Sad but true & GOOOOO GERMANY!
Germans not sure how far to go during World Cup
By JEFFREY MARCUS Associated Press Writer
BERLIN, Germany - German nationalism has a troubled history. And the symbols of the country are regarded with ambivalence by Germans and suspicion by some foreigners.
For a long time, Germans have been reluctant to fly the country’s black, red and gold flag. Since the World Cup began, though, they’ve hung them from apartment windows, draped them over restaurant awnings and displayed them in passenger doors of nearly every taxi cab in the capital. The success of the German national team, which earned a spot in the semifinals by beating Argentina on Friday, has ignited a new sense of pride in the country.
But overt displays of patriotism aren’t as simple here as they are in other countries.
“I think it is a bit too much,” said Helmut Holl, a retired politician, describing the rampant displays of German pride.
Holl, a man in his 60s who served in the lower house of the German parliament for more than 20 years, is from a generation of Germans that has gone out of its way to rehabilitate the country’s reputation.
Since the end of World War II, and especially in the 16 years since unification, Germany has tried to abandon the “Deutschland uber alles” (Germany above all) reputation. Verses of the national anthem viewed as overly nationalistic were excised after World War II. National symbols were rarely displayed, and overt gestures of patriotism, even on national holidays, were discouraged so as not to remind people of the Third Reich.
Collective responsibility for the horrors of war is taken very seriously. Nowhere is the axiom “never forget” a more integral part of a country’s sense of history.
As a result, Germans have mixed feelings about the flag-waving and anthem-singing brought on by the soccer tournament.
Carsten Massmann is happy that people know the lyrics to the German national anthem and sing along before games, he said while drinking at a beer garden in Hanover before the Germany-Poland match. For many years, children didn’t learn the words to the anthem, and it was rarely sung in public.
But now it is about soccer, not politics, Massmann said.
Annalena Hagonah, 26, said she knew the words to the French and British national anthems before she learned all the words to her own country’s. Hagonah, a freelance copy writer in Berlin, said when she hears soccer fans chanting for Germany, it makes her uncomfortable.
“You’re watching to see who will be the first to start marching,” she said. “And who will continue the chanting.”
The German fans’ cheers and songs include “stand up if you’re German” and “Berlin, Berlin, we’re going to Berlin,” which references the host city of the World Cup final. It will be held in the Olympic Stadium, built by Adolf Hitler for the 1936 Olympic games.
Holl, the retired politician, talks reverentially about the burden of history, but he wonders if the younger generation will take the issue as seriously as his. Young people are more free than their parents or grandparents to celebrate their national identity.
I asked Holl if he thinks the enthusiasm for Germany will last after the World Cup, or if the flags will disappear.
“I don’t know,” he said. “It may last a few weeks or months, but then it could go back to normal.”
Normal here means reserved, mindful of the burdens of past generations.
http://www.cantonrep.com
©2006 The Repository
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The match of matches is about to happen... Another half hour and Italy and Germany will try to knock each other out. Squeeeeeee! I can't wait, so wish for them to win. It will do the country good. And they deserve it. ###1!
By JEFFREY MARCUS Associated Press Writer
BERLIN, Germany - German nationalism has a troubled history. And the symbols of the country are regarded with ambivalence by Germans and suspicion by some foreigners.
For a long time, Germans have been reluctant to fly the country’s black, red and gold flag. Since the World Cup began, though, they’ve hung them from apartment windows, draped them over restaurant awnings and displayed them in passenger doors of nearly every taxi cab in the capital. The success of the German national team, which earned a spot in the semifinals by beating Argentina on Friday, has ignited a new sense of pride in the country.
But overt displays of patriotism aren’t as simple here as they are in other countries.
“I think it is a bit too much,” said Helmut Holl, a retired politician, describing the rampant displays of German pride.
Holl, a man in his 60s who served in the lower house of the German parliament for more than 20 years, is from a generation of Germans that has gone out of its way to rehabilitate the country’s reputation.
Since the end of World War II, and especially in the 16 years since unification, Germany has tried to abandon the “Deutschland uber alles” (Germany above all) reputation. Verses of the national anthem viewed as overly nationalistic were excised after World War II. National symbols were rarely displayed, and overt gestures of patriotism, even on national holidays, were discouraged so as not to remind people of the Third Reich.
Collective responsibility for the horrors of war is taken very seriously. Nowhere is the axiom “never forget” a more integral part of a country’s sense of history.
As a result, Germans have mixed feelings about the flag-waving and anthem-singing brought on by the soccer tournament.
Carsten Massmann is happy that people know the lyrics to the German national anthem and sing along before games, he said while drinking at a beer garden in Hanover before the Germany-Poland match. For many years, children didn’t learn the words to the anthem, and it was rarely sung in public.
But now it is about soccer, not politics, Massmann said.
Annalena Hagonah, 26, said she knew the words to the French and British national anthems before she learned all the words to her own country’s. Hagonah, a freelance copy writer in Berlin, said when she hears soccer fans chanting for Germany, it makes her uncomfortable.
“You’re watching to see who will be the first to start marching,” she said. “And who will continue the chanting.”
The German fans’ cheers and songs include “stand up if you’re German” and “Berlin, Berlin, we’re going to Berlin,” which references the host city of the World Cup final. It will be held in the Olympic Stadium, built by Adolf Hitler for the 1936 Olympic games.
Holl, the retired politician, talks reverentially about the burden of history, but he wonders if the younger generation will take the issue as seriously as his. Young people are more free than their parents or grandparents to celebrate their national identity.
I asked Holl if he thinks the enthusiasm for Germany will last after the World Cup, or if the flags will disappear.
“I don’t know,” he said. “It may last a few weeks or months, but then it could go back to normal.”
Normal here means reserved, mindful of the burdens of past generations.
http://www.cantonrep.com
©2006 The Repository
------
The match of matches is about to happen... Another half hour and Italy and Germany will try to knock each other out. Squeeeeeee! I can't wait, so wish for them to win. It will do the country good. And they deserve it. ###1!