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Photo: DPA

Politician: protesters old, stinky, with messy hair

Published: 18 Oct 12 07:02 CET | Print version
Online: http://www.thelocal.de/politics/20121018-45625.html

A government party official who described protesters as “old” and “stinky” with “messy hair” has sparked online outrage and even threats to his dog after posting the derogatory comments on his Facebook page.

Last week Michael Marquardt, a functionary of junior coalition partners the Free Democratic Party (FDP), was horrified by the loud protests at a public appearance by Chancellor Angela Merkel in Stuttgart last week, the Süddeutsche Zeitung newspaper reported on Wednesday.

A stony faced Chancellor was forced to deliver her speech over the sound of booing and whistling not only due to opposition to the controversial Stuttgart 21 railway development, but also to Merkel's euro austerity policies, said the paper.

Marquardt was so outraged that he went home and wrote a furious rant on his Facebook page, describing the demonstrators as "old, frustrated women with messy hair" and "unkempt men who smell of old sweat, shouting all over the place with no decency."

The online retaliation was immediate, with well over 1,000 Facebook users commenting on Marquardt's statement. The tone soon became heated - one user called him one of the "neoliberal capitalist fascists," another threatened to shoot all FDP voters.

Marquardt himself told the paper he had received threats, most of which were directed towards his dog. He said he was determined to avoid making similar mistakes in future but has failed to delete the comment from his page.

The Local/jlb

What do you think? Leave your comment below.


Your comments about this article:

10:23 October 18, 2012 by MrNosey
Cue picture of rude, old, smelly, unkempt ecomentalists.
10:26 October 18, 2012 by whiteriver
where is the freedom for the guy to express that he is not content with the protesters?

I have seen these protesters and they seem to have no other occupation.
10:55 October 18, 2012 by keeps71
Because they are PEOPLE and have genuine grievances - their appearances are completely irrelevant!!!!!!!! It says volumes about his attitude to the people he is supposed to be serving: he does not respect them as human beings and that is disgraceful.
13:11 October 18, 2012 by MrNosey
@keeps71

So the people booing and shouting Frau Merkel were also disgraceful (since they did not respect her)?
17:03 October 18, 2012 by keeps71
MrNosey: What a moronic comment. He is professionally employed to serve those people irrespective of their appearance. The protesters are not. Nor are they making disparaging remarks about Merkel's appearance. They are complaining about her political policies.
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