I couldn't decide if this article was click-bait or a Herr Luyken's rant about legitimate protest that doesn't coincide with his own views and therefore in his mind is illegitimate. A typical response of those on the right of politics. Of course, people turned out on October 7th in solidarity with Palestinians being butchered in Gaza, the West Bank and Lebanon. Criticism of Israel is so readily turned into the anti-semitism chant, that is so offensive to so many. It is a success of the Zionist lobby that it has conflated the two. On October 7th, German media along with most media across Europe and the US was saturated with coverage of what happened on October 7th which quickly turned into justification for everything that Israel has perpetrated since. 929 (so far) families erased from the planet, nearly 42,000 dead, over 100,000 injured and buried. Farmland destroyed, only 25% of Gaza City buildings left standing. Rape, torture and murder proudly displayed on over 2,500 Israeli soldiers Instagram and TikTok accounts. Medicine, water and food aid reduced to a trickle. Disease rampant. More journalists killed than in any other conflict. Medics, doctors, nurses arrested or killed. That is the reality of what is happening, which is not a 'left' issue - it is of grave concern to many, many people including Jewish people and others,right across the political spectrum, that is why they turn out in their hundreds of thousands over and over again. Germany is Israel's biggest military sponsor after the US. The German government makes no distinction between their own history towards the Jews and the current right-wing extremists in charge of Israel, who are being allowed by the US, Germany, the UK and others to now rampage through Lebanon whilst stoking the flames of their forever war against Iran. Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and Iran wrecked by US global politics and constantly provoked by their proxy, Israel. At the end of the Second World War, Germans and Poles said they didn't now what was going on - no one can say that now. It's all happening in plain sight. My 94 year old mother was expelled from what is now Poland in 1945, her parents murdered by the Russians, the family destroyed - she is distraught at what the Israeli's are doing because like innocent Jews and Arabs she has experienced the brutality of war, fascism and racism. People did remember the Israeli victims of October 7th, yet they did not have their faces turned away from the hundreds of thousands of Palestinians who have suffered at the hands of a brutal regime since 1948. We no longer have world Statesmen (or women) with the integrity, skill and gravitas to brings foes together and pursue peace. Instead we have war mongers in Israel and the US, sowing utter misery and destruction, who are seeking to take what does not belong to them, then subjugate, brutalise and incarcerate the Palestinian people. It's not really surprising there's a conflict. With regret I will not be renewing my subscription to your publication.
Your comments would be far more valid if you at least started with: Hamas and Hezbollah have done ... [list of things those parties have done] which are all horrendous, BUT...
Then at least the rest of your views could be taken seriously.
i WILL be renewing my subscription to this newsletter because i enjoy the insight and analysis it usually delivers, but the writer has allowed his judgement to be a little clouded on this occasion.
indulging in whataboutery is not insightful or particularly helpful. it is possible for both things to be true. it is possible to condemn IRA acts of terrorism in the 70s and 80s AND recognise and condemn the brutality meted out to Irish Catholics by the British state. it is possible to decry the Japanese treatment of POWs in SE Asia AND condemn the use of nuclear weapons on their cities. etcetera.
go along to one of the pro-palestine marches and check the ethnicity of the marchers, it is obvious they are people who feel they have a skin in the game. as a white anglo saxon protestant i dont have a skin in the game other than a humanitarian one.
when Joerg writes about the heinousness of the rape and murder committed on 7 October he is absolutely right, when he calls the palestinian marches an explicit example of anti-semitism he is absolutely wrong, for all the reasons eloquently described by Gavin below.
two wrongs dont make a right, they make two wrongs.
Thank you Joerg for again standing up for the silent majority. The leftists constantly refuse to recognize that the current disaster in the Middle East is a direct result of the terrorist Hamas organization raping and murdering hundreds of Jews. Why shouldn’t this be remembered?
So some newspapers, such as the "Süddeutsche Zeitung, bastion of German liberal journalism" suggest that the 7th October remembrance should not only recognise the pain and suffering of Jewish people worldwide but also recognise that people in the Middle East are suffering as well. This makes them leftist and antisemitic in Mr. Luyken's view, which he corroborates by quoting Spiegel columnist Sasha Lobo, who makes the case that left wingers are "“in large numbers antisemites,”". With the exception of one or two quotes, taken out of context, Mr. Luyken does not present much proof for his far reaching and misleading condemnation of the German left and in the title of his piece actually includes all Germans! This polemic cannot be left uncountered.
