The foolish rulers by Heinz J. Bontrup, 6/16

The foolish rulers

by Heinz-J. Bontrup

[This article posted on 6/16/2025 is translated from the German on the Internet, https://www.nachdenkseiten.de/?p=134534.]

While the media unanimously drums up support for rearmament and critical voices are silenced, Heinz-J. Bontrup warns of a disastrous development: Germany is once again marching in lockstep toward war. As before both world wars, the political elite—from the SPD to the Greens—has lost touch with reality. Instead of following the Basic Law’s mandate of peace, half a trillion euros is being pumped into armaments. By Heinz-J. Bontrup.

Albert Einstein despised the military and its social behavior when he wrote: “Anyone who can march in line to music with pleasure has been mistakenly given a large brain, as the spinal cord would suffice.” Today, militarism is back in Germany and warmongers can spread their irresponsible propaganda in almost all media. Critical voices have virtually no chance of being published by newspaper publishers (see Ossietzky 11/2025; “Die Panzer sollen rollen” [The tanks should roll]). You have to be pretty narrow-minded to call for rearmament, preparations for war, and ultimately a deadly war. In politics, however, this socially destructive demand is being pushed forward by a linear and purely event-driven way of thinking that is widespread here.

The widely read US historian Barbara Tuchman writes in her book “The March of Folly: A History of the Disjudgment of Nine Hundred and Ninety-five,” “In the art of government, it seems, the achievements of mankind fall far short of what they have accomplished in almost every other field. Wisdom, which might be defined as the use of judgment based on experience, common sense, and available information, is less effective in this sphere, and its effects are more often frustrated than is desirable.”

Today, more than ever, this must be a cause of great concern to us, because it poses a danger to society. I expect representatives of the people to be able to classify events causally and holistically, to be well versed in history, and, last but not least, to have theory-based and practical economic knowledge. If they cannot even demonstrate the latter, the people should not be surprised when capitalists manipulate and parade politicians around every day for their own profit interests. Just one example: a finance minister should have a degree in economics. How else can he even begin to talk about economics and know, among many other things, that everything military and ultimately deadly armament always has an unproductive economic character? An advisor is of no help here, especially if he was chosen by the minister himself and only advises him what he wants to hear.

Military thinking and armament have always correlated with a loss of reality in human history, which the outstanding sociologist and social philosopher Oskar Negt once described as the final stage of a perverted social crisis. In the early stages of a crisis, there is a fear-driven social adjustment which, the longer the crisis lasts, then turns into submissive behavior in society. Everywhere you look, you encounter nothing but “duck mouseism,” referred to in crossword puzzles as “creeping.” Even the scientific community is not immune to this.

Society lost touch with reality in Germany both before the outbreak of the First World War and before the Second. The only person who remained seated in the Reichstag in 1914 and voted against the war credits was SPD member Karl Liebknecht. In the end, he paid for his “no” vote with his life, joining the long list of political murders committed by the right wing, which are still downplayed in Germany today. Politicians (including the SPD) and the ADGB trade union leadership also suffered from a loss of touch with reality in 1933. The ADGB even curried favor with Hitler and, incredibly, celebrated May 1st together with the fascists. What happened next is well known. Despite all the narrow-mindedness of politicians, however, it should also be said to the capitalists that they are the biggest losers in a war. I recommend studying the French economist and distribution theorist Thomas Piketty, who provides empirical evidence of this.

Bertolt Brecht and Einstein warned of further wars shortly after the Second World War. Today, we know that over 240 wars with up to 30 million deaths have become reality, and it is possible that a few narcissists and power-hungry autocrats around the world are currently preparing for the Third World War, which would spell the end of humanity. As Einstein said: “I am not sure what weapons will be used in the third world war, but in the fourth world war, they will fight with sticks and stones.”

Wars have never been prepared and triggered by the people, but always behind their backs by those in power. In both world wars, it was foolish German rulers who found equally foolish political accomplices. This enabled Kaiser Wilhelm II and Hitler to send the Germans into the First and Second World Wars without asking them. In the 1970s, the following words were written on a building at my alma mater: “Imagine what will happen when the war comes and no one goes” (Carl Sandburg).

When will the peoples of the world finally rise up against the folly of their rulers? This question applies not only to totalitarian systems, but also to the self-appointed political ruling elites in indirect (parliamentary) democracies, which are nothing more than spectator democracies after election night.

Pay attention to this: before the election, politicians speak in terms of “we,” and after the election, they speak in terms of “I.” As a citizen, I refuse to allow “representatives of the people” who are only elected for a limited term to speak in my name about “fitness for war” and “war capability.” Politics is committed to peace and to the promise made by the Germans after World War II: “Never again war.”

The preamble to the Basic Law states that the German people have a duty to “serve world peace.” Andreas Engelmann, federal secretary of the Association of Democratic Lawyers (VDJ), and Rainer Rehak, co-chair of the Forum of Computer Scientists for Peace and Social Responsibility (FIfF), wrote in the Frankfurter Rundschau on March 25 of this year:

“To this day, the Basic Law contains the normative mandate to bring the existence of an armed force into practical harmony with the imperative of peace. The proclaimed primacy of armament and the excessive use of public funds for this purpose shifts this precarious balance in the direction of a return to militarism. Germany has already had a war-ready army twice. And long before the bloodshed of war, militarization begins at home.”

The authors of the 1949 Basic Law would turn in their graves if they knew how today’s politicians are treating the Basic Law, which they brought about with the support of the SPD and Bündnis90/Die Grünen and wrote into the Basic Law with a constitutional amendment allowing half a trillion euros for military spending. Let us quote Albert Einstein once again: “Pacifism that does not combat the armament of states is and remains powerless. The arms industry is one of the greatest dangers to humanity.”

In this context, the manifesto on “Peacekeeping in Europe” by what are obviously the last upright Social Democrats points the way forward. It is right to call for a U-turn in German foreign and security policy. A good hundred prominent SPD politicians write: “Military alarmist rhetoric and huge armament programs do not create more security for Germany and Europe, but lead to destabilization and a strengthening of the mutual perception of threat between NATO and Russia.” The manifesto also rightly rejects an increase in the defense budget to 3.5 or even five percent of nominal gross domestic product. Instead of spending more money on such a ludicrous arms escalation, the money should be spent on poverty reduction and climate protection, among other things.

The primitive responses from the warmongers in the country were immediate. They also came from leaders in the SPD and the former Green Party, which used to be a party of peace. The behavior of the SPD throughout its history is well known: it flashes its left turn signal and then turns right. And to all the warmongers and arms dealers, I say: “The main cause of stress is daily contact with idiots.” Incidentally, Einstein is said to have believed this as well.