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by throw310822 98 days ago
The sacralisation of the Holocaust and consequent "blasphemy laws" have been pushed in the public discourse not only in Germany but throughout Europe. Germany happens for obvious reasons to be the country most receptive to it. Sincerely, a European.
1 comments

If we cannot agree that nobody should chant Nazi songs ever again, we have a very different set of values. This has nothing to do with blasphemy, but respect for the millions senselessly killed not even a hundred years ago. Look around you: People are rediscovering fascism and nationalism as seducingly simple answers to complex questions. There's a reason we spent decades to think about ways to prevent this from happening again.
> If we cannot agree that nobody should chant Nazi songs ever again

This is a strawman, we agree on this and this discussion is about someone being investigated in Germany for using Hitler's picture to attack and criticise another dictator. (Though to be true, I am more concerned about people acting as nazis, whatever songs from whatever country they might be chanting).

> People are rediscovering fascism and nationalism as seducingly simple answers to complex questions

I agree, but I think that this is, also, the result of turning the memory of the past in a set of empty rituals that are used to secure the exact opposite of their stated goal: continued support for the oppressors of today and open, shameless contempt for their victims.

> This is a strawman, we agree on this

I'm not sure we are, given that this specific thread is about some people claiming Holocaust remembrance (and German limits to free speech when it comes to that topic) is akin to a religion, which doubts it at best and mocks it at worst.

> someone being investigated in Germany for using Hitler's picture to attack and criticise another dictator.

That is not what happened though. The Swastika is a prohibited symbol in Germany for a reason. Also, this investigation is pretty much guaranteed to be dropped because it's obvious to any sane person that Mr. Zitelmann did nothing wrong.

But using this incident to drag down any and all nuance around the German way of remembering the Holocaust isn't appropriate either.