Remembrance of things present
While thousands of Germans gathered just south of Berlin yesterday to protest a provocative neo-Nazi demonstration held to glorify fallen Wehrmacht soldiers of the Battle of Halbe, Chancellor Merkel and other government and diplomatic corps officials will be taking part in ceremonies in Berlin today marking Germany’s Volkstrauertag or People’s Day of Remembrance.
And although the mainstream political parties and their supporters in Halbe and elsewhere succeeded in making their statement against far-right extremism in Germany - the neo-Nazi demonstration there had actually been banned beforehand - this couldn’t stop these far-right flag-wavers from gathering at another battleground cemetery near Seelow, a few miles to the east.
And that somehow seems appropriate to me. That these zealots of the past have to wander aimlessly from one cemetery to the next, that they feel the need to have to appear on a day like Volkstrauertag, is just another reminder of what they are (or aspire to be?). Where no Einsicht (deeper understanding) can be expected, and the dyed-in-the-wool types like this will never understand, no amount of good will can ever completely exorcise them from Germany’s possessed public body.
But thankfully, there is no real need to do so: They are only ghosts. These pitiful apparitions are doomed to haunt the country and wander about the place as the forgotten living dead they are. This is all that much clearer on days in which others are being remembered.
The remembered dead refuse to be forgotten and speak to us on days like today. The living dead might speak to us, too, if they could. It’s just that they don’t have anything to say.
And although the mainstream political parties and their supporters in Halbe and elsewhere succeeded in making their statement against far-right extremism in Germany - the neo-Nazi demonstration there had actually been banned beforehand - this couldn’t stop these far-right flag-wavers from gathering at another battleground cemetery near Seelow, a few miles to the east.
And that somehow seems appropriate to me. That these zealots of the past have to wander aimlessly from one cemetery to the next, that they feel the need to have to appear on a day like Volkstrauertag, is just another reminder of what they are (or aspire to be?). Where no Einsicht (deeper understanding) can be expected, and the dyed-in-the-wool types like this will never understand, no amount of good will can ever completely exorcise them from Germany’s possessed public body.
But thankfully, there is no real need to do so: They are only ghosts. These pitiful apparitions are doomed to haunt the country and wander about the place as the forgotten living dead they are. This is all that much clearer on days in which others are being remembered.
The remembered dead refuse to be forgotten and speak to us on days like today. The living dead might speak to us, too, if they could. It’s just that they don’t have anything to say.
Kommentare auf Deutsch? Logisch.
But since I´m from a region in germany in which Soldatenkameradschaften and Kriegervereine are quite common, I´m probably not qualified to have an opinion here, right? :D
Get over it ! (Comment this)
Also: compliments on finally moving away from tiresome ex-pat banter and providing a bit of insight and analysis. (Comment this)
There is quite a difference between writing
"a demonstration held to commemorate fallen Wehrmacht soldiers" and
"a provocative demonstration held to glorify fallen Wehrmacht soldiers" (as mentioned here), don´t you agree? (Comment this)
The other commentator is correct, you do seem to be biased. You are right about one thing they will never completely disappear because they are part of Germany's voice. You can not embrace them completely, but you should at least listen to them. To see their concerns. I am a "German American," and will be moving back to Germany when my studies are finished. What has always amazed me on my visits to Germany, is that I - raised in the US - am more openly proud about my heritage than native Germans. I find that so sad. Because if you speak to most Germans they are proud about so many things, but they are afraid to say it out loud. How long should that fear last? Another 60 years? Should we inference this feeling of doubt, blind guilt, silence, etc for the next few generations? Why do you think the economy suffers and the birthrate drops? Because with that constant feeling of worthlessness - guilt, shame, etc - there is not future to work for.
I was lucky. As I child I wasn't bombarded by the evils of my grandparents, instead I had a patient and loving grandfather who explained the entire situation to me. You write that Germany " carries the burden of responsibility for two of the bloodiest wars in history." What a sad statement! To make such a blatant claim is to - again - silence or forget the other sides of the equation. There were many many factors in each war, and no one can solidly lay the entire blame on Germany. It is a shared western debt. (Comment this)