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German Fascism Crisis Escalates as Elon Musk Publishes Devastating 600-Word Editorial Explaining Why he Supports Alternative für Deutschland

by Eugyppius
29 December 2024 7:00 PM

Two weeks ago, Elon Musk stirred unusual hysteria about the prospects and future of German democracy by tweeting that “only the AfD can save Germany.” In the days since, Musk has repeated the sentiment, both because he believes it, but also because (one suspects) he likes to troll unreasonable ridiculous people. German biens pensants can’t help but lose their minds every time Musk tweets anything positive about the AfD, and so Musk will probably never stop poking them by doing precisely this.

There are two reasons that they react in such absurd and self-defeating ways:

1) Musk’s tweets confront our political establishment with an outside view of the insane, benighted and insular politics they have imposed on the Federal Republic. This is very uncomfortable for an elite who larp as adult, serious and farsighted people, while advancing some of the craziest policies the West has ever seen.

2) Our political establishment are correspondingly anxious that none of their subjects get wind of what people like Musk think about German political lunacy, lest these subjects awaken to the depressing fact that they are governed by crazy people with totally crazy ideas removed from all real-world considerations.

Some days ago, Musk submitted an editorial to Welt am Sonntag explaining his advocacy of the AfD at greater length. On the one hand, Welt editors surely felt compelled to print his newsworthy op-ed, not least because it looks like Mathias Döpfner, head of Axel Springer (which publishes Welt), solicited it. On the other hand, the prospect of printing Musk’s editorial inspired great anxiety among Welt staff, because nobody in legacy media is eager to let ordinary Germans in on the secret that many people outside of the Federal Republic find our entire political culture exceedingly stupid.

Yesterday morning, Welt finally figured out how to square the circle. They published Musk’s text, headed by a bolded warning that his words “call out for refutation,” and followed by one of the dumbest rebuttals the world has ever seen – penned by none other than Welt chief editor Jan Philipp Burgard. Imagine being so terrified of the political opinions of a wealthy American industrialist with libertarian leanings, that you feel you can only print them surrounded by screeching disclaimers and flimsy schoolmarm refutations. Even this was not enough to assuage the outrage of many Welt reporters at the prospect of releasing this dangerous editorial infohazard into the wild. Welt opinion editor Eva Marie Kogel has even resigned in protest – that is how serious this is.

So that you may judge for yourself the depths of Welt’s offence against German political propriety and representative democracy, I provide Musk’s editorial in full:

Germany is at a critical juncture. Its future teeters on the brink of economic and cultural collapse. As someone who has made significant investments in German industry and technology, I believe I have the right to speak candidly about its political direction. The Alternative for Germany (AfD) is the last spark of hope for this country.

Here are the reasons:

Economic renewal: The German economy, once the engine of Europe, is now mired in bureaucracy and stifling regulations. The AfD understands that economic freedom is not only desirable but also necessary. Their approach to restricting government overreach, lowering taxes and deregulating the marketplace reflects the principles that have made Tesla and SpaceX successful. If Germany wants to regain its industrial strength, it needs a party that not only talks about growth but also takes political action to create an environment in which companies can flourish without heavy government intervention.

Immigration and national identity: Germany has opened its borders to a very large number of migrants. While this was done with humanitarian intent, it has created significant cultural and social tensions. The AfD advocates a controlled immigration policy that prioritises integration and the preservation of German culture and security. This is not about xenophobia, but about ensuring that Germany does not lose its identity in the pursuit of globalisation. A nation must preserve its core values and cultural heritage to remain strong and united.

Energy and independence: The energy policy pursued by the current coalition is not only economically costly, but also geopolitically naive. Germany’s decision to phase out nuclear energy and instead rely heavily on coal and imported gas, as well as volatile wind and solar power, without the battery storage necessary to maintain a stable power supply, has left the country vulnerable, especially to power outages. The AfD has a pragmatic approach to energy and is advocating a balanced approach. I hope they will consider the expansion of safe nuclear energy combined with battery storage to cushion major fluctuations in electricity consumption, because that is the obvious solution.

