Michel Friedman on Horst Seehofer

CSU, the Bavarian sister-party of Germany’s CDU, has always been more right-wing than its bigger sister. 39% of Bavarian voters, voted CSU in 2017, down from 49% in 2013, having hovered in the mid 50%, peaking at 60% in the 1960s-70s-80s. The practice of pushing hatred of the other to acquire votes is not new and it almost invariably works. CSU’s  senior politician Horst Seehofer, for whom a powerful Homeland ministry is being established in Angela Merkel’s new coalition government, is good at just this.

Seehofer’s very public and loud statement that Islam “does not belong to Germany”, has won condemnation from many directions, including that of his senior partner, Angela Merkel.

A few days ago, Michel Friedman, a German Jewish lawyer and publicist, opined that in making a judgement whether a religion belongs or does not belong to the country, Seehofer has infringed on the boundaries of his office.

Friedman severely reprimands Seehofer in his well-argued article, which I very much recommend to my English reading friends – here, and to my German reading friends – here.

Is Trump a Terrorist?

Yesterday, Theresa May criticised Trump for his recent incendiary tweets in which he repeated hate emanating from a far right and nationalist group in the UK. The subject of Trumps hate speech were his pet-enemies, the Muslims. In reaction to Theresa May’s condemnation, Trump came out with: “don’t focus on me, focus on the destructive Radical Islamic Terrorism that is taking place within the United Kingdom. We are doing just fine!”

Trump is partially right, we should not focus on Trump as a person, his hair colour, his mannerisms, his primitiveness, his many bankruptcies, his sexual abuse, his pathological lies, but rather on Trump the terrorist. Trump who has been allowed by the voters of his country to terrorise the world.

Terrorism, according to one definition is “the use of intentionally indiscriminate violence as a means to create terror, or fear, to achieve a political, religious or ideological aim.” Violence can also be verbal and an important element ensuring the success of terrorists is the reporting of their deeds.  A bomb we do not know of, may kill the people directly hit, but does not terrorise the rest of us.

The Americans elected this despicable man as their president. It would help us all were the media to stop reporting every noxious smell he produces. Let the stench remain in the USA.

Istanbul - Fatih

Where I was staying, one seemed to see fewer scarf wearing women than on Edgware Road in London or in Neukölln in Berlin. Fatih is the part of town, – I was told – where I should go, if I wanted to see where the other half lives. A kind local friend of a friend went with me.

In Fatih, virtually all women were covered in black. Men, however, or rather their cloths, came in many colours: Some wore burgundy red trousers and overcoats, others had light grey outfits. Often, they wore blue-checks, sometimes white shirts. To hide what should be hidden, trousers were mainly of the harem trouser type. And then there was a whole array of hats. Very many were white, some were intertwined with coloured motifs.

Ultraorthodox Jewish sect-like dynastic groupings are often recognisable by their dress and I was curious to find out whether the same was true here, in this part of town, in which the Islamic sects, the tarikatlive. Can one tell the sects apart by their clothing?  My friend did not know. 

There is no colour coding whatever, the very friendly salesman, in the clothing shop that I entered, told us. Compared to the predominantly black, which women were wearing, men seemed to have more freedom for fashion and personal taste. Interestingly, the shopkeeper added that ever since IS has taken to wearing black hats, many people – to make the distinction – choose to go for white ones.

Trump and his New Muslim Friends

Having crucified Muslims before and throughout his campaign – and even after taking office, (remember “Donald J trump calls for a complete and total shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country’s representatives can figure out what the hell is going on”), Trump must have concluded that those Muslims who are willing to spend 110 billion dollars on US arms in one year, cannot be that bad. Forget Saudi Arabia’s being the country which gave us the 9-11 bombers, which produced Osama Bin Laden and which exports extremist Islam, wherever it can. As to the Saudi population, I suppose that human rights are not so much Trump’s thing anyway, so why bother about Saudi’s track record there.

So Sunni Muslims are apparently fine. But Trump needs to hate at least some Muslims and so he nominates Iran as the Muslims to hate. This – Trump expects – will pay dividends on the home front: and persuade the Republicans in Congress that he is an asset and that he should not be removed from office. After all, bringing in 350 billion dollars from arms sales to the Saudis, over the next ten years, will make many Republicans happy. Additionally, by going on the “Iran the Evil” trip, he not only buys support of all those Republicans who objected to Obama’s Iran deal, but he also gets the backing of the lobbies supporting the “settlement and continued occupation” government of Israel.

Smart move. Nonetheless, let’s hope he fails.

The Camel Method is Not a Sexual Position

Practiced by some missionaries, the Camel Method is not about sex.

Developed by Christian missionaries trying to reach Muslims, the Camel Method tries to bring Muslims to Jesus through the Koran itself.  Some of these missionaries will grow beards like Muslims and give up pork in their attempt to reach out to Muslims whom they wish to turn.

CAMEL, by the way, is an acronym that stands for “Chosen Angels Miracles Eternal Life”. 

Obama's Recipe

Obama has the solution, European governments should try to better assimilate their Muslim minority populations - he said, adding, “our Muslim populations feel themselves to be Americans and there is this incredible process of immigration and assimilation that is part of our tradition.” That must be the reason why his opponents have filled the Internet with suggestions that he was actually a Muslim. The underlying implication being that had he been open about it, he would not have been elected President.

