Well of course I do not speak German myself but I’m basing my view on online translations of the clip, and so let me make 3 points;
- Merz’s panic mode when seeing someone raising a Palestinian flag is quite revealing – a pandora’s box seems to have opened ever so slightly that people insist to keep closed due to the historic backdrop with regards to where “antisemitism” first occurred and the disgusting atrocities committed in representing it; I’ve been to Auschwitz myself and starred at the horrific history in the face. In fact my opinion is that it’s precisely this abuse of the term that is undermining the real threat it poses as one of the many racist ideologies against minorities we see in communities across the world; I don’t actually feel its necessary to drive this point further cause its too obvious. As for the pandora box I actually believe that in a democracy nothing should be placed/left in a box, least of all people who adopt/present differing opinions or having them shoved/kicked in the streets by law enforcement officers; I guess I’m just an old fashion guy when it comes to good old democratic values that are being hammered day in and day out by so called democratic leaders. Hey, the west was at one point the champion of these universal values one has completely subscribed to and where are we now; surely there’s a software bug somewhere in the governance system some are adopting.
- Raising a Palestine flag translates to antisemitism for Merz (or so it seems) and perhaps some see it that way in Germany. The question is whether this is the real reason behind the German government not recognising the state of Palestine (i.e. the very broad definition of antisemitism) rather than the stated excuse of “undermining any efforts to reach a negotiated two-state solution with Israel”, really? OK that’s one stand but next comes a point that kinda breaks this stand in half, so here goes;
- What concrete efforts has Germany made to pursue the 2 state track and more importantly if the German government accepts this wide definition above, then what business is it of Merz representing Germany in visiting states in the region to establish economic [ties] “mainly for their own good fortunes of course” where these states and their people would fall pretty much into this definition of antisemites simply because they’re seeking the same Palestinian state, raising the same flag in support of Palestine and the majority of the people hand on heart do/have supported the Palestinian cause since the occupation?
So in a nutshell let me suggest to Mr. Merz that if you do believe in something and committed to it, take a full stand in supporting it NOT half a stand; as the old saying goes “when the going gets tough the tough get going” it doesn’t go “when the going gets tough the tough get going to find candy/chocolate bars”.
Here is what I believe we’re seeing in the occupied territories;
a) people being driven naked/blind folded in the streets – a form of dehumanisation, and sometimes even troops filming themselves performing these atrocities; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yAokbO7huE0.
b) a regime demonstrating clear signs of brutality by indiscriminately bombing the hell out of civilians/cutting off all form of life support systems based on supremacist/racist ideology.
c) a regime intent on removing books and doing all possible to delete all signs of Palestinian history from the occupied territories and beyond and come up with their own distorted version of history (in the old playbook they preferred burning books for the same purpose). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GdtCr
d) a regime coming up with all forms of excuses to not only attack its neighbours but assassinate leaders across the the region irrespective of what some call “international law”.
e) a regime quite savvy when it comes to the propaganda war; this is easy to lookup online and determine who used this tool effectively in WWII
So to sum up from the above; the recipe for self-defence contains genocide coupled with ethnic cleansing, a touch of history cleansing and expansionist aspirations.
Now comes another question; where have we seen this precise playbook followed before? You see, Germany may not be doing these acts mentioned above itself but there seems to be a consistent cheering/clapping within the political establishment when this happens by an “ally”; in other words/in layman terms there seems to be a change in roles rather than a change in course/approach.
Let me make a final genuine point (and you make your own judgement about it); believe it or not this post is not about bashing Germany cause its a country I’ve always admired/respected for a long time whether in music/art tradition, industry, ingenuity, resilience and in many other areas and also befriended/continue to have close German friends since childhood. What I’m hoping for is for the German leadership to finally consider turning a page on reactionary politics rooted in historical events and moving in the direction of a more pragmatic vision based on realities of the present (not distorted narratives of the past) coupled with a “consistent” set of values adopted; “Pragmatism + Values”; you should not follow one set of values for the Ukraine war and another completely reversed set for the conflict/s in the Mideast otherwise you may possibly end up with more than you’ve bargained for. So will change ever happen in Germany? I really have no idea, I’m not driving here but in my opinion its highly unlikely for this change to come from the old guard with their old ideological baggage but perhaps from the new generation hopefully one day. But then again the world is changing fast and every country is seeking to make a mark before it gets marked out, so who really knows. Remember please, this is NOT a conflict specific issue but a call for the same consistent approach covering all geopolitical challenges around the world – to stop using old distorted narratives that achieve precious little and begin working with each challenge based on true/accurate/present realities & merits – otherwise future generations will end up spending a good chunk of their lives putting out fires rather than focusing on a sustainable form of development and protecting our planet.
Hope that makes sense.