Political realism: The traditional parties have failed in Germany. Their policies have led to economic stagnation, social unrest and the erosion of national identity. The AfD, even if it is labelled as far-right, represents a political realism that resonates with many Germans who feel their concerns are ignored by the establishment. It addresses current issues without the political correctness that often obscures the truth. The description of the AfD as far-right is clearly wrong when you consider that Alice Weidel, the leader of the party, has a same-sex partner from Sri Lanka! Does that sound like Hitler to you? Please!

Innovation and the future: I have built businesses on the principle that innovation requires liberation from unnecessary constraints. The AfD’s vision is consistent with that ethos. It advocates educational reforms that promote critical thinking instead of indoctrination and supports the technology industries that represent the future of global economic leadership.

To those who condemn the AfD as extremist, I say: Don’t be fooled by the label. Look at its policies, economic plans and efforts to preserve culture. Germany needs a party that is not afraid to challenge the status quo and that is not mired in the politics of the past.

The AfD can save Germany from becoming a shadow of its former self. It can lead the country into a future where economic prosperity, cultural integrity and technological innovation are not just pipe dreams, but reality. Germany has become too comfortable in mediocrity – it is time for bold change, and the AfD is the only party that opens up this path.

I hope we can all agree that nothing Musk says here is very remarkable. He is a battery salesman who wants to sell Germany more batteries, and beyond his support for the AfD, his direct political observations would not be out of place coming from a centre-right CDU or CSU politician. This is an extremely moderate thing to freak out about.

This brings us to Burgard’s (or rather, Burgtard’s) rebuttal. Our valiant policeman of German political opinion at first confirms our initial impressions, conceding that “Musk is right when he sees our country in economic and cultural crisis”, and that “the failed migration, energy and social policies of the Merkel era and the traffic light coalition have put our prosperity at risk”. Indeed they have!

While Burgtard believes that “Musk’s diagnosis is correct”, he argues that “his approach… that only the AfD can save Germany, is fatally wrong”. I find it hard to see how that can possibly be true, and I mean this objectively. The CDU won’t be able to reverse “failed migration, energy and social policies” if they govern with the Greens or the Social Democrats. The only chance to address any of these problems lies with ditching the cordon sanitaire and forming a government with the AfD. All of this is so extremely simple, that there are really only two options for the honest editorialiser: One can argue that Germany is doing just great and that mass migration is fantastic and the energy transition is going swimmingly, or one can propose forming a right-of-centre government with the AfD.

Burgtard continues to say Burgtarded things:

Demands for bureaucracy reduction, deregulation and tax cuts are not wrong just because they come from the AfD. But Musk seems to be overlooking the geopolitical framework in which the AfD wants to position Germany. According to its election manifesto, the AfD “considers it necessary” for Germany to leave the European Union. For Germany as an export nation, that would be a disaster. More than half of all German exports go to the European single market.

With economic welfare gains of around 83 billion Euros per year, Germany benefits from the single market like no other country. According to a survey by the Cologne Institute for Economic Research (IW), 60 per cent of companies view the AfD’s position as a risk. The director of the IW, Michael Hüther, even describes the AfD as “poison for our economy”.

The AfD in a coalition with the CDU would be in no position to leave the European Union, so all of this is moot. Also too, though, the AfD are not opposed to the European single market, which is the sole source of all the benefits Burgtard adduces. The AfD are merely opposed to the bureaucratic behemoth that Brussels has become, which behemoth is actively strangling the German economy.

AfD co-chair Alice Weidel has been very clear about this, for example in her Bloomberg interview from a few weeks ago:

We don’t see that the European Union in its current state is an institution that is working well. What we need to have is free trade among the European countries, but we don’t need all the bureaucracy. … [W]e say, look, we don’t need a Commission that is actually destroying the foundation of our continent. What we need is free trade among the European countries…

[W]e think that the European treaties need to be reformed, so that every country within the European Union has the right, first of all, to have a veto against the Commission… And if a country wants to leave the European Union, why not by falling automatically into a free trade zone?

What the AfD actually propose, then, are EU-level reforms that will open to all member states the option of leaving the EU itself while remaining within the single market. Should these reforms be realised, the AfD would support leaving the EU while maintaining all of its prior EU-associated trade relationships. Now, you can agree with Weidel’s arguments or not, you can find her proposals realisable or reasonable or not, but what is very tiresome and also unsettling, is the outright refusal to address them at all, in favour of simply attacking strawman AfD policy proposals.