It's not exactly clear what Mr. Luyken's main beef is: left wingers as a whole, antisemitism in general or a fairly comprehensive dislike of the liberal press in Germany. Perhaps his German language skills are not sufficient to understand the meaning of the word 'Ausgewogenheit' - balance. Because this is what guides the German press landscape - at least for serious newspapers - and other media, such as the main German public (but politically independent) broadcasters ARD and ZDF.
If an article is not an opinion piece, which in Mr. Lobo's case they often are, it is a sign of good journalistic practice for an article to be as balanced as possible and to report the facts fairly, objectively and correctly and to avoid slanting. Mr. Luyken could have been more thorough in his research and seen how extensive, fair and balanced the reporting in the Süddeutsche Zeitung and the two public broadcasters, ARD and ZDF, is and how any suggestion that their journalists and reporters, not to mention their readers, are all left wing antisemites goes wildly beyond the truth.
Mr. Luyken's German Review claims to be an "analysis and opinion on German politics and current affairs" with the aim of helping "an English-speaking audience stay smart about Europe's major power". Whether Mr. Luyken's piece on the German left wing is an analysis or an opinion, it has done the English-speaking audience a great disservice, misleading them as it does to believe that Germany is swayed by antisemitic media.
It is of course fair to note that despite the extensive and still prominent 'Erinnerungskultur' (the culture of remembrance specifically of the Holocaust) certain parts of German society have become more antisemitic in recent years. However this rather loud but relatively small minority is particularly prevalent on the right wing extremist side of the political spectrum and unfortunately amongst those who define themselves as Palestinians all over Germany (an estimated 200000) and their supporters, some of them with a left wing political position. This development is however in no way the fault of the liberal media in Germany. On the contrary: the liberal media are at the heart of continued efforts to remind the German public of Germany's history with the resulting responsibility for protecting Jewish people and against not only antisemitism in particular but racism in general.
It is also true to say that, much like the erstwhile Corbyn-Labour Party in Britain, the more extreme left in political parties (Die Linke), Medien (TAZ) and some institutions (German Branch of Amnesty International) do tend to agonise over their position, not so much on Jewish people worldwide, but more specifically on Israel - which is after all at present, and has been for some time, governed by a right wing extremist coalition, an anathema to left wingers. But these examples do not make up the main body of left of centre, social-democratic, liberal and tolerant thinking and policies as demonstrated by reporting in liberal media.
The more difficult issue of pro Palestinian sentiment in Germany and the ways in which it is expressed, sometimes excessively one-sided, aggressive and even violent, needs to be analysed as a separate issue and in depth. And it is perhaps helpful to remember that criticising a Jewish position or the state of Israel does not automatically make someone an antisemite!
Tessa Pöller, Jewish-British-German citizen and liberal left of centre reader of the Süddeutsche Zeitung
The fact that Israel is today governed by an extremist right-wing coalition is thanks in large part to the so-called Progressive forces in the West. Not so long ago, there was a large, noisy and growing Peace Party in Israel, but unfortunately it has shrunk to near-insignificance today.
Why?
Because for decades past every time Israel made a move towards peace – pulling out of Sinai (minus Gaza, which the Egyptians could never be persuaded to adopt), then out of Gaza, Israel got precisely no credit whatever from the European and American Left. Hence the Israeli Right has always been able to counter pressure from its domestic peaceniks by saying “Look! We’ll still be hammered at the UN and by the Left wing media whatever we do. What is the point of making concessions? They get us nowhere. We may as well ignore Western opinion.”
Now the Israeli hawks have been vindicated yet again. Indeed, it is now clear that Israel is simply a lightning rod for traditional European antisemitism, helpfully uniting the Continent’s Marxist Left and neo-Fascist Right.
Two wrongs does not make it right. Absolutely correct. Even here in Canada we experience pro and con demonstrations. I'm glad to be in my seventies and can sit on the fence. However, decided not to renew my German passport. Scared go home. Too much has changed. Do not want to argue with my remaining relatives. Sad world!
