
Herzlichen Glückwunsch Gudrun!
Dr. Gudrun Eussner's www.eussner.net about politics and culture, is the best German language web site in the entire Internet. If you read German and are a lateral thinker who prefers to think outside the box, you'll find a wealth of information there. Without her encouragement, support and helpful information, this blog would long be dead.
Happy Birthday and Many Happy Returns, Gudrun!
May 26, 2010
May 25, 2010
Wither Americans!
Let me tell you, the Hun in us Germans is still alive!
You think THAT is noteworthy? What a bunch of wussies you are!
Let me tell you that WE had a bishop, notabene the pastoral head of the umbrella organisation of Germany's Protestant churches, notabene female, who was caught drunk driving because she had overlooked a red light and her blood alcohol content was a whopping 1.54.
And did we make such a fuss about it? Hell, no! After only three months she was received with standing ovations at theGeneral Assembly of AA in the Germanosphere oecumenic church congress in Munich because all bishops of both denominations had tried and found out that even the most resilient of them had been pissed as a newt at .75 and wouldn't have been able to FIND his car, let alone open and drive it.
THAT, dear Americans, is news!
And now go and listen to Panzerlied.
Hat tip: Barely a Blog!
BOSTON (FOX 25 / MyFoxBoston.com) - A serious car crash involving a local lawmaker and a suspected illegal immigrant is threatening to reignite already heated debates about immigration on Beacon Hill, according to police reports obtained by FOX25.So an illegal immigrant caused an accident driving while under the influence of alcohol. He had a blood alcohol content of 0.25 when the accident happened and when he was caught he found that funny, and now you have your knickers ... ooops, your lingerie ... in a knot.
State Rep. Mike Moran of Brighton was rear-ended by a suspected illegal immigrant this week. The suspect was wearing a Mexican costume at the time of the crash where he slammed into Moran at 60 mph.
The suspect, 27-year-old Isaias Naranjo, was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, leaving the scene of an accident and driving without a valid license. According to the report, when told of the serious charges he would be facing, he just laughed.
[...]
The suspect, whose blood alcohol content was .25 at the time of the accident according to the police report, is being held on $50,000 cash bail.
You think THAT is noteworthy? What a bunch of wussies you are!
Let me tell you that WE had a bishop, notabene the pastoral head of the umbrella organisation of Germany's Protestant churches, notabene female, who was caught drunk driving because she had overlooked a red light and her blood alcohol content was a whopping 1.54.
And did we make such a fuss about it? Hell, no! After only three months she was received with standing ovations at the
THAT, dear Americans, is news!
And now go and listen to Panzerlied.
Hat tip: Barely a Blog!
May 22, 2010
Amazing Grace
A clip from German television: The Grand Final of the 1st International Military Tattoo Moscow (Kremlin Zoria 2007).
Military bands from Denmark, Germany and Russia, pipes and drums of regiments from Scotland, Australia, the Republic of South Africa, Canada and New Zealand.
Amazing grace indeed!
May 19, 2010
The Slave Driverette of Modernity
Margot Kässmann, ex-bishopette of Hannover and ex-"chair" of the council of EKD and thus the highest-ranking of Protestant bishops of both sexes in Germany, retired in February, following a drunk driving incident.
The -- inevitable -- demise was taken as a sign of human strength as well as the drunken joyride was taken as an endearing sign of being "just human". She is an expert of and always appealing to basic human stupidity and laziness, for example when she was shameless enough to equate radicalism, religious zeal and potential danger of Muslim and Christian converts and when she draw a big slime trail right through the Scripture when she twisted it to justify the breach of her marital vows. This bishopette, notabene, is divorced, another matter that proves to her adoring followership how cute and endearingly human she is.
Three months and presumably one withdrawal treatment later, the demoted bishopette-soon-to-be-papette made a triumphant return to public life and was received at the oecumenic church congress (Kirchentag) at Munich last week with standing ovations. Serves the Catholic Church right for supporting something that starts with "oecumen". As a staunch opponent of the war in Afghanistan, she spoke about the transformation of a weapon of war into a sign of hope, long bow, rainbow and all that. Yes, we yawned too.
At a sermon in the gallant Cathedral of Our Dear Lady, Munich Archbishop’s own cathedral, no less, Kässmann warned against "demonising" birth control. "We may, however, see it as a gift from God as well" and, with her very own idiosyncratic ability to travel on a slime trail through theology, concluded "for it is about the preservation of life, of freedom, which doesn’t have to degenerate at once into pornography, as much as the sexualisation of our society is, of course, a problem." Can you stomach more? "It’s about love without fear and about responsible parenthood. And for women "it’s about concern for their own lives and those of their own children." Well, whatever. You get the general idea.
Cheers! (Yes I know, that was cheap.)
Dear Catholic Church, your son G. K. Chesterton once said: "The Catholic Church is the only thing which saves a man from the degrading slavery of being a child of his age." If you want to survive, spiritually and physically, run for the hills at the first sound of "oecumen...", and let the rest have a jolly good time with Ms. Kässmann.
Cross-posted at TMDSC.
The -- inevitable -- demise was taken as a sign of human strength as well as the drunken joyride was taken as an endearing sign of being "just human". She is an expert of and always appealing to basic human stupidity and laziness, for example when she was shameless enough to equate radicalism, religious zeal and potential danger of Muslim and Christian converts and when she draw a big slime trail right through the Scripture when she twisted it to justify the breach of her marital vows. This bishopette, notabene, is divorced, another matter that proves to her adoring followership how cute and endearingly human she is.
Three months and presumably one withdrawal treatment later, the demoted bishopette-soon-to-be-papette made a triumphant return to public life and was received at the oecumenic church congress (Kirchentag) at Munich last week with standing ovations. Serves the Catholic Church right for supporting something that starts with "oecumen". As a staunch opponent of the war in Afghanistan, she spoke about the transformation of a weapon of war into a sign of hope, long bow, rainbow and all that. Yes, we yawned too.
