By Gunnar Schupelius
The Social Democrats apparently don’t notice at all what point the mood in the country has reached, says Gunnar Schupelius.
Germany is sliding ever deeper into the asylum crisis. Cities and communities no longer have any accommodation, no daycare places, no schools, no social workers.
The federal government is concerned about the tense situation. Even Vice Chancellor Habeck was thoughtful, although the Greens have so far refused to control immigration. And even the Federal President says: “Germany is at its breaking point.”
In this tense situation, the Berlin SPD managed to hold a party conference last Saturday without saying a word about refugees and migrants.
Instead, the delegates, led by Raed Saleh and Franziska Giffey, decided that Berlin should be “climate neutral” as early as 2040 and not in 2045, as the federal government is aiming for.
“Climate protection is a core task of social democracy,” said Saleh. Then the party conference passed a 26-page mishmash of measures: from more 30 km/h zones to cargo bikes to “free sunscreen” at “public bathing areas, public playgrounds or in schools”. “Inefficient heating” and “wasting water” should be banned, whatever that means.
It was emphasized again and again that Berlin not only had to become “climate neutral”, but also “remain affordable for everyone”. The Social Democrats simply ignored the costs of the “transport transition” and the “heat transition”. They want to take on debts of an unknown amount.
The question of how Berlin’s apartments and houses, 99 percent of which are heated by fossil fuels, can be “climate neutral” in just 16 years also remained unanswered.
“With our key proposal we show that the SPD is dealing with the big questions of the time and also provides answers to them,” said state chairwoman and Senator for Economic Affairs Franziska Giffey.
That’s not true, because the SPD doesn’t give an answer to the question of how the capital should completely abandon oil and gas. She wishes for this state like a small child.
And the biggest question of the time was not even addressed: how uncontrolled immigration could be limited.
The SPD social senator Kiziltepe herself declared that Berlin no longer has any accommodation options for migrants. And the youth welfare offices are also at the limit, because an average of 17 young men arrive in Berlin unaccompanied every day, mainly from Syria, who apply for asylum and need to be looked after.
None of this is an issue for the SPD party conference. Saleh, Giffey and the 270 delegates put their foot down. They preferred to adopt an unsurprising climate program that can also be read about by the Greens.
It is primarily the Social Democratic core voters who are particularly concerned about migration. They must fear that they will have even fewer opportunities on the housing market due to the constant competition from abroad.
The Berlin SPD apparently has no idea what point the mood in the country has reached. I have rarely seen a party that ignores reality in such a way.
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