Online Debate: Has Merkel Tamed the German Media?

(By Ray D.)

Online debate topic: Kanzlerin Angela Merkel. We request your opinion on the following questions:

• Has Angela Merkel improved German-American relations?
• Has the German media become less anti-American since she took office?
• Is Merkel right for Germany?

The comments section is open. Tell us what you really think...

UPDATE: A must read exchange:

Gabi writes: "I think, Merkel has improved the German-American relationship but the media has not changed at all. There are only less reasons to write about the US in a negative way because Merkel and the CDU/CSU are not that simple minded as Schröder and the SPD and Green party. I don't think that anybody has changed his mind about the US (and Israel). The anti-American attitude is so deep inside so many people, it will take years of education to change this. Merkel is good for Germany. I am proud to have her as a chancellor. A well informed and educated person!"

Ray responds: "So other than blogging, what can we do collectively to change the anti-American attitudes that we document here? We ALL need to give that some serious thought. David and I have worked very hard for three years to bring about change, but we need help, we are just two guys overwhelmed by other responsibilities including family and work. At a certain point, we start to repeat ourselves because we see the same stupidity again and again. What else can we (you) do to bring about fundamental change?

Others have responded by starting new blogs. Seeing the German blogosphere grow has been the most rewarding part of the process. But what else can we do? How can we organize and work as an effective force? Who are our allies in this process?"

Let's give this some serious thought and talk it over. Then let's think about action and organization. Other people need to step up and take the initiative. This is a truly worthwhile cause and we need your support in this work because we just can't do this alone. (emphasis ours)

Comments

[Gabi]

I think, Merkel has improved the German-American relationship but the media has not changed at all. There are only less reasons to write about the US in a negative way because Merkel and the CDU/CSU are not that simple minded as Schröder and the SPD and Green party. I don't think that anybody has changed his mind about the US (and Israel). The anti-American attitude is so deep inside so many people, it will take years of education to change this. Merkel is good for Germany. I am proud to have her as a chancellor. A well informed and educated person!

[Dave]

x She obviously has improved german-american relations. This became clear when Bush invited her to his ranch :)

x The media is hard to see through. It is divided into all possible political fractions and each pursues it's own interests, I guess. In a whole it is of course focused on providing the kind of attitude that comes close to that of the readers/viewers. And since our continents are in a process of separation, the media are the spearhead of the development. You may call this anti-american. The chancellor certainly can't change anything about it. So I guess it has remained the same.

x Whether Merkel is right for germany regarding inner politics I don`t dare to say. Such fundamental economical reforms usually only show their consequences in years if not decades. So I am going to wait for the results before judging them.
As regards foreign policy though, there are quicker results visible. And I like them: The policy towards our european friends has not changed, the same applies to russia and china. The german-american relations are improving. Also our "defense" policy has improved a lot due to the Merkel's party in charge. Finally we start to pursue our economical interests in overseas (especially in africa) with our army again. Hopefully our defense minister is able to include the defense of our vital ressources into the term "defense of the federal republic of germany" in our constitution, as he intends to. As soon as that is achieved, a promising new era of german foreign politics might begin.

[RayD]

@ Gabi,

So other than blogging, what can we do collectively to change the anti-American attitudes that we document here? We ALL need to give that some serious thought. David and I have worked very hard for three years to bring about change, but we need help, we are just two guys overwhelmed by other responsibilities including family and work. At a certain point, we start to repeat ourselves because we see the same stupidity again and again. What else can we (you) do to bring about fundamental change?

Others have responded by starting new blogs. Seeing the German blogosphere grow has been the most rewarding part of the process. But what else can we do? How can we organize and work as an effective force? Who are our allies in this process?

[N. Hale]

@ Ray and David

It has been a long time since I last wrote any comments here. But trust me when I say that I have kept myself informed of your accomplishments.