At a sermon in the gallant Cathedral of Our Dear Lady, Munich Archbishop’s own cathedral, no less, Kässmann warned against "demonising" birth control. "We may, however, see it as a gift from God as well" and, with her very own idiosyncratic ability to travel on a slime trail through theology, concluded "for it is about the preservation of life, of freedom, which doesn’t have to degenerate at once into pornography, as much as the sexualisation of our society is, of course, a problem." Can you stomach more? "It’s about love without fear and about responsible parenthood. And for women "it’s about concern for their own lives and those of their own children." Well, whatever. You get the general idea.
Cheers! (Yes I know, that was cheap.)Dear Catholic Church, your son G. K. Chesterton once said: "The Catholic Church is the only thing which saves a man from the degrading slavery of being a child of his age." If you want to survive, spiritually and physically, run for the hills at the first sound of "oecumen...", and let the rest have a jolly good time with Ms. Kässmann.
Cross-posted at TMDSC.
February 12, 2010
Technical Glitch
To my commenters Bruce Church and Universal Realist:
To my disgust I have noticed that comments are, although okayed, not showing. Please bear with me! I'm trying to find out what the reason for the glitch is.
Edited to add:
The "glitch" makes the comments appear in reverse order, so the most recent ones are at the bottom, but at least they are there. Also, the feed doesn't seem to work. I'll try to fix it!
To my disgust I have noticed that comments are, although okayed, not showing. Please bear with me! I'm trying to find out what the reason for the glitch is.
Edited to add:
The "glitch" makes the comments appear in reverse order, so the most recent ones are at the bottom, but at least they are there. Also, the feed doesn't seem to work. I'll try to fix it!
December 24, 2009
October 20, 2009
Is Obama For Real?
If this is NOT a spoof, it is scary!
Barack Obama's amazingly consistent smile from Eric Spiegelman on Vimeo:
"Ladies and gentlemen, your President is a robot. Or a wax sculpture. Maybe a cardboard cutout. All I know is no human being has a photo smile this amazingly consistent.
On Wednesday, the Obamas hosted a reception at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, during which they stood for 130 photographs with visiting foreign dignitaries in town for the UN meeting. The President has exactly the same smile in every single shot. See for yourself — the pictures are up on the State Department’s flickr. And, of course, compressed into 20 seconds for your viewing pleasure."
September 15, 2009
"Just for the taste of it!"
The Christian Science Monitor offers some views on the current German election race at their global news blog:Chancellor Angela Merkel debated Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier on TV Monday, ahead of Sept. 27 elections.To start on a negative note: It is not Germany's "highest office" that the debaters are aiming for. It is the most important office. We have a head of state and that is NOT the chancellor. Frankly, lack of basic knowledge like that doesn't inspire much faith in a political commenter. Get some education. In such a light, it doesn't really amaze that Merkel and her Christian Democrats are dubbed "conservative" all the time by Americans. But hey! Can they really be blamed for it? Germans are doing it all the time themselves. One the other hand, Germans don't know what "conservative" means, Americans do, or at least: they ought to, and, apart from a some issues dear to a Catholic's heart that can be linked to a conservative world view, there is nothing "conservative" about the CDU, never was, never will be. The CDU was founded post-WWII as the successor of the "Zentrum" (which translates, notabene, to "Center") the party of political Catholicism, devoted in considerable parts to the Catholic social doctrine, something which will remind Americans painfully of liberal leftis pinkos, the more dumber ones even of commie marxists. And that knowledge is just a couple of keystrokes and mouseclicks away at Wikipedia.A televised debate between the two candidates for Germany’s highest office was declared a draw by unimpressed Germans, as an election looms two weeks away for Europe’s top economy.
The election will pit center-right incumbent Angela Merkel against her current foreign minister, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, from the left-leaning Social Democrat party.
At stake is whether Germany will chart a course out of recession with tax cuts and other business-friendly measures (Merkel) or pursue more state-led strategies such as funds for emerging industries, higher minimum wages and tighter regulations on executive pay (Steinmeier).
But many Germans have been left cold by both candidates. Playing on US President Obama’s campaign theme, the German newspaper Bild ran an analysis of the debate with the mocking headline, “Yes, we gahn!” (Yes, we yawn).
Deutsche Welle called the debate “uninspiring” in a roundup of the German press reaction; other descriptions included “shop talk between the chancellor and her deputy,” with “no real verbal sparring.”
The Associated Press said surveys were mixed, and cited a political analyst saying that the “well-mannered duel” was unlikely to change many voters’ minds.
Surveys carried out by three television stations after Sunday night’s duel found that viewers rated it a virtual draw, two putting Steinmeier marginally ahead and one giving a slight advantage to the conservative Merkel.
The debate, like much of the campaign, lacked passion and personal attacks between rivals who govern together in a “grand coalition” of right and left — the result of an indecisive 2005 election.
But the Wall Street Journal said undecided viewers favored Steinmeier, and gave the left-leaning candidate good reviews for a “snappy, vigorous debating performance.”
He argued for new tax rules to deter high executive pay and bonuses, and for minimum wages to slow the growing gap between Germany’s highest and lowest earners.
Mr. Steinmeier warned that the right-leaning government Ms. Merkel is seeking would pursue free-market policies of deregulation that he said had caused the global financial crash. “The thinking that got us into this crisis can’t get us out of it,” he said.
Merkel, by contrast, stuck to a pro-growth message, according to the Journal. The Journal said the candidates’ only significant foreign policy difference was on German troop deployments in Afghanistan, which two-thirds of Germans oppose.
