Arnon Grunberg

Norm

Officials

Alison Smale in NYT on Germany and the face veil, among other things:

'Germany’s system of government, carefully constructed after the Nazi era to prevent the accumulation of state powers, means the authorities interfere less than officials in neighboring France, where the preservation of secularism is a long-established norm.

The German plan would not ban shawls or abayas that cover the body and are often worn with a hijab, a head scarf that does not cover the face, which German officials acknowledge would not win approval from the country’s constitutional court.

It would ban full face veils in schools and colleges, and while driving, appearing before courts or at public registry offices, or when going through passport control. Women who want to wear face veils in public should not teach or become civil servants, Mr. de Maizière said in announcing the plan on morning television.

“We want to make it a legal requirement to show your face in places where that is necessary for the cohesion of our society,” he said.'

Read the article here.

I'm wondering how many women with face veils are longing to become teachers or civil servants in Germany.

Politics is the narcissism of highly symbolic proposals. It's mainly about placebos. But placebos can be effective and sometimes even dangerous.

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