He may not be a Muslim but he is also no great student of history. Unlike the USA, European countries do not consider themselves immigration countries. Those coming to the US, go there for the “American Dream”, they want to become Americans. In principle, at least, that is the deal on offer. European countries accept foreigners seeking asylum, or in certain cases seeking jobs. They generally do not seek to become “Europeans”, let alone French or German. That makes integration a much harder task. 

Cut that dick! Oh no you won't?

Years ago, an Israeli friend of mine told me that he considered the fact that he was circumcised at birth, an offence caused to him by his parents. He believes that he was deprived of the fullness of sexual pleasures as a result.

A few days ago, a German court ruled that male circumcision was equal to grievous bodily harm and could only be permitted for medical reasons. Germany is a federal country and the state court ruling is not binding in the other German states. In all likelihood, however, it will be tested in the other states and probably also go up to the High Court.

Four million Muslims and about 100,000 Jews who live in Germany may have a problem. How many 18-year-old men would voluntarily undergo circumcision? The speaker of the Jewish community has already reacted with anger: "Circumcision of newborn boys is a fixed part of the Jewish religion and has been practised worldwide for centuries. This religious right is respected in every country in the world."

For many, circumcision is a cultural ritual that is almost as powerful as a religious command. A thirtsomething year old friend of mine told me that when his wife had announced to him that she was not having her son circumcised, he at first found it hard to accept. They are both Israeli Jews and atheists and he told me "I found it difficult to even consider that my son should not have the same kind of dick as I."

But are we to allow grievously bodily harm to our children just because it is a religious ritual that has been practiced for centuries? In addition to the human rights question, this could also add to the friction and issues with the growing Muslim population. This exciting decision might force the courts to define religious freedom in an ever less religious Europe. I am looking forward to it.

Who is Obama Praying to? or Why is Obama Praying?

In a bid to quell rumours about Obama’s being a Muslim (18% of All Americans believe that) the White House has issued a press release according to which Obama “prays daily, sometimes in person or over the telephone with a small circle of Christian pastors.” Moreover, we have been reminded by the White House of Obama’s Easter prayer breakfast where he “offered a very personal and candid reflection of what the Resurrection means to him. ”

This is not all: 27% of all Americans have not convinced by the repeated presentation of Obama’s birth certificate and continue to believe that he was not born in the USA. According to the American Constitution someone who was not born in the USA is not eligible to become President. Those 27% clearly believe that Mr Obama has cheated his way into the Presidency. Or, … they could just be plain racists.

Praying to Jesus (or to anyone else), Mr Obama, cannot save these people or anyone else. I sincerely hope that you – our great hope – have more effective means than prayers to govern your country.

Switzerland and the Muslims

Last Sunday, in their referendum, the Swiss voted to ban the construction of minarets. They did not ban mosques or Muslims, just their minarets.

The United Nations called Switzerland's ban on new minarets "clearly discriminatory" and deeply divisive. The French Foreign Minister said, "It is an expression of intolerance and I detest intolerance. I hope the Swiss will reverse this decision quickly." The Vatican condemned and Amnesty International said the vote violated freedom of religion and would probably be overturned by the Swiss Supreme Court or the European Court of Human Rights.

And yet, is it not possible that the Muslims have only their brothers to blame for this vote?

Last year, Libya’s dictator, Gaddafi, effectively waged war against Switzerland. He announced a halt to all oil exports to Switzerland and a withdrawal of moneys out of Swiss banks. Libya suspended the issuing of visas for Swiss nationals and forced Libyan branches of Swiss companies to close. In August this year, Libya submitted a proposal for discussion by the General Assembly of the United Nations to abolish Switzerland and dismember it.

What caused Libya’s anger? The audacity of the Swiss police: Gaddafi’s son, a man with a track record of trouble in various other countries, including France, Italy and Denmark, was arrested in Geneva and held in custody for two days for maltreating his domestic staff. His sister, Aisha, vowed "an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth" and Switzerland immediately surrendered; they even sent their President to Libya to apologize.

Could Sunday’s referendum be the Swiss popular response? The campaign against the minarets will have exacerbated xenophobia and racial intolerance in Switzerland. That is unattractive. Is it also understandable?

A conversation in Germany, 2009.

In Munich, as I lay in a dentist’s chair for some emergency work to a broken tooth, a friendly Moroccan dental nurse in her early thirties asked me why it was that everybody spoke badly about the Jews.

It all started with small talk. She was curious about my good German, considering that I was a visitor from London. I explained that I am a Jew and that my grandparents had left Germany in 1933; that at the time my parents were still children but that German was the language spoken in our house in my childhood. Thus, German was a sort of mother tongue.

She wanted to know why they had left and I mentioned Hitler. ‘Ah’, she said, she did not really know much about him but did he push the Jews out? I did not want to get into this conversation and just said that it was rather more than pushing the Jews out of Germany. Yes, she knew that Hitler had been a really bad guy; perhaps to make me feel better, she added that Hitler was no longer around.

But why, she wanted to know, why do so many people speak badly about the Jews. Especially, she said ‘our people’, that is the Muslims, don’t like the Jews.

How should I have responded?

Her personal experience had been good. In her own version of ‘some of my best friends are Jews’, she told me of the generosity of Jewish acquaintances and repeated the question. She really wanted to understand why it was that so many people hated the Jews.