"So other than blogging, what can we do collectively to change the anti-American attitudes that we document here? We ALL need to give that some serious thought. David and I have worked very hard for three years to bring about change, but we need help, we are just two guys overwhelmed by other responsibilities including family and work. At a certain point, we start to repeat ourselves because we see the same stupidity again and again. What else can we (you) do to bring about fundamental change?"

I talk with all my adult students and provide them with alternative news sources for them to read regarding current world events. They are often surprised to find that between the sources I use, (ie; New York Times, USA Today, Wall Street Journal and others, that I can obtain online), that there are such differing stories. I encourage them to find their own sources as well. I may not be able to change all of their minds, but I do get them to thinking about the state of the mass media in Germany. This also shows them that the media in the United States is far from being only one sided. Staying informed is so very important and the sources of your news should be multifaceted. If a student asks about a single point in a politician's speech from the US, I can find the entire speech and review that with him/her. Once the entire speech is provided, the lights go on inside of their heads, it is like "Aha, why did the media pick out one insignificant point out of such a great speech?"

Of course "blogging on" and "staying the course" are important, for the liberal lefties are "under-achievers" who have the ability to sit and wait for those of us who are "results driven" people to slow down or even stop trying to influence others with our conservative messages.

Being an American living in Germany, I am in the middle of two great and wonderful countries and cultures. I get questions from those in the US about Germany, just like I get questions from Germans about America. I love being able to relay the best of both countries. Of course there are negatives in both countries, and who wouldn't want to live in a society where everyone and I mean everyone is equal, with equal responsibilities and rewards. Alas, we live on Earth, and human emotions are difficult at best to understand.

All I really want to say, is that you should always be prepared with current information from reliable sources in order to combat the misinformed, malcontented mass media that often have dubious agendas of their own.

N. Hale

http://dividedwefall.blog-city.com/index.cfm

[Dave]

@RayD

Do you notice that you almost sound like an intellectual during the age of enlightenment, asking "Why does everyone around me believe in God? How could I change that?"

Well you see how long it took until religion stopped playing a role in politics (in europe). The awareness of entire peoples doesnt grow over night. There are always those interested in things that are below the radar or beyond the horizon of most. But they are few in number and therefor can only stimulate the development, but seldomly change it by themselves.

And I guess stimulating a development is exactly what you have been doing here :)

(this is directed to the author and not to religious readers^^)

[Gabi]

It is not only a matter of truth or lie, when the media goes on to blame the US and Israel like they do now for a long time, our security is at risk. So we need to do something soon.

When Cindy Sheehan, Arundhati Roy, the London terrorists, Ted Kennedy, Osama Bin Laden and most of the journalists sound alike when they complain about the US and Israel, then we need to do something right now. But what?

I am afraid that we will only understand when the terrorists are going to attack Europe more often.

I haven't read the Süddeutsche and TAZ for some months. I could not bear the aggressive tone anymore.

There are some German media who created such a hatred towards the US and Israel, that I decided to boycott them. I feel better now, but this does not help to change the situation.

[RayD]

@ Dave,

So are you saying that the attitudes in Germany are so deeply held that it will be difficult to change things? I guess what I'm saying is that we need to think about other ways to push change and combat anti-Americanism in Germany and the media. This is too important to just give up and assume nothing will ever improve. I appreciate N. Hale's encouragement to blog on, but it does seem like we are starting to repeat ourselves around here because we keep running into the same sort of nonsense time and again.

So I guess I'm looking for our readers to suggest new ideas, methods and forms of organization to achieve change. Could we create an organization with an email list and online newsletter that serves as a force for positive change? What else could we do? Again, David and I are both busy with families and work. Blogging like this is exhausting. We need others to step up and and help pull this sled. This cause matters!

[Dave]

I believe that the developments of peoples (in this case two continents are moving apart mentally) are the first signs of a new era. Maybe you would be less frustrated about the effect of your work here, if you agreed to that: You can't put an end to such mass developments on your own. But you can soften the effects on everyone interested in your cause.
This basically means lowering the expectations to a realistic level.