Steinmeier said Germany should by 2013 “lay the groundwork” for pulling its troops out; Merkel offered no timeline.
Now Merkel: During the entire debate she managed to totally and utterly avoid terms like "Christian" (even "Christian-Democratic"), "values", "family", "ethics", "human dignity" and "Lebensschutz" (= "pro life"), and even those who notice that at all and predict that Merkel will thus lose her "party stalwarts" are barking up the wrong tree. What "party stalwarts"? Those who voted for the CDU because they are Christian/Catholic, are dying out rapidly.
Merkel was socialized in the former GDR. Her parents went with baby Angela, who had been born in Hamburg, to the GDR. Only hardcore Socialists went voluntarily to the Stalinist GDR to live there, so this sheds a light on the political proclivities of her father, a Protestant pastor. (By the way, that knowledge, too, is just a couple of keystrokes and mouseclicks away at Wikipedia.) She was never heavily involved in official Communist party politics and described her FDJ youth movement years as "cultural work" later. It is not too amazing for a Protestant pastor's daughter either that she she did not take part in the secular coming of age rite "Jugendweihe", the acid test of a line-toeing party member, but was confirmed instead. She chose science as a career, like many bright and gifted students did in the GDR, because it provided a relatively politics- and hassle-free environment. But all that does NOT say that Merkel is NOT a Socialist. Pure and simple, she is. Four years ago, the amount of power she granted to her junior partner in the coalition was amazing. It isn't anymore. They are making HER politics and what she is doing now is aiming head-on at another four years of coalition with the Social Democrats. Why? Any other choice would bind her to the free-market Free Democrats (FDP), and that is exactly what she does NOT want. And if Steinmeier, who is bound to know that quite well, is blathering about "the right-leaning government Ms. Merkel is seeking" he is an even worse hypocrite than Merkel herself. Steinmeier, by the way, belonged, together with current minister of justice in Merkel's Cabinet, Brigitte Zypries, to the editorial staff of the leftist quarterly "Demokratie und Recht" (DuR) published by Pahl-Rugenstein-Verlag, who was at that time under observation by the office for the protection of the constitution (Verfassungsschutz). So far about some major members of "conservative" Angela Merkel's Cabinet.
We are heading for a diet version of the GDR -- "Just for the taste of it!". Mark my words.
July 31, 2009
July 27, 2009
July 20, 2009
Some Questions about Germany
Co-blogger Beakerkin has asked me a couple of questions about my country. I intended to reply in a comment to his post, but my reply exceeded the limit set by Blogger for comments. So here you are, Beak!
1) Is there a regional accents that are noticeable to a native German speaker. Would a person from Berlin sound different from someone in Munich?
Oh my God, yes. And not JUST the accent. It's an entirely different culture. People don't even LOOK the same and don't have the same temperament. They have a different history and different traditions in every respect, too.
2) Americans are familiar with the larger parties in Germany? Are there smaller local parties as well?
Yes there are, although they are pretty small. Some are traditionally established, like the party of the Danish minority in Schleswig-Holstein, some are new, like the "Pro"-movement, established as an answer to Muslim immigration and the Islamisation of Europe. If you look at Roncesvalles' right sidebar, you'll see the header "The Pro-Köln-Dustup". Maybe it's interesting.
3) What American TV shows are available in Germany?
Beak, I stopped watching television about 15 years ago and I don't have a marked interest in popular culture. I guess a lot are. I grew up with Bonanza, Bezaubernde Jeannie (the lovely genie in a bottle), Hiram Holliday, Tammy or Mr. Ed. (I don't even know the original titles.) I liked the Walton's and simply adored ALF, that hairy alien. That was shortly before I gave up watching television for good. Quite a few American TV series got improved by the excellent German dubbing. ALF is one of them.
4) Are uncommon books like the Great Divide by Schmidt and the works of Thomas Sowell available in German?
Wie das Christentum die Welt veränderte: von Alvin J. Schmidt is available (sez Amazon). I guess that is Under The Influence. And Wissen und Vernunft. Die Logik gesellschaftlicher Prozesse von Thomas Sowell used to be available, but is out of print.
5) Who are the Greens?
Nazis painted red, then painted green as a top layer.
6) Is there any talk of Immigration reform in Germany?
A basic reform would be unthinkable. Even the naturalization test they have partly introduced is meeting a lot of resistance. Muslims "import" more than one wife and the state pays for all of them, Muslims are importing brides from home who don't know a word of German and can't read and write in their own language either. A young man on the dole or on social welfare in Germany is considered a mighty catch for a Turkish girl, so they marry, come over, never learn a word of German, have children and they all become part of a parallel society hostile to Germans and Germany. We are shovelling our own grave.
7) Is there a home schooling movement in Germany?
No, and thank God for that. I can see its merits and advantages for Americans, but it wouldn't work in Germany. I've ranted about it here.
8) Are there Real Estate Taxes in Germany?
Yes. Everything is taxed in Germany. Next they'll tax our eyesight.
9) If you went to the local gourmet shop could one find oddities such as Vermont Maple Syrup and Louisiana Crayfish at the market?
There is Canadian maple syrup at any decent supermarket, but not something like Louisiana Crayfish.
10) What is Ramstein about? Is this a crass fad equivalent to Punk Rock in the states?
As I said, I am not "into" pop culture, so I'll skip this question.
11) How is India portrayed in the German press?
As I know next to nothing about India myself I can only say that I guess it's portrayed largely in a matter of fact way. At least I have never sensed anything else. (I may be wrong.) Or do you mean (American) "Indians"? That would be an entirely different matter.
12) Has Obama won over some of America's critics in Germany?
Oh my God, they ADORE him. Everybody who is anti-American is adored in Germany. He is even more popular than Michael Moore.
13) What are your thoughts about women who wear Burkha's is it a public safety issue. Should the government have the right or duty to identify citizens?
