Friday, May 1, 2009

Lexington Es-335 Review

6th VO - 21 April 2009 - Oscar Bronner

After three weeks of Easter break came Oscar Bronner as the sixth guest Peter Landmann. The very first question was the same then as now his name be spelled correctly - With "k" or "c". With 'c' since its birth in 1943 in Haifa still in the time of the League of Nations Mandate for Palestine fell, which was under British control. Further reading Landesmann a brief biography from Wikipedia before Bronner, whose last section seemed to me very aware - I'm already for years as the average consumer Wikipedia-author and co-author and many hundreds of articles. But here, in principle, only those things are mentioned that are not already in Wikipedia, or look for other easy-to-find places on the Internet. So we come to Bronner's youth.

childhood and family

Bronner's parents, the future comedian Gerhard Bronner and his wife knew each other already from her youth in Vienna, which was interrupted in 1938, however. Gerhard's parents were arrested when the Nazis, he fled alone to live with relatives in Slovakia. There he earned by playing the guitar some pocket money before he fled to Haifa. There, he met the girl back from Vienna, where he soon married (the two were then about 17, 18 years old) and their first son, a few years later, Oscar was.

Bronner first grew up bilingual, since German was spoken at home, in kindergarten, but in Hebrew (Ivrit). When the young family in 1948 after Vienna came back - especially Oscar's mother did this to her parents, who survived in Shanghai to meet again - Oscar had to rework his knowledge of German. So his parents gave him, so to speak, private tuition, which was so successful that he was then scarcely a word in Hebrew more.

When his father a job with German television in Hamburg got (it was like the end of 1952), the family moved there. Oscar went to school there for two years, until his parents separated. He then went five years in Bonn, where his mother now lived in the school. There he was a good student, but back in Austria, he had great difficulties at school. He broke from 17 to school work, went, attended also by the way university lectures and took A-levels by as Externist.

The rest of his biography and career, so his encounters with Qualtinger and Torberg, his voluntary work for various newspapers, etc. everything is elsewhere, including on some websites, well described (see link at the bottom of this post) and was here only mentioned briefly.

Jewish identity

anti-Semitic experiences Oscar has never been in Vienna. Father Gerard was never irreligious, his mother was not also a religious education. The family, in which he was born "was completely irreligious. "(Bronner) So did Oscar in school probably as little as most of his classmates why that witness stand Mosaic" and what it was all about. That he is Jewish, was Bronner only become aware of step by step. A was to this effect key experience it is not. was about Judaism, Politics, Palestine or Israel at home never spoken, although intense father Gerhard as a comedian, at least with the policy employed. Whatever is in me Jewish, has with religion has nothing to do. (Bronner ) Bronner was only later in his life to "his Jews" - probably due to his marriage in 1988 and the points arising from this marriage two children. Thus play a role Jewish holidays, but "nothing else" .

to Israel Bronner since returning with his parents from Haifa, no relation. For politics, he could only say that Israel "very much true" did that and "very much wrong," . But "the other side of things have gone wrong."

to Kreisky

it, then back to the Standards: Let's start with Kreisky (in the sense of the chronology of the survey). As already some of the previous guests and Bronner has made Kreisky personally acquainted. And this is also his acquaintance of the due to relationship (remember: Georg Markus knew Kreisky, because his grandmother was a neighbor of Kreisky's mother in Brno and was friends with the family). In Bronner, the acquaintance is less neighborly, for political reasons. Bronner's uncle, an Oscar, one has probably written with "k" (as well as his brother Gerhard was born in Vienna and not in an English managed area), was a social democrat and a friend of Bruno Kreisky.

