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[Vanillalite]

NPR

Are there Nazis in today's German military?

It's a question that's been plaguing Chancellor Angela Merkel's government since the arrests in late April of two German army officers accused of an elaborate plot to assassinate the German justice minister and former German president, as well as planned attacks on refugees.

German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen is overseeing the probe to locate other far-right extremists within the ranks. She's been especially upset with her generals after learning that the suspects' superiors failed to act, even though they knew the two men harbored far-right views.

One of the accused officers even did a master's thesis that was flagged for its far-right content. He was nevertheless assigned to an elite Franco-German battalion in Illkirch-Graffenstaden, France.

Starting next month, Germany's military intelligence will conduct intensive background checks on all recruits to prevent more neo-Nazis from joining the armed forces. The checks — which required a change to German law — were originally aimed at uncovering Islamist extremists who might try to infiltrate the German military.

 

[MagnaderAlpha]

Should be done here in USA. Background check those in the military, police and in government. Any of those with Far-Right Extremist views should be FORBIDDEN to enlist or run for government position (Governor, Senator, House Rep, Cabinet, PRESIDENT!!!).

 

[Spoiled Milk]

Interesting. Good luck to Merkel.

Should be done here in USA. Background check those in the military, police and in government. Any of those with Far-Right Extremist views should be FORBIDDEN to enlist or run for government position (Governor, Senator, House Rep, Cabinet, PRESIDENT!!!).

Yes, and furthermore, the only people allowed to run for office must register with the Institutional Revolutionary Party. Viva.

 

[WiiredShawn]

At least Germany is being proactive about this. Extremism is dangerous in all its forms. America needs to get its head out of its ass in this matter.

 

[Patrick Bateman]

There are people with right wing views in the Bundeswehr?
News at 11.

It has always been that way and it's hilarious that everybody acts so surprised.
Even dumber that the general opinion seems to be that von der Leyen goes too far with those investigations and controls..

 

[Guerrillas in the Mist]

Has there always been this threat of the far-right/neo-nazis working their way into the German military?

GermanGAF can correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't the current iteration of the German Armed Forces bring a lot of ex-Wehrmacht officers on-board when it was being set up in the 50s? There must have at least been suspicions then...

 

[RinsFury]

Anyone that ascribes to right wing nazi ideologies should be on a terrorist watch list.

 

[Patrick Bateman]

Has there always been this threat of the far-right/neo-nazis working their way into the German military?

GermanGAF can correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't the current iteration of the German Armed Forces bring a lot of ex-Wehrmacht officers on-board when it was being set up in the 50s? There must have at least been suspicions then...

Pretty much everyone who was in the higher ranks of the Bundeswehr in the 1950s had some sort of Wehrmacht-history.
As far as I know they at least sort of tried not to let former SS-members in.

Spoiler

Those guys went to the BND-predecessor "Organisation Gehlen".

The problem with the current far right members of the Bundeswehr is that they see themselves in the history of the Wehrmacht, something the Bundeswehr always denied and was completely against, at least offically.

 

[CrunchyFrog]

Should tread carefully here, it's easy to create de facto censorship through measures like these. Remember that laws you create can be twisted against you unless you're diligent and precise.