Judge Files Complaint vs Merkel for Being Glad

Judge Files Complaint against Merkel over Bin Laden Comments Speigel

A Hamburg judge has filed a criminal complaint against Chancellor Angela Merkel for "endorsing a crime" after she stated she was "glad" that Osama bin Laden was killed by US forces. Meanwhile a new poll reveals that a majority of Germans do not see the terrorist's death as a reason to celebrate.
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Schadenfreude, the enjoyment of others' suffering, may be a famously German concept, but it is apparently not a feeling that many Germans aspire to. The political and public fallout following Chancellor Angela Merkel's statement on Monday that she was "glad" Osama bin Laden had been killed was among the most hotly debated topics in the German media this week.
Politicians, including those within her own center-right coalition, said that no death was cause for celebration, and reproved the remark as un-Christian and vengeful.

But Hamburg judge Heinz Uthmann went even further. He alleges that the chancellor's statement was nothing short of illegal, and filed a criminal complaint against Merkel midweek, the daily Hamburger Morgenpost reported Friday.

"I am a law-abiding citizen and as a judge, sworn to justice and law," the 54-year-old told the paper, adding that Merkel's words were "tacky and undignified."

In his two-page document, Uthmann, a judge for 21 years, cites section 140 of the German Criminal Code, which forbids the "rewarding and approving" of crimes. In this case, Merkel endorsed a "homicide," Uthmann claimed. The violation is punishable by up to three years' imprisonment or a fine.

"For the daughter of a Christian pastor, the comment is astonishing and at odds with the values of human dignity, charity and the rule of law," Uthmann told the newspaper.

A Sober German Reaction

While the judge's reaction may seem extreme, his sentiments are apparently shared by 64 percent of the German population. That was the proportion of Germans who said bin Laden's death was "no reason to rejoice" in a poll published by broadcaster ARD on Friday.

Among respondents who said they identified with Germany's three main opposition parties, an even greater proportion were disgusted with the jubilation over the al-Qaida leader's death. Their views mirror recent comments made by opposition politicians on the issue.


But even among supporters of Merkel's conservative Christian Democrats (CDU) and their junior coalition partners, the pro-business Free Democrats (FDP), barely half of those polled said they empathized with Merkel's view.

Wickilinks Nicknames

This is some of the more prurient material in the Wikileaks cables.

The documents in the article included nicknames for a number of world leaders. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was referred to as "Hitler," French President Nicolas Sarkozy as a "naked emperor," the German Chancellor was called Angela "Teflon" Merkel and Afghan President Hamid Karzai as "driven by paranoia." Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, an "Alpha Male," while President Dmitry Medvedev is "afraid, hesitant."

There was a candidate for the German parliament last year who did much better on Merkel.

The documents also say that North Korean leader Kim Jong Il suffers from epilepsy, Libyan leader Muammar Gaddhafi's full-time nurse is a "hot blond," and Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi loves "wild parties."

I didn't need cables to tell me about Berlusconi. This has been widely publicized.

The article also quotes the State Department as saying that US President Barack Obama "prefers to look East rather than West," and "has no feelings for Europe."

Well, the Brits certainly knew that. I wonder where that Churchill bust is these days.

Labels: Angela Merkel, Barack Obama, Wikileaks, Winston Churchill

posted by Carl in Jerusalem

Mighty Merkel Battles Stealth Jihad

What stones. Kudos to the M100 and to the Chancellor for her clarity and guts. Merkel is doing the righteous thing. I love huh! Hat tip NRO.

Berlin: Danish cartoonist Kurt Westergaard, who in 2005 portrayed the Prophet DanishCartoon07 Mohammed wearing a bomb in his turban, is to receive the M100 Media Prize in Germany on Wednesday, organisers said.

The prize is to be awarded for Westergaard’s ‘unbending engagement for freedom of the press and freedom of opinion, and for his courage to defend these democratic values despite threats of death and violence,’ the prize committee said.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel is to deliver the keynote speech at the ceremony, held in the Sanssouci palace in Potsdam and attended by editors and publishers from Europe’s top media companies.

Westergaard’s cartoon, published along with other portrayals of Mohammed in the Jyllands-Posten in 2005, caused a storm of protest when they became known in the Arab and Muslim world. Many took offence at the personal and disrespectful portrayal of the prophet.
. . . She must be endangering her troops.

— GP

Israel should loan nuclear weapons to Germany to deal with stealth jihad.