Why Would The US Military Do This?

[Annie]

Many links at site on this troubling story:

http://medienkritik.typepad.com/blog/2005/04/neonazis_plan_l.html

Neo-Nazis Plan Large "National Center" for Anti-American Rallies Near Major US Base
US Troops and Families Can Expect Hostile New Nazi Neighbors in Grafenwoehr, Germany

This is unbelievable: The German NPD, a hard right nationalist Neo-Nazi party, has purchased a large indoor tennis hall in Grafenwoehr, Germany, the site of a major US military base, to hold large anti-American rallies, festivals and events.

But it gets worse: According to the NPD, the new hall is to be dedicated as follows:

"On the occasion of the separation of the USA from Great Britain on the 4 of July (so-called Independence Day) we plan on Sunday evening, July 2, 2005 to inaugurate our liberated zone with a large anti-American culture festival.

Motto: "No to slavery, the rule of money and imperialism: Dissolve the USA now!" Further major events are planned."

The frightening part of this all: The slogans of the Neo-Nazis are strikingly similar to those of the hard left in Germany. The last time the two combined politically in this manner, they overthrew the Weimar Republic and destroyed German democracy. Anyone worried yet?



NPD Stickers: (left) "Peace Instead of US Wars" (center) "Germany for us Germans!" (right) Stop the World Arsonist USA and its German Henchman!"

Here, now, is the translation of a major news article from SPIEGEL ONLINE on the NPD's plans:

"NPD Wants to Use Tennis Hall as "National Center"

The NPD has purchased an indoor tennis hall in Bavarian Grafenwoehr and wants to establish a "national center" there for large events. The mayor is appalled and is worried above all about the reaction of the Americans: Next to it lies the largest troop training facility of the US Army (in Germany).

Berlin - Finally - the NPD celebrates in a press release, the party has a "large object" in which it can hold large party rallies, concerts and other events. The hall will also be put at the disposal of other hard right parties such as the DVU and the Republikaner.

Helmut Waechter, the mayor of the 7,000 resident town near Regensburg, was shocked. He confirmed the purchase of the hall to SPIEGEL ONLINE that was unfortunately not preventable. The empty hall was sold by Dresden real estate developer Wolfgang Juergens to the NPD.

It plans an anti-American festival for the dedication on July 2, two days before the American national holiday. That is a particular provocation, because a large US training facility is in Grafenwoehr. The Americans plan the deployment of an entire brigade to the town, there are supposed to be investments in the hundreds of millions already planned. 8,500 soldiers and family members are to move there.

Waechter is worried about the image of his community. The US command still hasn't heard anything, but "you never know how sensitively the Americans will react" he said. He worries that the news of the new neighbors will reach the Pentagon. Neo-Nazis already showed up at the facility to protest against the troop facility a few years ago in Grafenwoehr. "That went by very quickly though" said Waechter.

The center also contains a completely new danger. The Social Democrat, who has been mayor for over 20 years, is confident, that he can still disrupt the NPD's plans. "We will exhaust all legal means" he has declared. For now the city will check the purchase and check if it can't eventually buy the hall itself.

In case that doesn't work, the city will check to see that the hall facility is used according to its intended design. The intended use of the hall is clearly for "sport, recreation and free time." The NPD, according to Waechter, must apply for a change in use and that will be denied - for one reason because of lack of parking. An event center as the NPD would like to have it, needs a certain number of parking spaces, according to regulation. The places belong to the city, according to Waechter."

The only problem is that, to now, the town and mayor Waechter have been unable to stop the NPD and it now appears that the Neo-Nazis will be able to hold rallies unhindered in the purchased hall.

German Anti-Americanism: Chickens Coming Home to Roost

Clearly, part of the blame must be directed at Gerhard Schroeder and Joschka Fischer and their Red-Green government for exploiting anti-American sentiment in Germany for the past three years for political profit. Let's not forget that not so long ago, Gerhard Schroeder's Justice Minister was comparing the methods of George W. Bush to those of Hitler to win an election.

The German left-wing media, above all SPIEGEL, Stern and Sueddeutsche Zeitung and the publishing houses that have released the most outrageous anti-American garbage over the past years, deserve an equal portion of the blame. Just a few months ago SPIEGEL ONLINE ran an article depicting the United States as having become "as scary as Osama Bin Laden." Stern recently ran this ugly gallery of anti-American stereotypes. (Anyone who has followed our website or looked through our archives knows of hundreds of further examples of the German media's attitude towards America.)