[Account Deleted]

The US invades France. Conquers France (that will take about a week). Hands France to Germany as a protectorate.
US wins as Germany is happy with new land.
US wins as those arrogant Frogs (can you say Villepin) no longer count.
US wins as the Limeys are really happy not to have to deal with the French.
Spain wins as they can now get Germany's help in crushing the rebellion in Catalunya.

[americanbychoice]

Ray D,
Take a look at freerepublic.com, they have a good format where the participant create their own headlines. It may work?

[WhatDoIKnow]

Ray, it sounds like you are talking about some sort of grassroots organization; a bottom-up attempt to improve the status-quo. I am not very optimistic about the success of something like that in Germany, where the media constitutes a formidable monopoly, which is ideologically opposed to ideas such as yours, and where the people historically show verly little interest, even distrust, in changes that are not initiated or backed up by those whom they perceive to be the only Guarantors of their wellfare - some branches of State power.

I believe that MSM is the main tool of influencing the minds of unsuspecting people. In the US, MSM has lost a lot of power lately, but they still control the message. Their grip is weaker; blogs and conservative publications have helped shift the balance, but Evan Thomas' 15%-remarks are still valid.

Looking at the USA, I believe that a decisive role in breaking up the unhealthy monopoly of MSM was played by Murdoch/Fox News. Sure, there had been conservative publications until then (like National Review), but it was mainly after the birth of Fox News that more and more Americans came to realize that Cronkite and Rather were not prophets, but extremely biased members of the journalistic caste.

Germany needs a Murdoch, even if it doesn't want it. My personal, and possibly wrong, opinion is that in this case, grassroots organizations don't have the power to change much. When I look at a typical grassroots organization, Greenpeace, I believe they got so far only because, in time, MSM picked up their cause. Again, MSM at work.

Changes without the support of MSM are not necessarily impossible, but changes opposed by basically the entire significant part of MSM are very improbable.

I realize that I sound like a whining French and I am sorry - only complains, but no suggestions. I believe in fighting against the odds and I had to fight them in my personal life, but I think that this is an issue, which only time can significantly improve.

OTOH, I don't mean to say that we should just... sit and wait... I am ready to support wholeheartedly any positive initiative, no matter how small the chances of success might be. Right now unfortunately I don't have anything meaningful to add. It would be interesting if this discussion continued.

In the meantime, try not to catch the conservative blogger fatigue syndrom and keep on blogging.

[Mike H.]

Dave@5:28PM, "Well you see how long it took until religion stopped playing a role in politics (in europe)." The European form of religion stopped playing a role, other religions have taken its place.

Now you are fighting a battle on two fronts in the same manner as the US. You have a problem with the internal enemy (who may not realize that they play the role of enemy) and the external enemy who are active in their desire to defeat Europe for religious purposes.

In our case (the US) the enemy are those who think that they are fighting for a better US while interfering with the more important fight against expansionist Islam (hirabah).

[PacRimJim]

America has perhaps a 25% mindshare in Germany, while Germany has practically 0% mindshare in America. When matters press, the foreign countries Americans think and talk about include Japan, China, Mexico, England, India, Australia, the Muslimistans, North Korea (sporadically), and Israel. Germany ranks somewhere below Canada, but above France.

[Yeshooroon]

Hi guys, thought I'd pop in with some suggestions that are a little bit off the main path by asking some questions of you two and others if they're blogging as well.

"So other than blogging, what can we do collectively to change the anti-American attitudes that we document here? We ALL need to give that some serious thought."

I'd say short of starting a political think tank or running for office, this is it. But then I'd ask some questions. Why am I really in this? What was our original purpose and has it changed now? When I first came here it was fantastic to see clearly what German's media was stating. I had no idea how disgustingly propagandistic it was. Quite scary and much like the far, far left wing of ANSWER and Code Pink mentality in America. So, you have informed a certain crowd here - me, an American.

