Germany: Social Democrats urge ban on far-right AfD party
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Germany's Social Democratic Party says first legal steps should be taken to ban the far-right AfD party as unconstitutional. Conservative lawmakers are less keen on the idea.
A number of Germany's conservative lawmakers have called for a cautious approach after the Social Democratic Party (SPD), the junior coalition partner, on Sunday passed a motion calling for preparations to ban the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.
The debate on whether to ban the AfD, which forms the strongest opposition force in parliament, has gained momentum after it was reclassified by Germany's domestic intelligence agency in May as a "confirmed right-wing extremist" group — an assessment that is now under court review after a legal challenge by the party.
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Germany's Social Democratic Party says first legal steps should be taken to ban the far-right AfD party as unconstitutional. Conservative lawmakers are less keen on the idea.
A number of Germany's conservative lawmakers have called for a cautious approach after the Social Democratic Party (SPD), the junior coalition partner, on Sunday passed a motion calling for preparations to ban the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.
The debate on whether to ban the AfD, which forms the strongest opposition force in parliament, has gained momentum after it was reclassified by Germany's domestic intelligence agency in May as a "confirmed right-wing extremist" group — an assessment that is now under court review after a legal challenge by the party.
Yeah, guess what? We should have banned them long before they became the "strongest opposition force in parliament". Now that they poll over 20%, of course its tricky. Who would have thought?
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Germany's Social Democratic Party says first legal steps should be taken to ban the far-right AfD party as unconstitutional. Conservative lawmakers are less keen on the idea.
A number of Germany's conservative lawmakers have called for a cautious approach after the Social Democratic Party (SPD), the junior coalition partner, on Sunday passed a motion calling for preparations to ban the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.
The debate on whether to ban the AfD, which forms the strongest opposition force in parliament, has gained momentum after it was reclassified by Germany's domestic intelligence agency in May as a "confirmed right-wing extremist" group — an assessment that is now under court review after a legal challenge by the party.
While I agree with the goal, this doesn’t make the underlying voter sentiment go away. What is the German government doing to address the underlying reasons for AFD’s rise? Regardless of their veracity, those thoughts are prevalent enough to cause this problem. While they might lessen, they won’t simply go away with the party if it’s banned. They have to be addressed, one way or another. I’m in the US, and I would argue that, out side of his base, most Trump voters don’t like the guy at all. Yet the Democrats’ “We’re not them” message has so far not been an consistent winner!
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Yeah, guess what? We should have banned them long before they became the "strongest opposition force in parliament". Now that they poll over 20%, of course its tricky. Who would have thought?
Yeah. Previously it would have been seen as banning an extremist party. Now it would be seen as election tampering.
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While I agree with the goal, this doesn’t make the underlying voter sentiment go away. What is the German government doing to address the underlying reasons for AFD’s rise? Regardless of their veracity, those thoughts are prevalent enough to cause this problem. While they might lessen, they won’t simply go away with the party if it’s banned. They have to be addressed, one way or another. I’m in the US, and I would argue that, out side of his base, most Trump voters don’t like the guy at all. Yet the Democrats’ “We’re not them” message has so far not been an consistent winner!
Exactly. This is a bandaid / plaster.
Deal with the real problem. Be honest about why people are upset. Let them actually speak their minds without judgement. Then, analyse it. Find solutions.
Banning a social movement of this scale is madness.
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While I agree with the goal, this doesn’t make the underlying voter sentiment go away. What is the German government doing to address the underlying reasons for AFD’s rise? Regardless of their veracity, those thoughts are prevalent enough to cause this problem. While they might lessen, they won’t simply go away with the party if it’s banned. They have to be addressed, one way or another. I’m in the US, and I would argue that, out side of his base, most Trump voters don’t like the guy at all. Yet the Democrats’ “We’re not them” message has so far not been an consistent winner!
wrote on last edited by [email protected]those thoughts are prevalent enough to cause this problem.
Can take people out of the soviet, but can't take soviet out of the people (1).
Sadly it's a system of thought that isn't concerned with observable reality. It's a sentiment I recognise in most (political) extremists: the idea that your problems must be someone else's fault (the brown, women, billionairs, ... pick your poison).
And, as you noticed, banning it will indeed only validate that sentiment.
(I grew up in DDR, luckily left in early 90s. A solution is therapy, as those people are stuck in generational trauma, which is known to lessen or completely void you of empathy. But that doesn't scale to halve a country).
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Germany's Social Democratic Party says first legal steps should be taken to ban the far-right AfD party as unconstitutional. Conservative lawmakers are less keen on the idea.
A number of Germany's conservative lawmakers have called for a cautious approach after the Social Democratic Party (SPD), the junior coalition partner, on Sunday passed a motion calling for preparations to ban the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.
The debate on whether to ban the AfD, which forms the strongest opposition force in parliament, has gained momentum after it was reclassified by Germany's domestic intelligence agency in May as a "confirmed right-wing extremist" group — an assessment that is now under court review after a legal challenge by the party.
The voter sentiment that got them this far isn't going to go away, is it?
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Exactly. This is a bandaid / plaster.
Deal with the real problem. Be honest about why people are upset. Let them actually speak their minds without judgement. Then, analyse it. Find solutions.
Banning a social movement of this scale is madness.
Deal with the real problem. Be honest about why people are upset. Let them actually speak their minds without judgement. Then, analyse it. Find solutions.