More than anyone else, the German government and media have allowed America-hate to get out of control to this extent. So it is particularly ironic that an SPD mayor is so worried and appalled at what is happening. It is equally ironic that SPIEGEL ONLINE, of all news outlets, is reporting on this matter with such a concerned and worried tone. This all represents nothing more than the chickens coming home to roost...reaping what you sow.

Perhaps these groups will finally realize that they have spread the seeds of anti-Americanism to the point that even Nazis can successfully exploit the sad phenomena. Soon the growing Fascist movement in Germany will be able to intimidate and threaten American families in Grafenwoehr.


And how can the US government and the US military put the wives and children of US soldiers in a community like this? They are planning to move in thousands more Americans and invest hundreds of millions in this area? Are you kidding me?

If someone hasn't contacted the Pentagon, the White House, the State Department and the US Congress about this, we had better start doing so now people! (Here is a link to the US Senate Committee on Foreign Relations. You are welcome to post copies of your emails and letters in our comments section.)

There can only be one response to this: America needs to pull its troops, families and money out of Germany and keep pulling them out until this stops. There are plenty of other nations in Europe where American troops would be welcomed with open arms and where American financial investments would be greatly appreciated.

The SPD (Schroeder's Social Democrats), the Greens, the PDS (Communist party) and their friends in the media who have ceaselessly exploited anti-Americanism in Germany need to be thrown out of their positions of power and discredited. Germany is drifting towards extremism, irrelevance and economic mediocrity because of them.

When will enough be enough???

NOTE: Mr. Wolfgang Juergens, our "real estate developer" from Dresden, said that it was a pleasure for him to sell the NPD the tennis hall. Mr. Juergens officially sold the tennis hall to the NPD's chairman for Lower Franconia in Bavaria, Uwe Meenen.



The Tennis Hall's New Owner: Neo-Nazi Leader Uwe Meenan of Würzburg, Germany

Uwe Meenan has authored a number of articles including "The Flag of the Fourth Reich" and coauthored an article entitled: "The Fall of the Judeo-American Empire." Here is an excerpt:

"On 11 September 2001, there occurred the overdue general attack of the Islamic Middle Ages upon the Judeo-American Civilization, which is Modenism and thus Barbarism, in its own main depot. These attacks were executed by the resurrected martyrs of a medieval Mohammedan warrior culture, which offers itself in sacrifice and takes as many as the enemy into death with it as it can. The Holy War and its martyrs are the crown of Islamic culture. Attack upon civilization, resurrection of cultures, and the smashing of the USA, including its global Jewish influence-apparatus, along with the ending of the Jewish State and the simultaneous construction of a world order based upon the freedom of the various peoples, is the inseparable complete process of the anti-capitalist world revolution, at whose victorious conclusion Western values and their utilization process will be broken and the sovereignty of the nationalities established."

So the NPD people building this "national center" for anti-American Fascist rallies believe that September 11 was an "overdue attack" carried out by the "crown of Islamic culture." If that isn't disconcerting, I don't know what is...

(Article by Ray D., hat tip leo.)

 

[007]

What are even doing there? Just pull the hell out and leave the damn germans to themselves.

The more of this "we hate America" stuff I see overseas, the more isolationist my attitude gets.

 

[freeandfun1]

Grafenwoehr has had a large US military presence for a looooooooooong time. I know when we would deploy to Germany for training exercises, we always ended up there. Franky, we have an infrastructure already in place in Germany that we need, so I guess the US is just saying, "hey, we ain't backing down". Where would you suggest they move teh bases? To the US where they will be not 6 hours from the ME but 18 ?

 

[007]

Grafenwoehr has had a large US military presence for a looooooooooong time. I know when we would deploy to Germany for training exercises, we always ended up there. Franky, we have an infrastructure already in place in Germany that we need, so I guess the US is just saying, "hey, we ain't backing down". Where would you suggest they move teh bases? To the US where they will be not 6 hours from the ME but 18 ?

I know it's a large installation. I've been there myself during an Operational Rediness Inspection in the Air Force.