If you're attempting to reach Germans however and change their point of views. Then the question is how many will be searching thru english blogs? It appears you have two purposes now; 1) Inform outsiders of Germans biased media, 2) Enlighten German's themselves as to their own media's bias.

As a result, these are two seperate paths, marketing techniques, editorial considerations, demographics you must entertain, comprehend and inspire. That's a difficult job for two guys, let alone a fully subscribed service magazine. There's a reason Magazines focus on one set of demographics. To try and do otherwise causes split personality.

So, maybe some suggestions are to have 1) each focus on one area in order to build up expertise, contacts, etc., and 2) allow crossover articles between the two areas, 3) Invite other bloggers to appear as guest columnist in each area which will build up experience, name recognition, etc., and....

"David and I have worked very hard for three years to bring about change, but we need help, we are just two guys overwhelmed by other responsibilities including family and work."

...this brings up suggestion 4) Seek out known blogger conglomerates, such as PJMedia or others that coincide with your views. This could eliminate the need for market saavy and allow you to focus on your story. Plus, it will bring in outside editors with experience and generate revenue for your site, which leads us to 5) you need to go with the flow and utilize advertising. Currently I see you sell shirts. That's great! But you need other avenues of income. This will do several things, a) alleviate some headaches I'm sure by spouses, b) give you even more positive feedback, c) allow you to do more with your site and marketing should you choose to expand.

"At a certain point, we start to repeat ourselves because we see the same stupidity again and again. What else can we (you) do to bring about fundamental change?"

In this case, after three years, your original message has matured. Its obvious the left will not change their spots. However!!! You've done a fantastic job in exposing all their warts! Not only that you've done it in a professional way. So, now its time to break out in opinion columns, whereby you're no longer a media critic, but you focus on stories that are relevant to your public.

It appears to me, the real question thats come up is in your own minds are your ready to expand? You can still have a column focused on bias left agendas. Note that many do this in blogs and magazines, yet they also allow themselves room to expand with their own editorials and columns.

So, 1) decide on your new direction if you want one, maybe rename your site as a result, 2) seek out new talent who can help in old areas to allow focus on new areas, expand the horizon, allow for good news, 3) seek out possible new input by guest bloggers to increase traffic and opinions, 4) seek alternative income either privately thru your site or with noted conglomerates like PJM, 5) finally, take a vacation, put it all aside, you cannot change an entire nation overnight, let alone one opinion in a day :) But you can inform, inspire, enlighten! This you are already doing! So, take a breather, allow your families to breath without mentioning this site for a week maybe ;-) and enjoy. All those bad attitudes will be here when you get back! haha!

Well, I'm thinking of starting a blog myself sometime in September, so, being a virgin, you might take my suggestions with a grain of salt :)

[Mike H.]

If you talked to pajamas media about organization and then made a
strictly German pajamas organization, you could cut back on the
full-time aspect of the blog. Barcepundit is a member of the PJM
organization and he talks about being on duty (however that works?).

If the network were German and American (written in German) you could
target only that which you felt would do the most good in terms of your
culture. I enjoy reading your blog, but what might bring me on board
with an idea, might flop miserably in Japan or Germany or France. In
fact, the same idea might not go over as well in Britain as it would
in America.

Just a thought.

[Dave]

Yeshooroon has mentioned several good points.
Especially the language is important: Writing in english means that you want to inform mostly foreigners about what is going on in german media. It won't attract any germans who aren't really fluent in english language. Most might be able to understand what you write here, but english articles will never attract their hearts. So if you want to reach them effectively rather than informing the world about german media, changing the language should be taken into consideration.

[WhatDoIKnow]

At a certain point, we start to repeat ourselves because we see the same stupidity again and again.

You are right, you repeat yourself and so do the commenters. That's because the German media feels very secure in their ideological castles; in fact, it is they who repeat themselves over and over again. The fact is that there is no real threat for them at the horizon.

