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Comment by Mordisquitos | Hacker News Reader

I must say, regardless of whether his criticisms of German culture and society are justified or not, it is no surprise to me that Zeitmagazin rejected his proposal, them having requested a column titled 'What I would have liked to know about Germany earlier'. The text as written by Ai Weiwei does not even make an effort to follow the prompt, but rather is simply a rant on implied problems that he sees in Germany.

Did Ai Weiwei not already 'know' each of the general aphorisms he wrote in his article? What is specific to Germany about his critique and not, say, to his native China or to any other country? Why would he have 'liked to know' about these things earlier, and what impact would it have had on his life or his decisions?

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The text he wrote makes a lot of sense under that prompt because that prompt provides the frame under which to read it. Knowing the prompt makes it obvious that his general observations happen to apply to Germany and he wasn't aware of that before moving there. He's just polite by not spelling it out.

The real issue for non-publication is the one he cites: "additional reflections in a more personal and light-hearted tone". This matches the general type of content in Zeit Magazin. They weren't looking for a scathing criticism of societal ills but some entertaining piece that goes well with the other easily digestible articles.

And as a German I have to say: He's bang on.

Commenting on such a broad and general theme as the article does feel useless. Bureaucracy yadada, people standing on an empty street light... sausage is ok.

Doesn't speak the language, claims the people are not free. How shallow.

There are more interesting models to build here. More interesting art to create. But hey it provoked me. Like most modern media, it made me a bit sad.

>And as a German I have to say: He's bang on.

>Here, at a deserted street, people stop dutifully at a red light. Not a car in sight.

This made me chuckle as I remembered a German friend who passed a red light on a bike at 3am at a deserted street in a German college town and got fined 150 euros by an out-of-nowhere cop car.

Happened to me in Death Valley, in the very hot middle of nowhere.

I came from a dust road and did not fully stop on the stop sign for the main road through the valley, I had only slowed down and then made the turn.

Out of nowhere there were park ranger lights behind me. I still don't know if they were cloaked or if they teleported behind me, I don't know how I could possibly have overlooked them. Everything flat and nothing anywhere, suddenly they are there.

I don't remember if I had to pay or if it was just a warning.

His text contains hardly any new insights about Germany, and I suspect that this was the real reason for the rejection.

I think it's one thing to "know" in a cynical way what the world around you is, and another to have it confirmed by being immersed in it for any prolonged period of time.

Assumedly Ai Wei Wei would have established himself in a different location if he "knew" exactly how the attitudes he mentions are manifested in the German culture.

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