But of course. If they want to wear a Burqa they can always do it in their own countries. To allow Burqas in a Western country (or the headscarf, for that) is the height of dhimmitude.
14) Are there speed limits on German roadways other than autobahns?
There is no (general) speed limit on the Autobahn, there is a general speed limit of 100 km/h on all other roads outside built-up areas and a general speed limit of 50 km/h within those areas.
15) Do immigrants have any obligations to their host country?
What about: The obligation not to give it a bad name? If they want any other obligations, they ought to stay there.
16) How is World War One treated in the history books in Germany?
Pretty matter-of-fact, I'd say. With WWII and the Holocaust under their belt and all particitrongts dead by now, that war is as remote from German public consciousness as the 30-year-war. At least that is how I perceive it.
17) Does the failure of responsible mainstream parties to address topics like immigration reform give fringe malicious parties opportunities to stoke populist support.
No. The "danger from the right" is one big sham and a smokescreen to distract from the danger from the left. Most Germans just love to be dominated by Islam because they love to be dominated. Full stop. In fact, it seems as if they can't even wait until Islam has taken over entirely.
18) Is crime rising in Germany?
Not really, although I only believe in those statistics I've faked myself. ;-)
19) If an American were to come to Germany for one week what sites would you recommend?
Oh my God, Beak, that is SO difficult! This little country is so diverse and so interesting, but the diversity makes it difficult to pinpoint THE most interesting sites. Münster in Westphalia with its great Christian heritage and lovely rural backwaters for history and culture, Hamburg with its harbour for industry, technology and the working people, Munich with its beergardens for gastronomy and fun. Oh yes, and for some culture as well. The surroundings are not bad there either. That should be more than enough for one week. Believe it or not, I've never been to Berlin myself. I am such a country bumpkin.
20) Is there media diversity in Germany? Americans have Fox News as an alternative to the mainstream press? Is there a German equivalent to Fox News?
No. The entire media is the same liberal-leftist quagmire.
21) What American films stand out as classics in your tastes. Name your five all time favorites?
* The Cavalry Trilogy with John Wayne
* El Dorado
* The Fabulous Baker Boys (for some diversity).
22) Other than McDonald's or Fast food are there restaurants in Germany that mimic American cooking styles such as Cajun, New York Deli or California Fusion?
If there are any, it has escaped my attention. Is "Pizza Hut" American? There are a couple of those. By the way, I love MacDonald's.
23) Are American Cartoons such as Sponge Bob and Bugs Bunny shown on German TV?
Bugs Bunny used to be very popular, as were (and I guess still are) the Disney cartoons. As for the more recent development: See my answers regarding pop culture. I sadly don't know Sponge Bob.
24) What are your thoughts on Children's films over the years does Shrek or Monsters Inc compare with Bambi or Pinnochio from an earlier era?
Again, I haven't watched Shrek or Monsters Inc. I loved Bambi and Pinocchio as a child. What I see is a marked decline in taste, what I sense, too, is some ideological egalitarianism between man and beast with all those "cute" little animals in the latest children's books, an egalitarianism that has nothing to do with the care and attention we owe our animals. Bambi didn't have those brainwashing overtones, at least I didn't sense them.
25) Should love be left for theologians, poets or musicians to describe?
Interesting question! There is so much banalizing talk about "love" by everybody and his (mostly her) pet ferret that we seem to have forgotten what it is altogether. Maybe we ought to stop for a while talking about it at all.
Bonus question:
26) Is Vanilla Ice just as dreadful in Germany as it is in the States. I am amazed when I meet Polish immigrants who can't speak a word of English but proclaim "Vanilla Ice stinks". These are people who were maybe five when he performed. Is his legacy as the worst American cultural export safe?
I think vanilla icecream is awful anywhere. I never eat it. I guess the real ingredient is too expensive to make large quantities with it. I like American STYLE icecream. The worst industrial icecream I have ever tasted was Häagen-Dazs, I have forgotten what flavour it was, though, but I even remember that it was in London.
Thanks for the interesting and thought-provoking questions. I am sorry that I am such a failure when it comes to popular culture.
1) Is there a regional accents that are noticeable to a native German speaker. Would a person from Berlin sound different from someone in Munich?
Oh my God, yes. And not JUST the accent. It's an entirely different culture. People don't even LOOK the same and don't have the same temperament. They have a different history and different traditions in every respect, too.
2) Americans are familiar with the larger parties in Germany? Are there smaller local parties as well?
Yes there are, although they are pretty small. Some are traditionally established, like the party of the Danish minority in Schleswig-Holstein, some are new, like the "Pro"-movement, established as an answer to Muslim immigration and the Islamisation of Europe. If you look at Roncesvalles' right sidebar, you'll see the header "The Pro-Köln-Dustup". Maybe it's interesting.
3) What American TV shows are available in Germany?
Beak, I stopped watching television about 15 years ago and I don't have a marked interest in popular culture. I guess a lot are. I grew up with Bonanza, Bezaubernde Jeannie (the lovely genie in a bottle), Hiram Holliday, Tammy or Mr. Ed. (I don't even know the original titles.) I liked the Walton's and simply adored ALF, that hairy alien. That was shortly before I gave up watching television for good. Quite a few American TV series got improved by the excellent German dubbing. ALF is one of them.
4) Are uncommon books like the Great Divide by Schmidt and the works of Thomas Sowell available in German?
Wie das Christentum die Welt veränderte: von Alvin J. Schmidt is available (sez Amazon). I guess that is Under The Influence. And Wissen und Vernunft. Die Logik gesellschaftlicher Prozesse von Thomas Sowell used to be available, but is out of print.
5) Who are the Greens?
Nazis painted red, then painted green as a top layer.