I started reading DMK and other blogs (German and English) in the summer of 2003. During those three years, the American blogs, even today a relatively small movement, have nevertheless managed at times to shake the foundations of MSM in dramatic ways. This happend mostly through the "Chinese drip" approach, constant small stories about the truth vs. bias of media, and then, of course, the Rather case.

When I look at the German blogoshpere, nothing even remotely similar has happened in Germany. The fault doesn't lie with the bloggers, most of them do a terrific job. I guess the reason for that is the Germans themselves.

When you say you want to change the perception of the German people towards America, you must first of all change the way they inform themselves. The Germans must want to search and find information outside the ideologically monolithic block of MSM. This is extremely difficult. Getting a group of Germans to trust DMK more than ZDF-heute, SZ, FAZ etc is a huge undertaking, which so far, has proven to be impossible. While many Americans readily embraced the idea of using alternative sources of information, the Germans see absolutely no reason why they should do the same, let alone trust those alternative sources.

I believe we deal here not necessarily with a lack of grassroots organizations who would push for changes, but with a total lack of desire on the side of the target group, the Germans, to change the status-quo. Americans walk towards change, Germans walk away from change. Germans feel secure in groups, American feel secure outside groups. Blogs appeal to Americans partly because of their individuality; this same individuality makes Germans skeptical. Maybe it's an oversimplification, but it's essentially true.

What else can we (you) do to bring about fundamental change?

Short of a (yet inexistent) strong political movement, which will pull Germans masses towards change against their will and against the will of MSM, I see no other solution. As Yeshooroon said: I'd say short of starting a political think tank or running for office, this is it. The catch is that a political movement/party would have to be confirmed by the same unwilling masses, so this idea isn't really viable. What's left then, what else could help...?

Right now, I simply don't see anything else besides time and the "Chinese drip" approach - blogging and spreading the word in one's circle. Will this bring a fundamental change? Not really...

[RayD]

@ all,

We've had several truly brilliant comments here. This is tremendous food for thought. The level of honesty and analysis is absolutely breathtaking. Thank you all for your insight and keep adding your thoughts. I may publish some of these comments outright as postings or as part of a posting.

I am giving serious thought to many of your suggestions. This online family that we have created here is way too important just to allow to fade. We've poured our hearts and our passion into this and we must keep the ideals embodied in this blog alive TOGETHER.

If you've never commented before and follow us, please don't be shy. Please join us. Please tell us what you think. This place is a beacon of hope and ideas because its readers make it so.

[Gabi]

@WhatDoIKnow

You know, I appreciate you very much but I think you are wrong with your statement, that Americans are so and Germans are so. It has to do with the left liberal simple mindset. And this problem is worldwide.

The division is not the nationality, the division is, how people understand and analize the world. There are so many who think that Bush and Sharon, the US and Israel are the real evils, even Americans like Michael Moore (almost half of the US shares his view: The other half of the US is evil and guilty, we are different, better, so peaceful, like you, dear terrorist).

Why are so many people focused only on Israel, when they react on terror? Why don't they complain about suicide bombing, rockets being fired on Israel. Why don't they worry as deeply about the Palestinian terror as they do about the Israeli military? Why do they think, suicide bombing is a reaction, a method against "occupation". This is a special mindset. Those people get a heart attack, when Bush speaks about good and evil. But they applaude, when the Palestinian terrorists talk about the evil Israel and US who support them. Those people think about, what did the US and UK do so that they got attacked on 9/11 and in London on 7/7. I find it very enlightening that these American terrorist who converted to Islam, when he was 17 said on this video yesterday: Americans, you are guilty, guilty, guilty. What makes him not guilty???? He is American too.

To come to my point: In the US you have more people like you. In Germany we have very few like David. But half of the US has the same view like most of the Germans. And you cannot speak for the other half of the US who condemn Bush.

