Does Germany Have the Stupidest Political Establishment on Earth?
Elon Musk's editorial in major German paper spurs political and media class to express mind-boggling stupidity.
There’s an old metaphor in military affairs—one that apparently goes back to Plutarch—about the disaster that occurs when competent soldiers are led by incompetent officers—namely “Lions led by donkeys.” The adage was popular in Britain during the First World War, when it became evident that most English soldiers were brave and competent, but frequently reduced to cannon fodder by their terrible leadership.
Since it became a unified country under Bismarck in 1871, Germany has frequently been led by donkeys. Kaiser Wilhelm II was a donkey and Hitler was a psychopathic rogue donkey. Now the much-abused citizens of Germany are being governed by a faltering Rainbow Coalition of Donkeys.
Guys like me who have a longstanding fascination with German culture, music, philosophy, and engineering can only regard what has happened to the poor Federal Republic with great sadness.
I thought of this adage this morning when I read an essay by fellow Substack author Eugyppius, who just published a marvelous essay titled German fascism crisis escalates as Elon Musk publishes a devastating 600-word editorial explaining why he supports Alternative für Deutschland.
The reaction to Musk’s perfectly reasonable editorial strikes me as the most remarkable outpouring of stupidity I have seen since the cancellation of Stefan Mickisch, one of Germany’s greatest musicians, in 2022.
An old friend in Vienna attributes the astonishing stupidity of Germany’s political and media class to what he calls German Thoroughness (Deutsche Gründlichkeit). When the Germans decide to do something, they do it thoroughly. While this can yield great things if they have chosen their project well, this same quality can yield spectacular disasters if the chosen project is a stupid one.
This morning’s essay by Eugyppius strikes me as a perfect documentation of what my old friend is talking about. As depressing as it, it is also a fascinating example of just how high human folly can soar.
People need to understand that Elon is not a hero. He is a tool of the New World Order. We cannot afford to fall back asleep.
Like Canada's liberals and the US Democrats, Germany's CDU think they're smarter than everyone else and need to impose their stupidity on citizens for their own good. It's very narcissistic and egotistical.