3 ms·

And that's wrong. It's not helping - Far Right protests are almost as much of a problem in Germany as in the US, despite the fact that the police can and will l

And that's wrong. It's not helping - Far Right protests are almost as much of a problem in Germany as in the US, despite the fact that the police can and will lock you up for those views. If anything it has incited more people to view those things with respect - Mostly rebellious youths, but many of them never leave once they've adopted the lifestyle. Suppressing speech never has the intended effect of making it go away. It only makes it nastier and more virulent, by giving it an enemy to fight and it's followers the badge of oppression.

pluma 9y ago
Citation needed. I've actually met ex-nazis in Germany and I don't believe the causality you're proposing holds up. Yes, neo-nazis think the "jews" are running the country and keeping them down, but this is no different from how the antifa think the "fascists" are doing the same. The recent rise of nationalism in Germany actually has more to do with both major parties having become indistinguishable in many cases and "moderates" flocking to the extremes to "punish" the government. It's a lot like trolls on 4chan spreading racist memes "for the lulz" until they end up having become actual white supremacists participating in Nazi rallies instead of merely shitposting on the Internet. Right-leaning "moderates" vote for the right-wing extremists (NPD if you're really angry or AfD if you are more of a realist) out of spite and then fall for the rhetoric as they continue exposing themselves to their messages. The only effective treatment against this disease seems to be constant exposure to other people with other ideas coming from other walks of life. Yes, there's an East/West divide in neo-Nazi density in Germany, but it's also very much a rural/metropolitan divide. If all the people around you look, talk and think like you, everything different becomes a threat to your way of life.

pluma 9y ago

Citation needed. I've actually met ex-nazis in Germany and I don't believe the causality you're proposing holds up. Yes, neo-nazis think the "jews" are running the country and keeping them down, but this is no different from how the antifa think the "fascists" are doing the same. The recent rise of nationalism in Germany actually has more to do with both major parties having become indistinguishable in many cases and "moderates" flocking to the extremes to "punish" the government. It's a lot like trolls on 4chan spreading racist memes "for the lulz" until they end up having become actual white supremacists participating in Nazi rallies instead of merely shitposting on the Internet. Right-leaning "moderates" vote for the right-wing extremists (NPD if you're really angry or AfD if you are more of a realist) out of spite and then fall for the rhetoric as they continue exposing themselves to their messages. The only effective treatment against this disease seems to be constant exposure to other people with other ideas coming from other walks of life. Yes, there's an East/West divide in neo-Nazi density in Germany, but it's also very much a rural/metropolitan divide. If all the people around you look, talk and think like you, everything different becomes a threat to your way of life.