[WhatDoIKnow]

Gabi

You are right, I could be wrong :-) I am not making any definitive statements and I appreciate my views being challenged.

I said what I said because I believe that in general Americans are much more open to new ideas and to change than Germans. Of course, I don't mean that every single American is open to change and every single German is stubborn. However, I believe that those are the general traits of Americans and Germans.

The German reluctance to change and the Left German media both created the situation that we have today in Germany. Because the German media is very unlikely to change the way they inform the Germans, the only solution for open-minded Germans would be using alternative sources to inform themselves.

I believe that the percentage (not number) of Germans like you, who chose different information sources, is rather small, compared to America. America had a similar situation several years ago: a MSM dominated entirely by liberal ideology (with one single notable execption - Fox News). What did Americans do ? They got away from MSM (including Fox News) and went online. Why don't the Germans do the same thing?

Well, you could say they don't do it because the grip of the German MSM is too strong. This is very true. However, in spite of that, why don't more Germans have the curiosity to question MSM, to go "out" in the world wide web and see what else is there? When I started reading blogs in Germany three years ago I didn't do it because I was looking for Bush supporters, but because I simply wanted to hear different opinions than the ones constantly repeated by the German media. I was simply curious, I wanted more, I wanted diversity. (I am sure others felt just the same).

Why don't more German question the uniformity of opinion in their media? I think the answer lies to a great degree in the German psyche - the need for conformity with the larger group. As I said, not every single German feels good in this larger group, but enough do, so that it makes it extremely difficult to change the mentality of the group.

[Gabi]

@WhatDoIKnow

I think, I told you already: Before my husband (N. Hale) came to Germany, I was just the same: I thought the Democratic Party is better than the Republican. I thought they are "right" (rechts wie Hitler). I thought Reagan was an idiot and Clinton a nice guy. And so on. My husband had the right questions and I started to read nationalreview and townhall. I am still ashamed, what I told him when we met first. I wasn't informed and had no time and reason to look for better information. Btw: Sharon was a right wing monster for me! I repeated everything what I read in our newspapers. But our friends don't want to listen when I will give them more facts. They are not interested. That is so terrible. Now we avoid such themes like Bush and Israel. With one friend, we stopped having contact. He said, Hitler wasn't a real antiSemit, he just did the killing because of political reasons. When I asked where he read this b.s., he left and we never saw him again. I wonder why this theme made him so excited.

[WhatDoIKnow]

Gabi

You are making my point :-) You were completely influenced by the biased German media, but you were also open-minded and eventually started looking at other sources. That's what most Germans today unfortunately don't even think of doing, and I believe they don't do it because they feel good in the uniformity of a larger group (unlike Americans).

Under the influence of German (and American) MSM, I also thought that Clinton is a visionary politician, Republicans are evil and Bush is a failure. Only after I started diversifying my sources of information I realized that there is a much larger world "out there". I spent a large part of 1998 in the US and I remember extremely well reading regularly the "San Diego Union Tribune". Very often the main article on the front page above the fold was about how wonderful the economy under Clinton is doing. And it was doing great.

The thing is that today, there are absolutely no similar articles about Bush, even though the American economy is doing extremely well. Fortunately, America has blogs (which are read!), talk radio and Fox News. Germany has nothing. No, it's not fair, Germany has great blogs, like DMK, but very few Germans make the effort to read them. The question is: why don't they do it? Why don't they ask for more?

[Miss Orange]

Ray and All,

I've read all the comments here regarding the question, "So other than blogging, what can we do collectively to change the anti-American attitudes that we document here?"

I firmly believe that the more people go out and see things in other countries with their own eyes, the greater the chance for understanding and friendliness between nations. My own experience of long-term travel to countries such as Saudi Arabia and China bear this out, and I see Gabi and WhatDoIKnow on this forum have supporting testimonies. Add to their voice that of Karin Quade of the German blog anti-anti-Americanism.

