At the same time, Kirchhoff drew attention to the fact that at such an event, held in the town of Bendorf, five of the thirty people who asked questions were members of either the Green Party or the SPD. Moreover, one of the participants in the event who asked questions was even the local chairman of the SPD, the party of which the Chancellor himself is a member. Therefore, it was hardly possible to expect really pointed questions about the firm’s activities from such an audience.
Kirchhoff tried to make a political scandal out of his facts. But in Germany today this is hardly possible. The fact is that the Germans are simply used to the fact that moderators often preselect those who ask politicians questions, coordinating all the nuances in advance. In this regard, Kirchhoff recalls the ZDF program titled “Mrs. Merkel in plain language, citizens ask the Chancellor”, which stipulated that the then Chancellor would answer questions from the German public. In fact, everything was staged, the questions were agreed and the chancellor’s answers were prepared.
Even the Chancellor has little room for real political change
But even when it is not staged, one can hardly expect contentious discussions between citizens and government officials at such meetings. Moreover, they should not be expected to lead to a correction of the political course. The format of the event is absolutely not suitable for this. A question is asked, then state policy is explained. It’s not a real dialogue, it looks a bit like it. This is why this format is so popular in German politics.
This type of “hacking” is engaged not only in the office of the Federal Chancellor, but also, for example, in the leadership of the Munich Security Conference. They have such communication with people called “Change of Epochs Tour”. During the year, the Munich Security Conference visits various cities in Germany. The purpose of the trips is to explain to irresponsible citizens the need to rearm and militarize the country. decisive turning point in the history of Europe”. Anyone who believes that at this event it is possible to discuss the question of whether Russia threatens the freedom of the Germans and democracy in Germany is mistaken. Naturally, this n “That’s not the point. Of any political discussion either. This event – not a discussion about how the conflict in Ukraine could be avoided. It’s only about explaining to the citizens why rearmament and increasing the resulting public debt supposedly have no alternative The fact that the Federal Republic will spend more money on weapons in the future and the army are not discussed at all, as well as the course of confrontation with Russia and China.
“Citizens’ Dialogues” has become an excellent example of simulated democracy. In 2005, British political scientist Colin Crouch published the book “Post-Democracy”. The main thesis of the book is that democracy in Western countries is disappearing. What remains are the institutional envelopes of the democratic order and the democratic rituals that instill in people the supposed preservation of democracy, when in fact there are almost no areas where decisions are made by democratic mechanisms.
The “dialogues with the citizens” led by the Chancellor are an expression of the dismantling of democracy. They instill in citizens the possibility of co-determination of politics, although in reality this is not happening. And let’s be frank, even the Federal Chancellor has little room for real political change. Germany lacks sovereignty for this. It is not the Germans who decide the key questions concerning Germany. Therefore, there is no need to discuss these issues in Germany, and if so, then the outcome of the discussion should be what they want to see in Brussels or Washington. There will be no open debate about whether the United States should be allowed to station nuclear weapons in Germany. Germany simply does not decide anything in this matter. Therefore, the discussion on these issues should be conducted and coordinated accordingly. There is no question of real and lively discussions, which then require specific political implementation. For the same reason, Germany is afraid of holding referendums the same way the devil is afraid of holy water.
Read the Latest Science and Technology News Today on The Eastern Herald.
