Some things are perhaps better left unsaid.
Wolfgang Thierse (SPD), vice president of the Bundestag, caused an uproar today with his comments concerning ex-chancellor Helmut Kohl in an interview with the Leipziger Volkszeitung. Speaking about the decision of Franz Müntefering to resign his position as vice-chancellor to spend time with his terminally-ill wife ( NY Times story here) Thierse said the following:
Es ist eine unpolitische Entscheidung, dass Franz Müntefering seine Frau in der letzten Phase ihres Lebens direkt begleiten will. Seine Frau im Dunkeln in Ludwigshafen sitzen zu lassen, wie es Helmut Kohl gemacht hat, ist kein Ideal. Ohne dass das vergleichbar wäre. Die Politik ist nicht das Allerwichtigste. (it was not politics that made Franz Müntefering decide to accompany his wife during the final phase of her life. Leaving one’s wife in the dark in Ludwigshafen like Helmut Kohl did is not the ideal. Without trying to make comparisons. There are more important things in life than politics.)
The key phrase that gave offense was "in the dark" (im Dunkeln). Let’s look back to July 2001:
Hannelore Kohl, the wife who stood by Helmut Kohl during a long political career that peaked when he became German chancellor, committed suicide out of despair at a painful allergy that forced her to avoid daylight, Kohl’s office said Thursday. She was 68.
Hannelore Kohl’s body was found by the wife of Kohl’s chauffeur at the family’s bungalow-style house in the western city of Ludwigshafen, authorities said.
Kohl’s wife had suffered for years from a sunlight allergy that recently worsened, forcing her to spend the last 15 months avoiding daylight. ”She could only leave the house in the complete darkness,” a statement from Kohl’s office said.
Helmut Kohl was not with his wife in her final moments of despair. In fact, he was far away in Berlin conducting politics as usual. All throughout her awful illness Kohl was away from his wife:
Hannelore Kohl was at the side of her husband during his 1982-98 tenure as chancellor – culminating in German reunification in 1990. She supported him during the slush fund scandal that threatened his reputation afterward. The couple had been married since 1960, drawn together by a common love of the tango. When Kohl lost the chancellorship, his wife thought they would have more family time. But Kohl kept his parliament seat and vigorously fought the corruption allegations, spending much of his time in Berlin while she stayed at home 630 kilometres away and her condition worsened.
I think most people at the time thought that Kohl’s treatment of his wife was at best callous. So factually there is nothing to dispute with Thierse’s comments. But now many in the CDU/CSU are outraged and yellling for Thierse to resign. Chancellor Angela Merkel has called the comments "disgraceful". Thierse has been forced to backtrack and apologize.
Reminds me of this line uttered by Jack Nicholson in A Few Good Men: You can’t handle the truth!