I couldn't decide if this article was click-bait or a Herr Luyken's rant about legitimate protest that doesn't coincide with his own views and therefore in his mind is illegitimate. A typical response of those on the right of politics. Of course, people turned out on October 7th in solidarity with Palestinians being butchered in Gaza, the West Bank and Lebanon. Criticism of Israel is so readily turned into the anti-semitism chant, that is so offensive to so many. It is a success of the Zionist lobby that it has conflated the two. On October 7th, German media along with most media across Europe and the US was saturated with coverage of what happened on October 7th which quickly turned into justification for everything that Israel has perpetrated since. 929 (so far) families erased from the planet, nearly 42,000 dead, over 100,000 injured and buried. Farmland destroyed, only 25% of Gaza City buildings left standing. Rape, torture and murder proudly displayed on over 2,500 Israeli soldiers Instagram and TikTok accounts. Medicine, water and food aid reduced to a trickle. Disease rampant. More journalists killed than in any other conflict. Medics, doctors, nurses arrested or killed. That is the reality of what is happening, which is not a 'left' issue - it is of grave concern to many, many people including Jewish people and others,right across the political spectrum, that is why they turn out in their hundreds of thousands over and over again. Germany is Israel's biggest military sponsor after the US. The German government makes no distinction between their own history towards the Jews and the current right-wing extremists in charge of Israel, who are being allowed by the US, Germany, the UK and others to now rampage through Lebanon whilst stoking the flames of their forever war against Iran. Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and Iran wrecked by US global politics and constantly provoked by their proxy, Israel. At the end of the Second World War, Germans and Poles said they didn't now what was going on - no one can say that now. It's all happening in plain sight. My 94 year old mother was expelled from what is now Poland in 1945, her parents murdered by the Russians, the family destroyed - she is distraught at what the Israeli's are doing because like innocent Jews and Arabs she has experienced the brutality of war, fascism and racism. People did remember the Israeli victims of October 7th, yet they did not have their faces turned away from the hundreds of thousands of Palestinians who have suffered at the hands of a brutal regime since 1948. We no longer have world Statesmen (or women) with the integrity, skill and gravitas to brings foes together and pursue peace. Instead we have war mongers in Israel and the US, sowing utter misery and destruction, who are seeking to take what does not belong to them, then subjugate, brutalise and incarcerate the Palestinian people. It's not really surprising there's a conflict. With regret I will not be renewing my subscription to your publication.
Your comments would be far more valid if you at least started with: Hamas and Hezbollah have done ... [list of things those parties have done] which are all horrendous, BUT...
Then at least the rest of your views could be taken seriously.
i WILL be renewing my subscription to this newsletter because i enjoy the insight and analysis it usually delivers, but the writer has allowed his judgement to be a little clouded on this occasion.
indulging in whataboutery is not insightful or particularly helpful. it is possible for both things to be true. it is possible to condemn IRA acts of terrorism in the 70s and 80s AND recognise and condemn the brutality meted out to Irish Catholics by the British state. it is possible to decry the Japanese treatment of POWs in SE Asia AND condemn the use of nuclear weapons on their cities. etcetera.
go along to one of the pro-palestine marches and check the ethnicity of the marchers, it is obvious they are people who feel they have a skin in the game. as a white anglo saxon protestant i dont have a skin in the game other than a humanitarian one.
when Joerg writes about the heinousness of the rape and murder committed on 7 October he is absolutely right, when he calls the palestinian marches an explicit example of anti-semitism he is absolutely wrong, for all the reasons eloquently described by Gavin below.
two wrongs dont make a right, they make two wrongs.
Thank you Joerg for again standing up for the silent majority. The leftists constantly refuse to recognize that the current disaster in the Middle East is a direct result of the terrorist Hamas organization raping and murdering hundreds of Jews. Why shouldn’t this be remembered?
So some newspapers, such as the "Süddeutsche Zeitung, bastion of German liberal journalism" suggest that the 7th October remembrance should not only recognise the pain and suffering of Jewish people worldwide but also recognise that people in the Middle East are suffering as well. This makes them leftist and antisemitic in Mr. Luyken's view, which he corroborates by quoting Spiegel columnist Sasha Lobo, who makes the case that left wingers are "“in large numbers antisemites,”". With the exception of one or two quotes, taken out of context, Mr. Luyken does not present much proof for his far reaching and misleading condemnation of the German left and in the title of his piece actually includes all Germans! This polemic cannot be left uncountered.
