Post photo: Universe | © Gerd Altmann from Pixabay
A sentence that is often used in the Bundeswehr and is now used more often in our society; probably because it continued to be used by conscripts even after their service for our country and is now considered chic, especially for those who skilfully avoid all duties.
And as I was able to find out again last weekend, it is precisely the shirkers who particularly like to use military language - so to speak Donald Trumps of our society. And so it is hardly surprising that these “welfare state Germans” (Germans with all rights and no obligations) want to use a German Foreign Legion to ensure that foreigners without civil rights protect our country and for the rights and freedoms of our “master race”. battle. Ok, the choice of words is no longer entirely appropriate, because we have officially no longer been a master race since 1945, we now prefer to call ourselves world champions or pope.
As already written, I was able to listen to numerous lectures this weekend and also take part in conversations that were difficult to digest. Remigration, which is currently so popular, has become completely state-supporting, “in the end they don’t belong here”. Unfortunately, no speaker could say how he would like to solve the existing problem - Trumpism has also reached Germany. It is unfortunate that many speakers are no longer aware of their own schizophrenia, not even temporarily.
What was worse were the various statements that our democracy was actually at its end and that people no longer gave it a chance. This in turn was countered by a good million of fellow German citizens who took to the streets against the National Socialists called AfD and for our democracy. Unfortunately, well over 80 million Germans simply stayed at home and in Erlenbach they even decided to throw a Nazi party, well protected by our police and with around 350 participants. Now I'm curious to see whether we in Heilbronn will be able to surpass the 350 participants on Friday on Tuesday - I myself promoted this with the appropriate email and a circular. Unfortunately, all corresponding efforts are already being torpedoed by “good-bourgeois” circles who claim to have learned from state-supporting sources (including the Office for the Protection of the Constitution) that the events that caused the rallies in Potsdam never took place and were just “fake news from the lying press.” be.
Which left me with the important question over the weekend as to whether, after 75 years, it is actually the end of the road for our democracy?
My argument, which worked so far, that only democracies can be successful and above all economically, is now being hotly disputed and countered with China and the Russian Federation (!) as counterexamples. Some “good middle-class people” are now even being persuaded to believe that the National Socialists replaced the broken and less successful Weimar Republic and were only unable to lead Germany to success due to “unfortunate circumstances” - for me, the final proof that our education system has completely failed and we are at least intellectually exhausted. Actually, I'm ready for the island and should try to live at least for my better half and myself for the rest of my life.
But then the nagging question arises again as to whether our democracy is actually at its end and - also a point of discussion at the weekend - whether and how democracy can be made a little better? It should be clear to everyone that every democracy is not perfect; The only thing that is controversial is whether there actually are better forms of government. My experience from over 60 years now tells me that no, but everyone has to have their own experiences and very few learn from the experiences of others.
And so I first try to develop a striking model of our democracy before I try to find a solution as to how democracy could be made a little better.
My model corresponds to a pentagon, with the lengths of each side changing constantly and largely independently of each other - a pulsating pentagon, so to speak.
In the first corner the completely uninvolved people gather, each doing their own thing and who don't care which form of rule prevails. Sometimes they come together in family groups or even become members of a club. For them, individualism is the creed, and in a degeneration (in the sense of Aristotle) they become mere envious and ill-wishers.
The Wotan disciples, theocracy supporters, monarchists, anarchists, nihilists and sociopaths gather in the second corner. Some of them are willing to make social concessions, which can be clearly seen in constitutional monarchists, while others see their own future as being at the stake.
In the third corner gather the communists, socialists, Maoists and Stalinists of all stripes, who are constantly arguing with each other about whether they are part of a necessary revolution or whether, completely sworn to communism, they can wait for it to happen humanity develops on its own and quite logically towards socialism, which then gives birth to a new person who can rise to communism.
All fascists, racists, National Socialists and ultranationals gather in the fourth corner. These are relatively harmless as long as they stare at the Kyffhäuser and continue to wait for the leader, but very quickly become an existential threat when they begin to agree on a leader.
In the fifth corner, the fake fifties gather, who want to get the most out of every form of rule and are therefore happy to be celebrated as the fathers or mothers of democracy.
So where are the Democrats now? We must first assume that everyone in the pentagon must be officially considered Democrats — no one can look into their heads. However, those who constantly bump into different corners could certainly be viewed as anti-democrats.
And so it can be assumed that the actual Democrats are gathering in the center, but in the process they are also slowly and surely being crushed by the vibrant fringes. This would certainly allow us to determine a half-life for every democracy.
However, the whole calculation is made more difficult by two further challenges, namely, firstly, that people can change constantly and therefore not only move from one corner towards the center and back, but also from one corner to the other, which certainly still affects the pulse of the pentagon further increased. The whole thing is also complicated by the fact that some people at the same time, for example, B. can be a National Socialist and SPD-OB or a fascist and Stalinist in one and the same person.
The second challenge is that the pentagon is not a closed model. And so new members are constantly being added, while others are leaving the model again.
And so every democracy pulsates, at least until the system collapses, at the latest when there are no longer enough democrats in the middle of the pentagon.
And how can such a model actually work? Quite simply by doing it first There are rules that everyone in the system has to adhere to and Secondly Violations of the rules can be sanctioned very quickly and sustainably. Without rules and sanctions there is no democracy!
Which now leads me to the question, how could one or any democracy be improved?
The crux of the matter is that this always requires a system-dependent, sustainable majority, which no one will ever be able to bring together. And so all democracies will continue to pulsate until they implode one by one like the stars in the universe. One consolation could be that, as in the universe as a whole, there will always be new stars and therefore new democracies. Another consolation could be that we humans don't live long enough to have to experience such an implosion several times, if at all!
But how could one actually improve a democracy if one only wanted to? I have a few suggestions here that have probably been discussed again and again since the beginning of the first democracy and are certainly nothing new.
Change in the right to vote
- Anyone who is or acts against democracy loses their right to stand for election;
- Anyone who commits a crime loses their right to stand for election;
- Anyone who does not fulfill their obligations (e.g. compulsory military service or completed vocational training) does not receive the right to stand for election;
- Each representative can only be elected twice.
Change in social benefits
- Duties and rights must be increasingly linked again;
- Those who do not fulfill their obligations receive reduced social benefits;
- Anyone who is or acts against democracy receives reduced social benefits;
- Anyone who has multiple citizenships receives reduced social benefits;
- Anyone who commits a crime receives reduced social benefits.
- Entry into retirement age only occurs after proof of at least one year of military, social or alternative service.
Exclusion from the community
- Anyone who is or acts against democracy and does not have German citizenship must leave the country;
- Anyone who commits a crime and does not have German citizenship must leave the country.
These are my quick suggestions. I am aware that none of these suggestions will ever be considered or implemented. What is reassuring is that much better suggestions than the ones I have made here are hardly or not at all considered.
End of story, nothing to add
