There is no lack of information.
There is no lack of education.
And there is certainly no lack of problems.

What this country lacks is something else:
the courage to speak openly – beyond the permitted zones.

Germany is not currently experiencing a loud crisis.
It is experiencing a silent one..

A separately published video statement expands on the observations described in the text regarding public speechlessness and places them in a documentary context.

The Wrong Diagnosis

Politics and mainstream media like to explain citizens’ silence as overload.
Too many crises.
Too much complexity.
Too much negativity.

That is convenient — and wrong.

People are not speechless because they have nothing to think.
They are speechless because they know exactly what happens when they say it out loud.

Silence Has Become Rational

Anyone who publicly dissents today risks:

– professional disadvantages
– social ostracism
– moral labeling
– institutional backlash

Not someday.
Not in theory.
But concretely.

So many remain silent — not out of cowardice, but out of calculation.

That is the real scandal:
In a democracy, silence has become the most rational option.

The New Order of What Can Be Said

There are topics where real debate no longer takes place:

Migration.
Energy.
Climate.
War.
Identity.

Not because everyone agrees —
but because deviation is sanctioned..

Those who dissent are not refuted.
They are categorized.

No longer argument versus argument.
But person versus label.

That is not how an open society works.
That is how an opinion corridor works.

Two Realities, One Citizen in Between

On one side, the official narrative:
progress, responsibility, inevitability.

On the other side, everyday experience:
rising costs, growing insecurity, political powerlessness.

Many people move between these two worlds.
They read.
They compare.
They notice the fractures.

And they know:
I am not allowed to say this publicly.

So it remains an inner shake of the head.
A private conversation.
An anonymous comment.

Democracy shrinks while remaining formally intact.

Morality Replaces Critique of Power

Instead of questioning the structure, the response is moralization.

It is not the system that is debated,
but the attitude of the citizen.

You are supposed to be more optimistic.
More responsible.
More constructive.

Those who doubt are seen as a problem.
Those who dissent as a threat.

This is how political criticism turns into a character issue —
and democracy into a re-education project.

The Firewall as a Tool of Discipline

Particularly effective here is one term: the firewall..

It has long been more than a boundary.
It is a warning sign.

Anyone who asks certain questions
automatically ends up “on the wrong side.”

Not because of their arguments,
but because of their position in the coordinate system.

The result:
Even legitimate criticism is withheld
to avoid coming under suspicion.

Screaming Silence

This is how this paradoxical situation emerges:

Everyone knows that something is wrong.
But hardly anyone says it openly.

A country full of thoughts —
and full of silence.

That is the screaming silence of our time.

Responsibility Begins with the Order

There is constant talk of responsibility.
But responsibility for what?

For a system
that morally sanctions criticism?

For an order
that disempowers citizens
but demands loyalty?

True responsibility begins
where one has the courage to question the rules of the game themselves.

The Price of Dissent

Yes — dissent has a cost.
Career.
Comfort.
Sometimes security.

But prolonged silence costs more:
freedom.
truth.
democratic substance.

The decisive question is no longer:
“Am I conforming enough?”

But rather:
Am I willing to pay the price for speaking openly?

Conclusion

Germany does not need new campaigns.
No new narratives.
No new moral appeals.

It needs something much simpler — and more courageous:

real debates.
real dissent.
real alternatives.

Because a democracy
in which the reasonable remain silent
is only a democracy on paper.

👉 Share. Forward. Speak up.

In Marla We Trust.

---

Deutschland im Sinkflug – und niemand darf ins Cockpit

📚 Further Reading – Partner Links

(Affiliate notice: The following links are partner links. If you make a purchase through them, you support Marlas Army at no additional cost to you.)

1. Hannah Arendt – On Violence
1. Hannah Arendt – On Violence An analysis of the mechanisms of political control and public fear.
👉 https://amzn.to/3NDc0c8

2. George Orwell – 1984
The classic work on language control, truth, and surveillance.
👉 https://amzn.to/4bsO0SZ

3. Timothy Snyder – On Tyranny
Twenty lessons on how democracies die.
👉 https://amzn.to/3NcdiuI