It's not exactly clear what Mr. Luyken's main beef is: left wingers as a whole, antisemitism in general or a fairly comprehensive dislike of the liberal press in Germany. Perhaps his German language skills are not sufficient to understand the meaning of the word 'Ausgewogenheit' - balance. Because this is what guides the German press landscape - at least for serious newspapers - and other media, such as the main German public (but politically independent) broadcasters ARD and ZDF.
If an article is not an opinion piece, which in Mr. Lobo's case they often are, it is a sign of good journalistic practice for an article to be as balanced as possible and to report the facts fairly, objectively and correctly and to avoid slanting. Mr. Luyken could have been more thorough in his research and seen how extensive, fair and balanced the reporting in the Süddeutsche Zeitung and the two public broadcasters, ARD and ZDF, is and how any suggestion that their journalists and reporters, not to mention their readers, are all left wing antisemites goes wildly beyond the truth.
Mr. Luyken's German Review claims to be an "analysis and opinion on German politics and current affairs" with the aim of helping "an English-speaking audience stay smart about Europe's major power". Whether Mr. Luyken's piece on the German left wing is an analysis or an opinion, it has done the English-speaking audience a great disservice, misleading them as it does to believe that Germany is swayed by antisemitic media.
It is of course fair to note that despite the extensive and still prominent 'Erinnerungskultur' (the culture of remembrance specifically of the Holocaust) certain parts of German society have become more antisemitic in recent years. However this rather loud but relatively small minority is particularly prevalent on the right wing extremist side of the political spectrum and unfortunately amongst those who define themselves as Palestinians all over Germany (an estimated 200000) and their supporters, some of them with a left wing political position. This development is however in no way the fault of the liberal media in Germany. On the contrary: the liberal media are at the heart of continued efforts to remind the German public of Germany's history with the resulting responsibility for protecting Jewish people and against not only antisemitism in particular but racism in general.
It is also true to say that, much like the erstwhile Corbyn-Labour Party in Britain, the more extreme left in political parties (Die Linke), Medien (TAZ) and some institutions (German Branch of Amnesty International) do tend to agonise over their position, not so much on Jewish people worldwide, but more specifically on Israel - which is after all at present, and has been for some time, governed by a right wing extremist coalition, an anathema to left wingers. But these examples do not make up the main body of left of centre, social-democratic, liberal and tolerant thinking and policies as demonstrated by reporting in liberal media.
The more difficult issue of pro Palestinian sentiment in Germany and the ways in which it is expressed, sometimes excessively one-sided, aggressive and even violent, needs to be analysed as a separate issue and in depth. And it is perhaps helpful to remember that criticising a Jewish position or the state of Israel does not automatically make someone an antisemite!
Tessa Pöller, Jewish-British-German citizen and liberal left of centre reader of the Süddeutsche Zeitung
Thank you. I guess that if one seeks a sane voice from the German media it will probably come in English.
My generation was sure that we wont have to deal with antisemitism of the magnitude that our grandparents dealt with. Tja.
The fact that Israel is today governed by an extremist right-wing coalition is thanks in large part to the so-called Progressive forces in the West. Not so long ago, there was a large, noisy and growing Peace Party in Israel, but unfortunately it has shrunk to near-insignificance today.
Why?
Because for decades past every time Israel made a move towards peace – pulling out of Sinai (minus Gaza, which the Egyptians could never be persuaded to adopt), then out of Gaza, Israel got precisely no credit whatever from the European and American Left. Hence the Israeli Right has always been able to counter pressure from its domestic peaceniks by saying “Look! We’ll still be hammered at the UN and by the Left wing media whatever we do. What is the point of making concessions? They get us nowhere. We may as well ignore Western opinion.”
Now the Israeli hawks have been vindicated yet again. Indeed, it is now clear that Israel is simply a lightning rod for traditional European antisemitism, helpfully uniting the Continent’s Marxist Left and neo-Fascist Right.
Two wrongs does not make it right. Absolutely correct. Even here in Canada we experience pro and con demonstrations. I'm glad to be in my seventies and can sit on the fence. However, decided not to renew my German passport. Scared go home. Too much has changed. Do not want to argue with my remaining relatives. Sad world!
Spot on!