This is a pervasive problem: Establishment discourse always insists that the AfD is very bad, but when it comes time to explain why the AfD are very bad we get nothing but transparent lies and mischaracterisations about what the AfD stand for. Our betters want the AfD to be very bad in a way that it is not, and this raises profound questions about their real reasons for hating the AfD, and why they can never explain these reasons.

Burgtard continues:

Not only does the AfD question the European Union… but also the relationship with our most important transatlantic partner in trade and security policy. “The geopolitical and economic interests of the United States are increasingly diverging from those of Germany and other European states,” the AfD’s election manifesto literally states.

But the numbers tell a different story. In 2023, almost 10% of German exports went to the U.S., the highest figure in more than 20 years. Isn’t it in Germany’s interest that the US remains the most important customer for German exports? On the other hand, the U.S. is one of Germany’s top three importers. Wouldn’t Elon Musk want many Teslas to continue rolling down Germany’s motorways in the future?

This is such a crayon argument, honestly it is insulting that Welt editors expect me to swallow it. Two things can be true at once: American and European interests can be diverging, which is something that even high-level advisers in Trump’s own circles acknowledge; and the United States can remain an important trade partner for Germany.

There follows the usual tiresome nonsense about alleged Russia and Chinese sympathies within the AfD, thinly supported and disingenuous as always. Then Burgtard finally gropes his way to the problem of mass migration:

In terms of migration policy, Musk sees the AfD as the solution. Germany is indeed struggling with out-of-control immigration. But the AfD is floundering with unrealistic plans for the remigration of millions of people.

That is yet another lie. In their draft programme, the AfD demand primarily the deportation of illegal and criminal migrants, along with incentives to encourage voluntary repatriation.

Then it gets more ridiculous:

The CDU under Friedrich Merz… has woken up to [the migration] problem and wants to abandon Merkel’s uncontrolled do-gooder policy.

Sometimes you read things that are so ridiculous you don’t know whether to laugh or hit yourself in the face. Is a leading centre-right German newspaper really and truly asking me to believe the CDU has suddenly “woken up” to the very problem that its leading lights created and that many of its members still enthusiastically deny even exists? Is that possible?

To this end, the CDU has significantly tightened its stance, calling for push-backs at the border and faster deportations of rejected asylum seekers. Such measures show that there are alternatives to the far-right positions of the AfD.

Aside from the fact that the CDU migration programme now hardly differs from the AfD migration programme, except insofar as it reads like it was written for children with very limited attention span and reading comprehension, the CDU again will have significant problems doing any of this in a coalition with left parties.

To the extent that Musk considers the classification of the AfD as far-right to be “clearly wrong”, he is making a serious mistake. The AfD is not just Alice Weidel, but also Björn Höcke. Courts have said that it is legal to call Höcke a right-wing extremist. Höcke has also been convicted several times for using a forbidden Nazi slogan. “Alles für Deutschland!” – sounds like Hitler!

Specifically, one is allowed to call Björn Höcke a “fascist”, since a court ruled that calling Höcke a “fascist” falls within the bounds of freedom of expression. You will note that that does not remotely support the case that Björn Höcke is a fascist. Otherwise, Höcke repeated that obscure SA slogan unknowingly, as major German media have also done. These cheap Nazi smears are another dishonest tactic via which establishment mouthpieces hope to reject the AfD as a party without ever having to explain what, precisely, is wrong with them. Untold hundreds of activists in party apron organisations and NGOs have spent years scouring the speeches and publications of AfD politicians in search of minimally plausible parallels to big Nazi villains.

The real problem with the AfD is not that they are “right-wing extremists” or that they advocate for crazy Nazi self-destructive economic policies. Not even their qualified Euroscepticism can explain this hysteria. No, the real problem with the AfD is that their growing parliamentary representation is extremely inconvenient for the traditional German party ecosystem. The larger they get, the harder it becomes for the establishment parties to form majority coalitions, and the more the CDU will be forced to govern with leftist parties, who will make it impossible for them to deliver to their voters.

Right now, nobody has a solution to this problem, beyond an unending programme of freaking out about “the extreme right” in the weak hope of driving AfD supporters back into the arms of the Christian Democrats.