6) Is there any talk of Immigration reform in Germany?
A basic reform would be unthinkable. Even the naturalization test they have partly introduced is meeting a lot of resistance. Muslims "import" more than one wife and the state pays for all of them, Muslims are importing brides from home who don't know a word of German and can't read and write in their own language either. A young man on the dole or on social welfare in Germany is considered a mighty catch for a Turkish girl, so they marry, come over, never learn a word of German, have children and they all become part of a parallel society hostile to Germans and Germany. We are shovelling our own grave.
7) Is there a home schooling movement in Germany?
No, and thank God for that. I can see its merits and advantages for Americans, but it wouldn't work in Germany. I've ranted about it here.
8) Are there Real Estate Taxes in Germany?
Yes. Everything is taxed in Germany. Next they'll tax our eyesight.
9) If you went to the local gourmet shop could one find oddities such as Vermont Maple Syrup and Louisiana Crayfish at the market?
There is Canadian maple syrup at any decent supermarket, but not something like Louisiana Crayfish.
10) What is Ramstein about? Is this a crass fad equivalent to Punk Rock in the states?
As I said, I am not "into" pop culture, so I'll skip this question.
11) How is India portrayed in the German press?
As I know next to nothing about India myself I can only say that I guess it's portrayed largely in a matter of fact way. At least I have never sensed anything else. (I may be wrong.) Or do you mean (American) "Indians"? That would be an entirely different matter.
12) Has Obama won over some of America's critics in Germany?
Oh my God, they ADORE him. Everybody who is anti-American is adored in Germany. He is even more popular than Michael Moore.
13) What are your thoughts about women who wear Burkha's is it a public safety issue. Should the government have the right or duty to identify citizens?
But of course. If they want to wear a Burqa they can always do it in their own countries. To allow Burqas in a Western country (or the headscarf, for that) is the height of dhimmitude.
14) Are there speed limits on German roadways other than autobahns?
There is no (general) speed limit on the Autobahn, there is a general speed limit of 100 km/h on all other roads outside built-up areas and a general speed limit of 50 km/h within those areas.
15) Do immigrants have any obligations to their host country?
What about: The obligation not to give it a bad name? If they want any other obligations, they ought to stay there.
16) How is World War One treated in the history books in Germany?
Pretty matter-of-fact, I'd say. With WWII and the Holocaust under their belt and all particitrongts dead by now, that war is as remote from German public consciousness as the 30-year-war. At least that is how I perceive it.
17) Does the failure of responsible mainstream parties to address topics like immigration reform give fringe malicious parties opportunities to stoke populist support.
No. The "danger from the right" is one big sham and a smokescreen to distract from the danger from the left. Most Germans just love to be dominated by Islam because they love to be dominated. Full stop. In fact, it seems as if they can't even wait until Islam has taken over entirely.
18) Is crime rising in Germany?
Not really, although I only believe in those statistics I've faked myself. ;-)
19) If an American were to come to Germany for one week what sites would you recommend?
Oh my God, Beak, that is SO difficult! This little country is so diverse and so interesting, but the diversity makes it difficult to pinpoint THE most interesting sites. Münster in Westphalia with its great Christian heritage and lovely rural backwaters for history and culture, Hamburg with its harbour for industry, technology and the working people, Munich with its beergardens for gastronomy and fun. Oh yes, and for some culture as well. The surroundings are not bad there either. That should be more than enough for one week. Believe it or not, I've never been to Berlin myself. I am such a country bumpkin.
20) Is there media diversity in Germany? Americans have Fox News as an alternative to the mainstream press? Is there a German equivalent to Fox News?
No. The entire media is the same liberal-leftist quagmire.
21) What American films stand out as classics in your tastes. Name your five all time favorites?
* The Cavalry Trilogy with John Wayne
* El Dorado
* The Fabulous Baker Boys (for some diversity).
22) Other than McDonald's or Fast food are there restaurants in Germany that mimic American cooking styles such as Cajun, New York Deli or California Fusion?
If there are any, it has escaped my attention. Is "Pizza Hut" American? There are a couple of those. By the way, I love MacDonald's.
23) Are American Cartoons such as Sponge Bob and Bugs Bunny shown on German TV?
Bugs Bunny used to be very popular, as were (and I guess still are) the Disney cartoons. As for the more recent development: See my answers regarding pop culture. I sadly don't know Sponge Bob.
24) What are your thoughts on Children's films over the years does Shrek or Monsters Inc compare with Bambi or Pinnochio from an earlier era?
Again, I haven't watched Shrek or Monsters Inc. I loved Bambi and Pinocchio as a child. What I see is a marked decline in taste, what I sense, too, is some ideological egalitarianism between man and beast with all those "cute" little animals in the latest children's books, an egalitarianism that has nothing to do with the care and attention we owe our animals. Bambi didn't have those brainwashing overtones, at least I didn't sense them.
25) Should love be left for theologians, poets or musicians to describe?
Interesting question! There is so much banalizing talk about "love" by everybody and his (mostly her) pet ferret that we seem to have forgotten what it is altogether. Maybe we ought to stop for a while talking about it at all.
Bonus question:
26) Is Vanilla Ice just as dreadful in Germany as it is in the States. I am amazed when I meet Polish immigrants who can't speak a word of English but proclaim "Vanilla Ice stinks". These are people who were maybe five when he performed. Is his legacy as the worst American cultural export safe?
I think vanilla icecream is awful anywhere. I never eat it. I guess the real ingredient is too expensive to make large quantities with it. I like American STYLE icecream. The worst industrial icecream I have ever tasted was Häagen-Dazs, I have forgotten what flavour it was, though, but I even remember that it was in London.
Thanks for the interesting and thought-provoking questions. I am sorry that I am such a failure when it comes to popular culture.