I intend to look into hosting a German student or two for a semester or a summer or some period of time. My community in Southern California has a lot to say for itself. I wouldn't have to force-feed anyone a bunch of pro-American propaganda to open their eyes to a few truths about American society.

I'd like to see more programs for hosting and exchange. Meanwhile, I'll get active in one.

I'm also planning a trip to Italy next summer with my sister and our two nieces. We'll be promoting Italian-American friendship through courteous examples and the knowledge we've gained from our open press.

By the way, my Typekey Profile page for some reason isn't showing my URL, which is http://schwartz-family.net/jmlinks.htm.

[Fred H]

It's time for a book!

Hi Ray, you already have enough material for a book in your archives. All you have to do is pick out the best postings and comments, and add a little narration.

With a book, you could reach a lot of people whom you can't reach through the blogosphere.

Once a book is published, it doesn't need as much upkeep as a blog.

[koepfchen]

Ray and Dave:

This may sound off the wall, but I believe to some externd the animosity towards America was generated by the lack of patriotism in Germany, and the clear display of it in America.
I believe the recent good showing at the Fussballweltmeisterschaft and the display of patriotism (the ever present display of Schwarz/Rot/Gold) should lift and retain good feelings of Germans about themselves.
People who feel good about themselves do not badmouth others. The championship may have started good vibes in Deutschland, and good will towards others.

[WhatDoIKnow]

People who feel good about themselves do not badmouth others.

That's a very good point.

The championship may have started good vibes in Deutschland, and good will towards others.

It definitely did, and this is a good thing, but only time will tell if the enthusiasm will last. Let's not forget that an even stronger wave of enthusiasm generated in France by their win of the '98 World Cup died away relatively fast. However, Germans got a much-needed infusion of well-deserved national pride, not based on bashing others (usually the Americans), but based entirely on their own accomplishments as organizers and as a team.

[LC Mamapajamas]

I recall an argument I got into with a German teenager a couple of years ago. It started on an open forum, and continued in e-mail.

Her messages to me were SO loaded with sympathy it was difficult to argue with her. She was so certain, "you poor thing", that I had no access to information outside our "controlled" media that I could not possibly understand what she was trying to tell me. I tried to point out to her that I was talking to her on a device called a "computer" and that I, like everyone else in the world, had access to the Net and to Babelfish, and that I could read any newspaper that was online. She could not (or is that "would not"?) see that I had access to all the information in the world.

So as she set about explaining how the world works to me (as stated, this was a teenager and I'm 57), and I'm afraid that I finally got hostile with her and explained how I REMEMBERED Arafat's clowns hiding behind the skirts of the refugees in the Golan Heights while they rained down RPGs on Israeli school buses so the Israelis have a good reason not to trust the Palestinians, how I SAW socialism fail again and again and again because it is nothing more than Feudal redistribution dressed up in new terminology and places too much power into the hands of the people controlling the redistribution, and how I presently get my news about Iraq not from reporters sitting in a green zone bar, but from milblogs and the Iraqis themselves, and gave her a list of blogs to check starting with Iraq the Model.

It made no difference to her. I STILL had no access to "the truth".

I honestly can't say what to do here :(. I wish I could come up with an answer, but until the Germans get over that mindset that only THEY hear the truth on the news, they could be a lost cause. I'm afraid its going to take a major disaster to bring them around. I don't want that, and wish we could find an alternative, but unless they do something about Muslim population expansion, they are going to have their democracy perfectly legally voted out in favor of Sharia within the next 50 years.

I honestly wonder what CAN be done.

[koepfchen]

@ WhatDoIKnow:

Replace that teenager with a grown man that had a full carrier in the Bunderwehr (Oberleutnant), and his wife (my sister) who replied to me "I dont want to discuss Bush, he is a stupid cowboy", with the same attitude, and you get to understand my situation. He sends me paper clippings from the Washington correspondents with copies of the NYT rants, but somehow still believes we don't get enough of the "truth" over here, how else could I be pro-Bush.
The whole family gets their new from Noam Chomsky.