“The criticism of US billionaire Musk’s editorial continues unabated,” screams tagesschau (via the Deutsche Presse-Agentur):

CDU chancellor candidate Friedrich Merz describes the commentary as “invasive and presumptuous” …

SPD co-chair Saskia Esken said that our democracy is well-fortified and cannot be bought. “Anyone who tries to influence our election from the outside, anyone who supports an anti-democratic, inhuman party like the AfD, be it state-organised influence from Russia or the concentrated power of money and media from Elon Musk and his billionaire friends… must expect our fierce resistance,” she added…

Andreas Audretsch, [Green Party] campaign director, said tech billionaires or Chinese state-owned companies have the opportunity “to undermine our democratic discourse with their platforms and a lot of money”. He said that Musk was trying to do this “hand in hand with the right-wing extremists in the AfD”. This, he said, was “a danger for our democracy and freedom of expression in our country”.

This article originally appeared on Eugyppius’s Substack newsletter. You can subscribe here.

Tags: AfDElon MuskGermanyJan Philipp Burgard

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18 Comments
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Mogwai
Mogwai
2 years ago

Continuing excess deaths here in the NL also. Is it just me and my selective memory or did we not hear much about excess deaths of unknown cause years back? In the summer time too…Its certainly a head-scratcher. Unless you’re Swiss Doctor who is want to lay the blame on a summer cold-type virus and the heat before any other cause.

https://nltimes.nl/2022/09/09/excess-mortality-continues-august-scientists-struggling-research-cause

26
0
NeilParkin
NeilParkin
2 years ago

“Trevor Sinclair facing calls to be sacked after controversial Queen tweet”

A hate filled tweet for sure, and he has previous as his conviction for racially abusing a police officer while being arrested for drink driving. However if he is to be sacked it should be because he doesn’t have the sort of interesting things to say about football that would keep a listeners attention.

16
-1
TheGreenAcres
TheGreenAcres
2 years ago
Reply to  NeilParkin

Hypocrisy is hypocrisy though. Had Matt LeTissier said “white people shouldn’t mourn the passing of Nelson Mandela” (he wouldn’t because he’s not like that, but i’m just making the point) an equally bone-headed statement, his feet would not have touched the floor on the way out.

Also note the use of the word ‘controversial’ in the headline. That suggests that it has some merit but is not well received in some parts. There is nothing controversial about it, it is grossly offensive and has no redeeming value whatsoever. As was the comment by the US Academic that was also in the news.

Free speech by private individuals is fine, but when you are a public figure it is not unreasonable for them to be held to a higher standard. Hence why I think it is a matter for their employers, but not for the police.

34
-1
NeilParkin
NeilParkin
2 years ago
Reply to  TheGreenAcres

I wasn’t suggesting that he shouldn’t be sacked. Rather that his performance on Talk Radio is hard to square with his continued presence there. Its another ‘job for the boy’, with very little to merit it.

LeTiss demonstrates a good working knowledge of football and a reasonable perspective about the world, along with his sceptical attitude. You are right though. Sky canned him for not liking to have to wear the BLM badge on his jacket.

24
0
NeilParkin
NeilParkin
2 years ago

“British Climate Divergence: Jacob Rees-Mogg Appointed Energy Minister, as Charles is Crowned King”

There is a pragmatic necessity, that having followed the wrong energy policy for years, we don’t compound it by trying to carry on as if it hasn’t been a total disaster. It is the classic, ‘if you find your self in a hole, stop digging’.

It might be nice if they take a look at the pricing mechanisms for renewables too. Charles will just have to suck it up and let the new Prince of Wales berate us poor people for wanting to be warm in our homes, and put food on the table instead.

37
0
NeilParkin
NeilParkin
2 years ago

“Why was Kemi Badenoch overlooked for Education Secretary?”

I’m a Kemi fan, and hoped that she would get Education too. However, I can see the logic of having Kit Malthouse in there instead. He is older and more experienced, and seems the type to have a go at the blob. Kemi could be a future Prime Minister, but not if she throws herself across Education and is stymied or defeated. Trade will allow her to hone her skills and build her capital, in what is a vital role of expanding the economy. Its a positive role that will suit her positive outlook. I hope I’m right.