July 01, 2009
I've Got A New Blog
I've headed it The Most Destructive Single Cause and it's about (now who would have thought so regarding the title?) feminism and a spawn of my two other blogs The Editrix' Roncesvalles and The Evil Style Queen. I am not a Renaissance polymath and I have found that if I try to cover too many topics at once it doesn't become a coherent overview of the woes of our times but an unstructured mess. I have weeded those posts that are germane to the topic of the new blog, even if only peripherally so, from my other blogs and put it there to give the new effort some substance to start with. Roncesvalles will now focus on the Islamisation of the West and its related phenomena,The Evil Style Queen's focus will return to, well, style. Feminism permeates every single aspect of our daily life and thus needs dedicated analysis and not just some blog entries, which are soon drowned by a flood of other information or laments.
Thanks to Blogger, one of the most unfairly badmouthed organisations on earth, for the excellent import- and export functionality without which I couldn't have done this.
Thanks to Blogger, one of the most unfairly badmouthed organisations on earth, for the excellent import- and export functionality without which I couldn't have done this.
March 22, 2009
Word Verification Defunct
Co-blogger Terry Morris made me aware of the fact that the "word verification" for comments doesn't seem to work. So I've disabled it. Thank you Terry!
March 18, 2009
The Editrix Wears Prada -- Not
I am sorry for being so quiet, but to quote The Devil Wears Prada: "I'm one stomach flu away from my goal weight." I dropped at least two dress sizes in as many weeks and although my general condition is bearable again, I still feel tired and washed out most of the time. Next week I will move to the new place and as I wasn't able to organise anything, I will be offline for at least three weeks. They have Internet cafés in the sticks as well, so I'll be able to say "Hello" from time to time. Bear with me. I promise I'll be back.
March 05, 2009
Apology to America or: God Help Old Europe
I have come across (and partly caused) such an utterly moronic, rock-hard dumb discussion at the Brussels Journal, that I briefly considered to throw them off my blogroll just for their readership. (Not that they'd notice it.) But to what avail? I have come to see, too, that the only way to manage a really serious political blog is the way Lawrence Auster does it at VFR, cumbersome as it may be.
I can not (repeat: NOT!) imagine an exchange quite that moronic at any American serious political website, however much I may have deplored American shortcomings in the past. I am trying to pinpoint what the basic difference is. It is not, I am sure, to be found on any intellectual or educational level. Yes, the latter is pretty low in the specific exchange here, but then, I have seen Americans, and even with impressive degrees, for that, so uninformed and intellectually dishonest (or plain dumb) that it made me weep. No, the difference is that Americans simply have a conscience, an ethical compass, which is lacking in most Europeans. If that is true (and I think it is) it explains a lot of things we are seeing today, good and bad. And to go back to the topic at hand, I can hardly imagine any average, straightforward American, arguing that "everybody was a Nazi anyway and one somehow had to survive [which is, by the way, contradictory] so that topic is a non-starter anyway."
The initial entry is interesting, but only moderately so. I think it becomes apparent that my wrath was tickled when a commenter stated, naming names, that there had been -- and thrived -- many former Nazis in a certain German political party, a (factually true) information that was dismissed as a "conspiracy theory". Then it goes from absurd to grotesque.
I can not (repeat: NOT!) imagine an exchange quite that moronic at any American serious political website, however much I may have deplored American shortcomings in the past. I am trying to pinpoint what the basic difference is. It is not, I am sure, to be found on any intellectual or educational level. Yes, the latter is pretty low in the specific exchange here, but then, I have seen Americans, and even with impressive degrees, for that, so uninformed and intellectually dishonest (or plain dumb) that it made me weep. No, the difference is that Americans simply have a conscience, an ethical compass, which is lacking in most Europeans. If that is true (and I think it is) it explains a lot of things we are seeing today, good and bad. And to go back to the topic at hand, I can hardly imagine any average, straightforward American, arguing that "everybody was a Nazi anyway and one somehow had to survive [which is, by the way, contradictory] so that topic is a non-starter anyway."
The initial entry is interesting, but only moderately so. I think it becomes apparent that my wrath was tickled when a commenter stated, naming names, that there had been -- and thrived -- many former Nazis in a certain German political party, a (factually true) information that was dismissed as a "conspiracy theory". Then it goes from absurd to grotesque.
Interesting Times in BavariaHere are the ensuing comments. To grasp the gist you have to read them chronologically from the bottom to the top:From the desk of Elaib Harvey on Fri, 2009-02-27 14:48The German – well OK, Bavarian – centre right party is in all sorts of trouble right now. They currently have 9 sitting Members of the European Parliament (MEPs), including some big hitters in the Parliament like Inigo Friedrich. Due to a change in the way that the European Parliament election’s are being held in Germany, they stand to lose all 9, despite still picking up over 40% in their home, and Germany’s most populous Land, Bavaria. This time they have to get over 5% of the whole of Germany’s vote.
Of course this means that their sister (and have you ever seen sisters together, it can get pretty brutal at times) party, the CDU, will be the only one holding the flame of Christian Democracy in Germany, and they quite like that.
Add to that the spectre of Libertas Germany standing possibly with Count von Stauffenberg (former CSU federal MP – and a chap with a resonant name) at top of the list and their is massive pressure on the old party of Bavaria.
So what do they do? First, Edmund Stoiber suggests that he will ride to the flailing party’s rescue by sitting at the top of their Euro list. Now, we hear that current party leader, Horst Seehofer has been talking referenda. No not on the Lisbon Treaty – though that would cook Libertas’s goose in the Land – but over Turkish entry into the European Union.
Now everybody knows that Chancellor Merkel and the CSU see eye to eye on their not wanting Turkey through the portals of the Berlaymont (Germany would lose its position of country with most weight – and would have to pay for the privilege), but the word referendum is a dangerous one in German politics. Particularly in the light of the deliberations of the Constitutional Court.