Exactly. The solution to people saying "Foreigners are taking our jobs" is not to outlaw saying "Foreigners are taking our jobs" (though the AfD has done enough other things that warrant a ban), it's not to get rid of foreigners, it's not even to create more jobs. It's to make sure that people have at least their most important needs (housing, food, transport, access to information, basic entertainment) covered even with a part-time job or no job at all. Instead the CDU/CSU tries to brand everyone who doesn't work 60 hours per week until they're 70 as lazy. Guess what? There are way more people out there who would like to work but can't (for whatever reason) than ones who actively try to cheat the system. And no increase of weekly working time, no mandatory Excel training for unemployed people and no right-shift of politics will solve that.
Show people that the left and center are able to provide what they need and they will have no reason to blame minorities for their problems.
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Yeah. Previously it would have been seen as banning an extremist party. Now it would be seen as election tampering.
We just had elections, now is the time.
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Germany's Social Democratic Party says first legal steps should be taken to ban the far-right AfD party as unconstitutional. Conservative lawmakers are less keen on the idea.
A number of Germany's conservative lawmakers have called for a cautious approach after the Social Democratic Party (SPD), the junior coalition partner, on Sunday passed a motion calling for preparations to ban the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.
The debate on whether to ban the AfD, which forms the strongest opposition force in parliament, has gained momentum after it was reclassified by Germany's domestic intelligence agency in May as a "confirmed right-wing extremist" group — an assessment that is now under court review after a legal challenge by the party.
I concur with other comments, you can't wish voters away.
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While I agree with the goal, this doesn’t make the underlying voter sentiment go away. What is the German government doing to address the underlying reasons for AFD’s rise? Regardless of their veracity, those thoughts are prevalent enough to cause this problem. While they might lessen, they won’t simply go away with the party if it’s banned. They have to be addressed, one way or another. I’m in the US, and I would argue that, out side of his base, most Trump voters don’t like the guy at all. Yet the Democrats’ “We’re not them” message has so far not been an consistent winner!
Peoples opinions are very much shaped by social pressure.
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Yeah, guess what? We should have banned them long before they became the "strongest opposition force in parliament". Now that they poll over 20%, of course its tricky. Who would have thought?
wrote on last edited by [email protected]Banning thought never works. Find why people are upset. Analyse it. Find a solution.
Edit. Downvoted for the idea of analysis, and solutions. Awesome. Is this Reddit?
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Banning thought never works. Find why people are upset. Analyse it. Find a solution.
Edit. Downvoted for the idea of analysis, and solutions. Awesome. Is this Reddit?
They can do more than one thing though. Germany should be able to treat both the root cause as well as the acute symptoms.
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They can do more than one thing though. Germany should be able to treat both the root cause as well as the acute symptoms.
wrote on last edited by [email protected]Agree. However, banning a party, who represents a huge portion of the country is just going to make things worse.
The party exists for probably only certain issues for most people. Not far right issues at all. However, they are also covering those base issues, and the other parties are not.
So, find these issues. Discuss them honestly. Find a solution.
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Agree. However, banning a party, who represents a huge portion of the country is just going to make things worse.
The party exists for probably only certain issues for most people. Not far right issues at all. However, they are also covering those base issues, and the other parties are not.
So, find these issues. Discuss them honestly. Find a solution.
Yeah, but in the meantime ban them because otherwise the accumulate power and that makes it even harder to change the underlying systems.
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Banning thought never works. Find why people are upset. Analyse it. Find a solution.
Edit. Downvoted for the idea of analysis, and solutions. Awesome. Is this Reddit?
Well you don’t ban the thought you ban them from assuming political positions and from taking government funding. They may have nazi thoughts which you can’t stop them from having but you don’t need to finance their plots to overthrow democracy and murder political opponents and ethnically cleanse the country.
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The voter sentiment that got them this far isn't going to go away, is it?
A sentiment that wants to end democracy has no right to participate in that democracy. Yes, that sentiment has to be fought with ideas as well. But Germany knows too well from history that a democracy can be ended through democratic means. That is why these instruments were implemented in the first place.
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The voter sentiment that got them this far isn't going to go away, is it?
Also doesn’t help that SPD betrays their voters every chance they get, consistently as long as I can remember. Hallo geht raus an cum-ex würfel Olaf
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While I agree with the goal, this doesn’t make the underlying voter sentiment go away. What is the German government doing to address the underlying reasons for AFD’s rise? Regardless of their veracity, those thoughts are prevalent enough to cause this problem. While they might lessen, they won’t simply go away with the party if it’s banned. They have to be addressed, one way or another. I’m in the US, and I would argue that, out side of his base, most Trump voters don’t like the guy at all. Yet the Democrats’ “We’re not them” message has so far not been an consistent winner!
This completely ignores the fact that the AfD is a key part of encouraging that sentiment. They get paid tax money to promote hate and undermine democracy. Millionaires get tax credit by funding them. Media is forced to give them space. All this ends when they're banned. Will the same people try again and again? Yes, but democracy is about fighting again and again for your rights.
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While I agree with the goal, this doesn’t make the underlying voter sentiment go away. What is the German government doing to address the underlying reasons for AFD’s rise? Regardless of their veracity, those thoughts are prevalent enough to cause this problem. While they might lessen, they won’t simply go away with the party if it’s banned. They have to be addressed, one way or another. I’m in the US, and I would argue that, out side of his base, most Trump voters don’t like the guy at all. Yet the Democrats’ “We’re not them” message has so far not been an consistent winner!
I think most of us are struggling with this issue, but I'm really not sure what to do about it.
Is banning them outright bad? Maybe?
I just don't know.We're all stuck in a planet scale tolerance paradox, and I don't think any current solution is particularly convincing or palatable.
