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Pro-Palestinian rally at the FU Berlin (February 8th)

Photo: Monika Skolimowska / dpa

“Incapacitate this city,” I wrote here a year ago and thought that it wouldn’t be topped any time soon. Not Berlin and neither do I. But whenever you think it's no longer possible, the capital comes from somewhere. It's like a long, bad dream.

At the beginning of 2023 there was a repeat of the culpably botched election for the Berlin House of Representatives. This weekend saw the partial repeat of the equally botched federal election. On September 26, 2021, the House of Representatives and Bundestag elections took place at the same time. And a district election. And a referendum. And a marathon. Everything together then went to shit.

But: Back then, Berlin merely made itself the laughingstock of the republic. Now, however, things are getting serious. Now there is an absolute, unbearable (although who knows?) bewilderment at how many shades of madness and indolence fit together seamlessly in Berlin. The city is no longer making a fool of itself. She is guilty.

A Jewish student at West Berlin's "Free University" is beaten to the hospital by a fellow Palestine fanboy, but the university management and the responsible senator believe that violent hatred of Jews must first be calmly viewed from all sides. Because: cool head and all that. It's always about freedom of expression.

At East Berlin's Humboldt University (HU), a Gaza fan mob rioted until a top judge of the State of Israel was brought out of the hall. She is not supposed to speak there, she is silenced, she is Jewish. Meanwhile, the senator continues to ramble about freedom of teaching, which applies everywhere and to everyone. But not for the Jews, say the Gaza groupies with the neon-colored hair and the multiple organ piercings. Incidentally, not 200 meters away, across the street in front of the university's main building, the books were burned in 1933. But what am I talking about:

post colonial studies

have as much to do with historical science as umbilical pulp has to do with gene therapy.

more on the subject

  • For three months:FU Berlin bans suspects from entering the building after an attack on Jewish students

  • Middle East conflict at the Free University: Broken bones and communismAn on-site visit by Hannes Schrader

  • Anti-Semitism at the Free University of Berlin: Are you taking tougher action from now on, Mr. Ziegler? An interview by Tanya Falenczyk and Lukas Hildebrand

  • Anti-Semitic violence: About the dangerous half-morality of the leftA column by Sascha Lobo

The senator bravely goes on to explain why banning people from the house and deregistering the beating pals doesn't actually work: This is opposed, among other things, by the right to free choice of career. So that I don't laugh: what job? If the young people in the videos remain half as contaminated as they currently are, who will they ever receive a salary from and for what? Except, perhaps, in the predominantly left-wing programs for “democracy promotion,” which are to be increased because: “Never again is now!” This proud motto can cost a lot of other people's money. But also the courage of a member of the government? Oh no. Not in Berlin.

The Governing Mayor had traveled to Israel immediately beforehand. At Yad Vashem he wrote in the book of condolence for the millions of murdered Jews: “Words and, above all, actions are urgently needed to stand against anti-Semitism, hatred and violence. Only then will we truly understand this touching and significant place." Coincidence couldn't make it more revealing: the "governor" writes about "deeds" - but bowling an anti-Semitic brawler from the university isn't that much action? It's enough for a bit of a stay-at-home ban, but too late, too little, the damage is done. In Berlin, even “never again” only means sometime. Please take a waiting number.

Or do we want to remember the anti-extremism clause that the Senator for Culture quickly decided to put in front of all funding agreements after October 7th? The allocation of tax money should, among other things, be tied to a commitment against anti-Semitism, but this Senate and its administrative lawyers were too stupid to formulate this in a legally binding manner. The matter has been conceded. Basically, this clause has been going on like this since 2019, I read, the “Tagesspiegel” calls it “disturbing chair circle acrobatics”. In Berlin that means: “Never again” is nowhere.

And before you think that that's good for today, let's just say this: Some time ago, a medium-sized group of morale-infused filmmakers demanded that the Berlinale festival management disinvite some Berlin AfD politicians who had been invited as usual. Instead of politely telling the moral chic that they should get hacked, the Berlinale bosses promptly distanced themselves from right-wing extremism once again and, for the sake of cowardice, referred to other politically anchored invitations, such as the one for Minister of State for Culture Roth. They at least criticized the anti-AfD request, but the Berlinale management ultimately disinvited the AfDers anyway. Because: “Never again” is… you guessed it. So important.

I'm really not a fan of the AfD, you can read that here often enough: But no cinema tickets in the fight against right-wing extremism, how small should the diamond be? Which pea will sprout next? I don't even know the names of the AfD politicians affected, I don't care about them, but they are freely elected. By the way, also from people who use their taxes to pay the subsidies for almost every German film, for the odd glass of fizzybrew at the Berlinale parties, for the two universities in Berlin, of course, and possibly even for Bafög or the student dormitory Free Gaza Fighters. And if I had to chew on it a little longer, I would only come up with one thing:

defund them all

.