What REALLY HURTS these morons is when all the MONEY leaves with the soilders. They'd feel it and bad.

As far as distance, we can get anywhere on earth from right here in America, and rather quickly I might add.

 

[Annie]

Grafenwoehr has had a large US military presence for a looooooooooong time. I know when we would deploy to Germany for training exercises, we always ended up there. Franky, we have an infrastructure already in place in Germany that we need, so I guess the US is just saying, "hey, we ain't backing down". Where would you suggest they move teh bases? To the US where they will be not 6 hours from the ME but 18 ?

We are pulling a lot of our troops out, seems a better and better idea. Why would they sell property to a group that had this in mind?

 

[Avatar4321]

Grafenwoehr has had a large US military presence for a looooooooooong time. I know when we would deploy to Germany for training exercises, we always ended up there. Franky, we have an infrastructure already in place in Germany that we need, so I guess the US is just saying, "hey, we ain't backing down". Where would you suggest they move teh bases? To the US where they will be not 6 hours from the ME but 18 ?

How about Iraq, where we will be 0 hours from the middle east rather than 6?

 

[freeandfun1]

How about Iraq, where we will be 0 hours from the middle east rather than 6?

Less likely to be bombed in Germany (not much, but every little bit helps) and also, families can stay in Germany, but they would never be welcomed in Iraq.

Still to this day in Korea most tours are what are called "hardship" tours. That means you get stationed there for 12 to 18 months (some up to 24 months) and you can't have your family with you. If the people deployed to Iraq are "based" in Germany, then there families can be there....

 

[pegwinn]

There are three major considerations on troop basings.

First: Is the base forward deployed in the direction of the threat? Germany met this requirement during the cold war. Does it meet the requirement now?

Second: Does the forward deployment steer the conflict away from the American mainland? Pretty harsh yeah? Fact though. Talk to pentagon types and they will tell you, pulling troops back to the borders will cause the opening rounds to be fired, you guessed it........ at the borders.

Third: Is the forward deployment in the best interest of our allies in the area? This is the most altruistic reason for forward basing of troops. It helps the economy of our friends while enhancing our security and it makes our friends feel good.

My area of expertise was asia and the me. Never did europe except as a pit stop on the way to africa (cess pit if there ever was one) so I cannot comment on whether that german base still meets the big three above in light of the new strategic reality.

 

[Annie]

The following was what I was referring too, not the base itself...

...The NPD has purchased an indoor tennis hall in Bavarian Grafenwoehr and wants to establish a "national center" there for large events. The mayor is appalled and is worried above all about the reaction of the Americans: Next to it lies the largest troop training facility of the US Army (in Germany).

Berlin - Finally - the NPD celebrates in a press release, the party has a "large object" in which it can hold large party rallies, concerts and other events. The hall will also be put at the disposal of other hard right parties such as the DVU and the Republikaner....

It plans an anti-American festival for the dedication on July 2, two days before the American national holiday. That is a particular provocation, because a large US training facility is in Grafenwoehr. The Americans plan the deployment of an entire brigade to the town, there are supposed to be investments in the hundreds of millions already planned. 8,500 soldiers and family members are to move there.

Waechter is worried about the image of his community. The US command still hasn't heard anything, but "you never know how sensitively the Americans will react" he said. He worries that the news of the new neighbors will reach the Pentagon. Neo-Nazis already showed up at the facility to protest against the troop facility a few years ago in Grafenwoehr. "That went by very quickly though" said Waechter.

The center also contains a completely new danger. The Social Democrat, who has been mayor for over 20 years, is confident, that he can still disrupt the NPD's plans. "We will exhaust all legal means" he has declared. For now the city will check the purchase and check if it can't eventually buy the hall itself.

In case that doesn't work, the city will check to see that the hall facility is used according to its intended design. The intended use of the hall is clearly for "sport, recreation and free time." The NPD, according to Waechter, must apply for a change in use and that will be denied - for one reason because of lack of parking. An event center as the NPD would like to have it, needs a certain number of parking spaces, according to regulation. The places belong to the city, according to Waechter."

The only problem is that, to now, the town and mayor Waechter have been unable to stop the NPD and it now appears that the Neo-Nazis will be able to hold rallies unhindered in the purchased hall...