35
0
TheGreenAcres
TheGreenAcres
2 years ago
Reply to  NeilParkin

My worry about the Trade brief would be that it depends very much on the Government cutting EU induced red tape and regulations. Otherwise all she can really achieve is rolling over our pre-independence agreements.

Despite making noises in the direction, so-far at least deregulation has always been at the bottom of the to-do list along with all of the other manifesto promises that they have no intention of getting around to.

15
0
NeilParkin
NeilParkin
2 years ago
Reply to  TheGreenAcres

Accepted that priorities change, but the PM was quite forthright about bombing the EU red tape out the system. I keep hoping that she will follow through on her pledges.

10
-1
TheGreenAcres
TheGreenAcres
2 years ago
Reply to  NeilParkin

I’ll be as happy as anyone if they actually do, but those are the kinds of things they talk about but for some reason never seem to actually do.

7
0
NeilParkin
NeilParkin
2 years ago
Reply to  TheGreenAcres

My late father used to call them ‘The Gunners’, on account of them gunner do this or gunner do that.

11
0
BurlingtonBertie
BurlingtonBertie
2 years ago

I’m posting this link here as a follow on to the discussion yesterday about Common Law. If enough of us follow this path, then we can & will set-up a parallel legal system which cannot be hijacked or corrupted by those who wish to control everything, as Common Law is higher than Maritime or Statute Law. BTW ever wondered why one is given citizenship? At birth we’re registered by the state as chattel, as a ship & are therefore subject to maritime law, which is set up for trade & commerce.

https://www.commonlawcourt.com/

1
-2
JohnK
JohnK
2 years ago

Cash updates:

2022 coins from the Mint with Charles III on might be quite rare? By the time the Royal Mint produce them, it will be just a couple of months to 2023. They could become commemorative editions automatically – potentially worth more than their face value. Similar gamble with notes, perhaps.

4
0
huxleypiggles
huxleypiggles
2 years ago
Reply to  JohnK

I’d be surprised if they weren’t minted months ago.

5
0
JohnK
JohnK
2 years ago
Reply to  huxleypiggles

Hmm. Is the Bank of England really into actuarial gambling? They would have to be pretty secret about manufacturing in advance, based on someone’s life expectancy. I suppose they might have reduced the amount printed and minted if they thought she was unlikely to survive for so many months each year. Might even be sketching some King William designs in the background!

0
0
Trev the Geek
Trev the Geek
2 years ago
Reply to  huxleypiggles

Or they might not even bother, as it will be digital currency in the very near future?

2
-2
huxleypiggles
huxleypiggles
2 years ago

https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/985093/the-queen-set-for-a-bumper-payout-from-offshore-wind-985093.html

Nice and tidy.

4
0
BurlingtonBertie
BurlingtonBertie
2 years ago
Reply to  huxleypiggles

It gets worse when you learn that she has been interfering with inheritance laws….

Published documents from the National Archives reveal that the Queen on occasions used the consent procedure to privately lobby the government

Evidence suggests she used the procedure to persuade government ministers to change a 1970s transparency law in order to conceal her private wealth from the public.

Documents also show that on other occasions the monarch’s advisers demanded exclusions from proposed laws relating to road safety and land policy that appeared to affect estates, and pressed for government policy on historic sites to be altered.

Some of the bills the Queen reviewed before they were passed by parliament relate to wealth or taxation. 

One of the richest families in Britain, the monarch’s property investments are exempt from inheritance tax.

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/feb/08/royals-vetted-more-than-1000-laws-via-queens-consent

5
-1
BurlingtonBertie
BurlingtonBertie
2 years ago

This is what we are a part of!

https://twitter.com/winteroakpress/status/1568304210826989572?s=21&t=XAhgcTRzpq1UmFx8rHEK0Q

3
0
Nobody2022
Nobody2022
2 years ago

I think my wife gave me the new BJ1 variant. It sucks.

4
0
Trev the Geek
Trev the Geek
2 years ago
Reply to  Nobody2022

I have an antiquated Teasmade gathering dust in the attic. Don’t know why that just sprung to mind?

1
0
huxleypiggles
huxleypiggles
2 years ago
Reply to  Nobody2022

😊 😊 😊

0
0

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