Concrete blocks as standing tables: Merkel-Lego in Stralsund
Written by Willi Haentjes for Nius.
Take a close look at the photo above: What looks like a bar table is the declaration of bankruptcy of our migration policy. Christmas time in Germany is Merkel-Lego time.
I greet you today from the northeast of the Republic, from the beautiful Hanseatic city of Stralsund, directly in front of the island of Rügen. There are still a few days until the first Advent, but the Christmas market on the Old Market with the wonderful gabled house backdrop has already opened its doors - it is correctly called the Winter Market, but we are neglecting that here.
It smells of roasted almonds, a few men are standing in the drizzle and taking a hearty bite of sausage. The Ferris wheel rotates in the background. It's still too warm for mulled wine.
The scent of Merkel is in the air
Why am I writing this? Firstly, because I love the Advent season and would like to share my anticipation with you. Go out, drink mulled wine and enjoy a crepe! Secondly, because Stralsund is in former Chancellor Angela Merkel's constituency and her traces are visible at many Christmas markets across the country - including in Stralsund. A hint of Merkel's scent is in the air.
The men in the market, the mulled wine stalls and the Ferris wheel are protected with massive concrete blocks - gray and cold. They are Merkel Lego blocks that were not needed in our country until 2016. On December 19, 2016, the Islamist assassin Anis Amri drove a 40-ton truck into the crowd of the Christmas market at Berlin's Breitscheidplatz. In total, the terrorist wiped out 13 lives. The following year, going to the Christmas market was an oppressive feeling. What if someone else plows through here with a truck?
Instead of security: visible helplessness
The political response was not a decisive fight against Islamist terror, but rather the installation of concrete blocks to protect Christmas markets from another attack. Instead of giving citizens the feeling that they were able to get the permanent threat situation under control, a concrete wall of helplessness was erected, visible and prominent to everyone to this day.
In 2013 there were no 200 Islamist threats in the Federal Republic, by 2018 there were almost 800. The number is now falling again; in February 2023 there were 505 people who were assigned to the “phenomenon area of politically motivated crime (PMK) – Islamist terrorism”.
Why am I writing this? Firstly, because I love the Advent season and would like to share my anticipation with you. Go out, drink mulled wine and enjoy a crepe! Secondly, because Stralsund is in former Chancellor Angela Merkel's constituency and her traces are visible at many Christmas markets across the country - including in Stralsund. A hint of Merkel's scent is in the air.
The men in the market, the mulled wine stalls and the Ferris wheel are protected with massive concrete blocks - gray and cold. They are Merkel Lego blocks that were not needed in our country until 2016. On December 19, 2016, the Islamist assassin Anis Amri drove a 40-ton truck into the crowd of the Christmas market at Berlin's Breitscheidplatz. In total, the terrorist wiped out 13 lives. The following year, going to the Christmas market was an oppressive feeling. What if someone else plows through here with a truck?
Instead of security: visible helplessness
The political response was not a decisive fight against Islamist terror, but rather the installation of concrete blocks to protect Christmas markets from another attack. Instead of giving citizens the feeling that they were able to get the permanent threat situation under control, a concrete wall of helplessness was erected, visible and prominent to everyone to this day.
In 2013 there were no 200 Islamist threats in the Federal Republic, by 2018 there were almost 800. The number is now falling again; in February 2023 there were 505 people who were assigned to the “phenomenon area of politically motivated crime (PMK) – Islamist terrorism”.
Seven years after Anis Amri, I have to say: these blocks oppress me more than they give me a feeling of security. Fear has become an integral part of this actually carefree time. We have gotten used to having to protect Christmas markets with concrete. That must not be. A free society's response to terrorists must never be defenseless digging in - but must always be a determined fight against the danger.
Source: Nius
Source: Nius
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