Interesting times, indeed, in Bavaria.
The discussion goes on there, but I had my daily dose of asininity already. Isn't it wonderful that I can't go out much with my footsore young dog for the time being? I bet the old BJ didn't have such a nice little brouhaha in their comment section in years, and nobody has accused me of being an intellectual (nor even an "intellectual") ever before.Homework
Submitted by The_Editrix on Thu, 2009-03-05 14:21."And I find that statement somewhat surprising coming from someone who has been a BJ member for the past 2 years 44 weeks but let's not quibble about that."
Oh yes, lets! You obviously didn't bother to check how many (or rather how few) comments I delivered during that period of time. Oh yes! I lurked all that time breathlessly following your (plural) uneducated drivel to then suddenly pipe up, pretending I had never seen it.
Do you have to say anything about the CONTENT of my comment as well or are you really unable to perform a Google search, as you are obviously unable to klick on the "Track" button in a member's personal profile?
Clueless
Submitted by Atlanticist911 on Thu, 2009-03-05 13:54."I am unaware of any earlier argy-bargy between kappert and Atlanticist911 elswhere...".
And I find that statement somewhat surprising coming from someone who has been a BJ member for the past 2 years 44 weeks but let's not quibble about that.
And to the same person (or anybody else for that matter0 who would go on to conclude with the statement, " I don't want to be any part of it", my 'simpleminded' response is simple, DON'T!
However, should anybody decide that they WOULD like to be "apart of it", I [SERIOUSLY] recommend that they first do their homework with regard to kappert's previous (general) statements and positions of moral relativism before taking any further potshots at me.
PS Thanks, traveller..@ The Editrix
Submitted by traveller on Thu, 2009-03-05 12:24.The sparring of Atlanticist vs Kappert has ideological grounds from a long time ago.
Let me remind you that the majority in Germany were nazis and that Vichy France was nazi, also a majority in France. Mitterand, the later president was a Vichy member.
What exactly do you want these countries and their people to do? Commit suicide?
Those populations tried to survive under a dictatorship and I don't see any of our so called liberals today acting any different under a dictatorship, on the contrary they already accept the dictatorship of the Political Correct uni-thought. We already are admonished that free speech is dangerous and everybody on the left and in the Establishment applauds. That's how "Kristallnacht" started."Kappert, the Jerry Fletcher
Submitted by The_Editrix on Thu, 2009-03-05 11:58."Kappert, the Jerry Fletcher of the BJ, sees nazis everywhere. But even supposing that some of his conspiracy theories are true..."
I am unaware of any earlier argy-bargy between kappert and Atlanticist911 elsewhere and, frankly, I don't want any part in it, but to call what the former posted a "conspiracy theory" on the strength of that very comment, is... let me call it "simpleminded" to avoid any unnecessary bitingness. To say that the CSU (and the FDP and to a lesser extent the CDU) used to be a collecting pit for old Nazis post-WWII is simply the truth. I recommend that Atlanticist911 performs a Google search or two. It is not all that difficult and will prove kappert right.
@ 'Jerry' from the proud son of a British 'Tommy'
Submitted by Atlanticist911 on Wed, 2009-03-04 19:47.NOT so. My own father spent 6 years of his life fighting those nazi bastards and losing his younger brother in the process so that, among other things, spineless, cloth-eared clowns like you might live to ridicule and gloat. But if I was "hopping around" as you claim, I would have had the perfect Master/ Mistress in you.
@atlanticist911
Submitted by kappert on Wed, 2009-03-04 18:56.Sorry: Jerry Fletcher Hollywood, Watts, Hobsbawn, Hitchens, 'change the topic'? You are hopping around, trying to avoid the acknowledgement that the crimes of WWII are largely accepted by the post-war democracies (see post-war careers), simply because the nazi-ideology is a consequent line in the thought of protestant technocrats. The opposition of science and religions, so often discussed in this blog, lead (so far) ultimately to the übermensch-ideology, conceived by 'thinkers' overwhelmed by the progress of science. Still, many countries feel an instant superiority towards others, means, the mentioned ideology in still working in the minds.
'Watt' Conspiracy (4) : tribe and diatribe
Submitted by Atlanticist911 on Wed, 2009-03-04 17:30.Without wishing to reduce my mini-debate with Kappert (XX ?) to one equating to something along the lines of 'Hobsbawn's Choice', with regard to the nazis vs commies, I believe most rational people would be prepared to listen and learn from a person who knows.
Example:
http://hitchensblog.mailonsunday.co.uk/2009/03/in-search-of-my-mi5-file-the-only-thing-i-have-in-common-with-professor-eric-hobsbawn.htmlWhy Start a War?
Submitted by Capodistrias on Wed, 2009-03-04 17:18.Surely good friends can live happily ever after?
http://www.geocities.com/provost_stiener/Nazi_Soviet_Pact.jpg@Kappert
Enlightenment sometimes requires a light bulb.War Starts (2)
Submitted by Atlanticist911 on Wed, 2009-03-04 17:10.Fellow BJ'ers will note: Not satisfied with avoiding offering any substantive responses to my questions on 'WATT', Kappert now wishes to change the topic of discussion to one concerning the chromosone Y. If there's a link here, I'm missing it!
'Watt' Conspiracy (3): At this particular moment in time...
Submitted by Atlanticist911 on Wed, 2009-03-04 16:41.You are free to leave. Why not take advantage of this opportunity before the war starts? Remember the cowards war cry, "Better Fled than Dead".
