Herbert Grönemeyer is a popular German musician and actor. He could be called the German Bruce Springsteen.
Mr. Grönemeyer caused an uproar recently with an onstage call for the dictatorial suppression of the Right in furtherance of maintaining left-wing governance, which he considers an absolute necessity.
The number of blatantly totalitarian statements from the Left seems to be increasing. Western Europe is ahead of us in that regard, but as the 2020 election campaign heats up, there is more and more of it here in the USA.
From the German edition of Rolling Stone:
This is why Herbert Grönemeyer bothered people with his speech against the right
For many years the singer Herbert Grönemeyer has been taking a clear stand against right-wing extremism. But after his latest speech at a concert in Vienna, he has received massive critique
Grönemeyer is currently on his “Tumultuous” tour across Europe and is more political than ever. Last summer in Chemnitz he said, “This land is our land. We hold it steady and keep it stable and we don’t let it swerve to the right.”
On Thursday September 12 the singer gave a concert in Vienna, Austria and made some comments in front of a sold-out concert audience concerning what he sees as an unstable political climate: “I only know it from hearsay, to live in times that are so brittle, so fragile, and on such thin ice. And I believe it should be clear to us, that even when politicians are weak, whether in Austria or in Germany, that it is up to us.”
The audience applauded, and Grönemeyer continued, “And then it is up to us to dictate how a society has to look. And whoever then tries to abuse an insecure situation for rightwing drivel and for ostracism, for racism and hate, they have no place here. This society is open and humanist, and we will not move one millimeter to the right, not a single millimeter to the right. And that is how it is and that is how it will remain.”
“I hate to say it but it sounds like a speaker from 1945”
But for a fact Grönemeyer’s speech against the right was received less positively on the Internet than it was at the concert. Of course there were many users on Twitter and other social media who support him and agree with him and find that he hit the target. But there were quite a few prominent voices who openly critiqued the singer’s speech. They mostly talked about the drastic tone of voice of the musicians. His voice got louder and louder during the applause of his audience, and towards the end, the speech ended on a grim note.
“The tone of voice with which Grönemeyer stoked the enthusiasm of his audience, was a bit scary to me,” the German author Bernd Stegemann tweeted. The supporter of the left-wing movement “Stand Up” added: “I hate to say this but it sounds like a speaker from 1945.” Said tweet has been one of the main shared tweets against the 63-year-old Grönemeyer’s speech. But the majority of commenters can’t agree with the criticism. One user on Twitter had this to say: “He speaks AGAINST the right and sounds scary? I hate to say it but that is rubbish!”
But why did Grönemeyer’s speech spark such criticism? Especially the sentence, “Then it is up to us to dictate how a society has to look” has prompted people to call it creepy. The musician apparently has been chosen to be the spokesperson for a left-liberal majority who think it is up to them to tell other people how they have to live and to think. And repeatedly it is being hinted that Grönemeyer spends the majority of his time in London, and therefore he should have little to say about the situation in Germany or even Austria.
But the German minister of foreign affairs Heiko Maas disagrees. He took a clear stand for Grönemeyer on Twitter and wrote: “It is up to us to stand up for a free society and to defend our democracy together. Thanks to Herbert Grönemeyer and to all people who do this every day.”
Maas has in the past praised the political opinions of musicians. On the internet he supported Campino from TOTEN HOSEN, Marteria and even FEINE SAHNE FISCHFILET. For that he had to hear from many sides that he supported bands that took radical left stands.
And for his tweet about Grönemeyer, he received quite a few comments in the tone of, “You obviously haven’t listened very well; Grönemeyer wants to dictate and not defend.”
Beatrix Von Storch, the AfD’s deputy leader, had this to say: “This is the most terrifying, nauseating, totalitarian hate speech that I have ever heard. It is apparently Tone and Furor of the new terror from the left. Whoever supports this is, just like Heiko Maas, should be referred to the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution.”
Many participants in the discussion have issues with the comparison of Grönemeyer to Nazis. “To compare Grönemeyer’s speech with a Nazi speech is characterless and most of all dumb,” the comedian Florian Schroeder writes on Twitter. What really matters in his opinion is the content of a speech, and not the tone. “Whoever separates tone and form from what is said is directly operating in the business of fascism.”
Watch the video to listen to his voice, you don’t need to understand German to hear Göbbels:
According to Nash Montana 