[LC Mamapajamas]

BTW, that was me, Mamapajamas, who argued with the teeny-bopper :). Not that it matters...

How often does this woman suggest that this "stupid cowboy" is the world's worst most briliantly Machievellian criminal mastermind? The ability of some to hold BOTH thoughts in their minds at the same time never ceases to amaze me :).

So they think Noam Chomsky is the cat's pajamas? Figures... that man was an idiot in 1966, and he hasn't improved with age! (rolling eyes)

[LC Mamapajamas]

I remember being very impressed with Noam Chomsky when I was about 18. But in that same year, I leaped at the opportunity to watch the man on a TV talk show (something like "Meet the Press"... it was 1965 or '66). What impressed me about Chomsky was that he could always "prove" his sources. He gave impressive listings of who he was quoting and where he got his information from.

However, during the course of the TV interview, I started to notice something. Whenever one of the hosts challenged one of his ideas, Chomsky would reply with, "I didn't say that, so and so did!" And he could produce the source material to prove it!

That was my first exposure to a true intellectual weasel! He quoted material as if it meant something to him, then shrugged it off when someone challenged it, claiming it wasn't his idea!

I have had zero respect for the man since.

[Yeshooroon]

Lots of good comments indeed...

You know guys. I'm not aware of the blogosphere in Germany or online magazines, but you may just have a larger opportunity than you realize.

Take time, look into revenue generation, etc., and see where it leads. Cross-reference good material as well from those who are on the opposing side.

Whoever said write a book - now thats a great idea!

Release it in both German and English!

Look, the material you have here just totally blew me away. I had no idea the resentment and hatred pushed onto the masses of Germany by such evidently mainstream publishers.

Now imagine if you poked and prodded more stories and wrap them up in a nice and neat package. Do what you've already done here, but expand. Interview other sources and really shred them! Talk about starting a real firestorm! :) Fox News would love it! But be professional and accurate like you have always been.

I have no doubt you have it in you....

The key is telling the truth, this will shock most people.

[neocon]

i also have a little story to tell, even if it looks like "former anti-american anonymous" :)

that's also true with me. i feel i have to confess ;)
back in the 92 I also thought that 9/11 was a conspiracy and that the american capitalism is savage and that in US "if you get sick you're in trouble, since they don't have medical insurance", and stuff like that.
but in germany is absolutely normal to think like that, i had never met someone who thought differently. i just went with the flow

when a friend of mine emigrated to us, he urged me to think about stuff like "what's wrong with germany".
i didn't even have any interest in politics back then.
so it was not because i analyzed both sides of the problem and decided to stick with the liberals, but because this was the only option, to put it like this.

I always thought of coming to germany as of a big achievement, and never questioned that the country could have taken a wrong turn somewhere.
that's how it started for me.

the problem with germany is this, in my opinion: i understand that many (most of) of them favour the big government/spending. we respect that. but there's no alternative to that, at least no-one talks about something else. everyone thinks about the idea of an almighty state as of something that should not be challenged. there's no argument on "which is better, big or small taxes?". there so much untruth in the msm, for fear that innocent :) and disoriented people like i was back then would search for further evidence

i always tell people to listen to the other side of the story, which i always do.

as about merkel herself, i don't know about the german-american relations, but i think i know about the european relations.
before the elections she didn't say a word about EU, even if 80% of the laws will come directly from there.

I think she deserves a closer look, though.
in my opinion she will be the next iron lady of europe.
not because of her strong conservative convictions (which I think she doesn't have) but because she is so much promoting the EU stuff and it looks like the time for that is right (world cup, EU presidency, the german pope)

and this is something (i guess) most of us agree upon, that the EU thing is a mess (and will become a catastrophy, in my opinion)