Your comment is an
Submitted by kappert on Wed, 2009-03-04 16:24.Your comment is an enlightenment. Putting on the same level nazis, commies, trotzkis, maoists (don't forget sindicalists, uuhaa) you very much aline in the 'general forgiveness' towards nazis. They were welcome, voted and adored and nothing tells us that this history will not repeat itself in this fractured tribal Europe, as slave labour, human traficking and ethnic cleansing stand high on the wishing list of some political entrepreneurs.
'Watt' Conspiracy (2)
Submitted by Atlanticist911 on Wed, 2009-03-04 16:13."It is a given fact that nazis reached up to decisive positions in Europe after WWII".
It is also a "given fact" that Communists, Trotskyites, (and to a far lesser degree) Maoists and their ilk achieved similar successes, but I don't see you complaining about that. Perhaps this should be considered by (Occidental/ accidental) taoists as the political 'yin' balancing out the political 'yang'. Then again, maybe not.
NB That was not a question it was a statement, but you are still free to pass comment. (In case you hadn't noticed).re: (the) 'Watt ' Conspiracy
Submitted by Atlanticist911 on Wed, 2009-03-04 15:56.I'm sorry, I must have missed the part where you answer one of my questions before I am expected to answer one of yours.
http://ewanwatt.blogspot.com/2008/10/conspiracy-theories-on-haider.htmlwhat conspiracy
Submitted by kappert on Wed, 2009-03-04 15:40.It has nothing to do with conspiracy. It is a given fact that nazis reached up to decisive positions in Europe after WWII. Kiesinger was German chancellor, Waldheim Austrian president and UNO chairman, von Braun catapulted Americans to the moon, Quandt and Krupp continue to be the richest families in Germany - they are forgiven a long time ago! Where do you detect conspiracies?
careers (2) : aka When Worlds Collide
Submitted by Atlanticist911 on Wed, 2009-03-04 14:17.Kappert, the Jerry Fletcher of the BJ, sees nazis everywhere. But even supposing that some of his conspiracy theories are true, he's never prepared to provide serious answers to valid questions, like how would HE deal with the problem the original 'Jerry' faced, should said nazis ever decide to come after him?
http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Conspiracy_Theorycareers
Submitted by kappert on Wed, 2009-03-04 13:15.Former Nazi-Parteimitglieder making career in the CSU:
Walter Becher, Hermann Höcherl, Friedrich Kempfler, Franz Krapf, Franz Nüßlein, Alfred Seidl, Siegfried Zoglmann: all these Nazis were Deputies, Diplomats or at least MdB for the Federal Republic of Germany. Some got highest positions at NATO.
(ps: the leader of Reiter-SS and NSKK later married the Dutch princess Juliana, so not only in both Germanys the Nazies proceed their career!)Bavaria is the biggest Bundesland by area, not by population...
Submitted by The_Editrix on Tue, 2009-03-03 22:41....and the CSU is hardly a centre right party by any international standard. They are Sacré-Cœur Socialists, centre, at best.
Good try and I wish them well, but I am afraid any political effort with "libertas" in its name will, in Germany, suffer the fate of a stillborn child. Germans just don't understand the concept.
Germany's most populous land
Submitted by heplev on Sat, 2009-02-28 16:19....still is Northrine-Westphalia! :)
Look here http://www.planet-schule.de/wissenspool/bg0051/kinder_europas/wissen_deutschland/die_bundeslaender.html (just run the mouse over the map)
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How to deal with one's past
"Let me remind you that the majority in Germany were nazis and that Vichy France was nazi, also a majority in France. Mitterand, the later president was a Vichy member."
Yes and -- in the context of this discussion -- so?
"What exactly do you want these countries and their people to do? Commit suicide?"
I, as a German, will not tell other people what to do about and how to see their own past. There IS, however, a tiny wee little difference between Germany and the other European nations: Different from Germany, no WWII and no Holocaust went out from their countries. I do, however, react a tiny wee bit irritated if a foreigner, like you, tells me how *I* have to see OUR past.
"Those populations tried to survive under a dictatorship..."
I have to go back a long way to remember an equally callous statement of relativism and opportunism. And here I was, thinking that this is a conservative forum.
"... and I don't see any of our so called liberals today acting any different under a dictatorship, on the contrary they already accept the dictatorship of the Political Correct uni-thought."
Oh no! They are just trying to survive under a dictatorship, didn't you know?
"We already are admonished that free speech is dangerous and everybody on the left and in the Establishment applauds. That's how "Kristallnacht" started."
YOU, Sir, have NO IDEA how "Kristallnacht" started.
I will, however, throw in some private lesson in German history and sociology. Germans as a people, with a few precious exceptions thrown in, did NOT, as you put it "try to survive under a dictatorship". They gladly supported it, as Germans in the former GDR are still whining about the end of the second German dictatorship. And don't you dare telling me it ain't so because I am living among them for more than two years now. Germans can't live without a totalitarian concept. That is why we don't have anything that resembles even faintly a conservative political movement. WHAT we have are brown-painted Socialists, Sacred-Heart Socialists, green-over-brown-painted Socialists, Communists and a tiny, hapless "liberal" party that used to be a receptacle for old Nazis after '45 and which has ousted itself from serious politics by their self-consciously cultivated image of a "fun party" under its openly gay leader. The staple between all of them is the hatred of America and Jews, which the not-brown-painted ilk insist to call "anti-Zionism" because they are such despicable hypocrites. All of them have NOTHING in common with parties like Vlaams Belang, Partij voor de Vrijheid or BNP.
The support for even the worst Muslim thugs is based on that very affinity, the mutual totalitarian mindset. Wasn't Jörg Haider rubbing shoulders with Bubba Saddam? Didn't a contractor, who is a member of the brown-over-red painted party NPD, build the gigantic mosque in Duisburg-Marxsloh? Hey! It worked pretty well between Hitler and the Mufti already, so why not now?
"Liberalism", Sir, is the LAST THING that has anything to do with it.
That was all. You may quote me.