The Kreisky-Wiesenthal affair annoyed father Gerhard, also a social democrat, very much. Oscar (with "c") at that time had already established a profile, who followed the events and criticized. In the lecture Bronner said: "Kreisky has acted as very bad, we'll tell [...] times with Kreisky's just a very complex issue." because he was irreligious and, in particular as a socialist or social democrat set. The ideology behind it was just so Bronner (spirit) that is the basis for an anti-free world of social justice - socialism instead of religion. Why

sought cooperation with Friedrich Peter Kreisky, the FPÖ leader and former Waffen SS member who tries to understand Bronner with the following statements: Kreisky was interned during the Austro-fascism as a socialist with illegal Nazis in Wöllersdorf . Socialists Nazis and then had a common enemy: the Christian Socialists. One of his former colleagues helped Kreisky custody after the Anschluss in 1938 as a Nazi to escape from Austria. "Kreisky was just a product of this strange mixture of position" (Bronner) .

to Peter Friedrich country man knew also that these more liberal wing of the Freedom Party, which goes back to the Revolution of 1848, was a member, and not to the German national. Peter has Landesmann told also that he "cured by anti-Semitism" was when he as a U.S. prisoner of war by a Jewish officer interrogated and slapped was. That was so impressed him and sent a picture of a "strong Jews" conveys that he claims to have never seen before. He did it at least tells the country man.

The Freedom Party and Haider

Regarding the liberal roots of the FPÖ country man said further that Norbert Steger was trying to make the Freedom Party to the Liberal party - similar to the FDP in Germany - so but failed, and of Haider and the German national wing say "coup" was. Austria was simply too small a liberal tradition, which is why Heide Schmidt, who resigned so because of the "coup" of the German national wing of the FPÖ and the "Liberal Forum" was founded, could not be established in the Austrian political landscape. In any event

, around 1989/1990, as Haider's ascent began, Bronner had to make even discuss the "pleasure" with Jörg Haider personally acquainted. Haider and his "Buberlpartie" were suddenly approached purposefully Bronner, so that he could no longer avoid it. 've been, who congratulated him on his newspaper (The standard was so recently, in 1988, founded) and sent as Haider, combined names of people he had once meant he and Brenner had a lot in common, for he, Haider, was a The standard liberal politicians and a liberal newspaper. Bronner replied that he did not believe him, because he may give very different things by themselves, as they would suggest a liberal attitude. Haider then immediately reassured that were slip-ups, right past statements were (and for 1989/1990!), He would now pursue liberal policies. Bronner said again that he does not believe him. There was a bet that Haider would never have "right-slip" - if it does, Haider Bronner owes a bottle of champagne. As for 1989/1990 have all sounded out of Haider's mouth is well known. Bronner, however, called the betting profits are not produced.

that Haider introduced himself as a liberal politician, Bronner says the fact that Haider containing "a chameleon" was. He always wanted all be popular, at least in his interlocutors. He always adapts to his audience, the better stop with the "right" to do since he knows from home.

to Waldheim

Bronner, mutatis mutandis: Waldheim was an opportunist, he was "in part a tragic figure" . He was confronted by the JWC (Jewish World Congress) with false accusations to which he had then, however, responded incorrectly. Namely, in a way that the wrongs against him again justified. He was a "sober thinker and has until the end of his life is not recognized," as he is partly responsible for the wrongs against him.

well as a result his "simple thought" is seen that Waldheim also sought to Bronner contact, Bronner is indeed a Jew, and therefore probably would have anything to do with the JWC.



criticism of the standard

A question was in the audience to Gudrun Harrer, the Middle East expert of the standard. This will sometimes even by Jews as one-sided, more pro-Arab and referred to israel-critical or even hostile. Bronner can not understand, he does not see any bias. Harrer is designated a Middle East expert, speaks Ivrit and Arabic and used sources from both sides. It was subject to a maximum of perhaps sometimes the mechanism Israel as a democracy that allows for criticism, but in Arab countries but also in the Palestinian Autonomous Territories little criticism and opposition available or possible.

Even further to an objection that there are still well-known Palestinian critics outside Israel / Palestine, which would come in other media to speak, but not in the standard, can not understand Bronner. Substantial, was not told about these points.

Further reading:
- I can highly recommended the following text from the date 10/08:
Stim Klaus Eder, Eva Weissenberger The boy from Haifa excerpt (from the Bronner's biography Nevertheless )

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