That's the first lesson you learn at the DU. I don't know for sure, but I think this person is just wondering out of plain curiosity.

But, I really don't give much of a damn one way or the other.

most certainly has something to do with the question. But, when did it become wrong to question anything?

I think it's republican / conservative to be afraid of questions.

I figured someone would know. Jeez-give me a break!

Don't question anything!!! Questioning is dangerous, you see.

They are not immune. They've just been fortunate.

And, yes, they have been fortunate.

The target was Israel.

Israeli Jews.

...as per se, Britain, France, the US. I think after WWII, Germany spent most of its time minding its own store and its own business.

lost both world wars and wasn't one of the nations happily slicing and dicing up large parts of Eurasia and Africa.

It's okay to think, Maria. Trying to understand a problem's origins isn't the same thing as saying the guilty aren't blame for their actions.

It wasn't until the Berlin wall came down in the 80s that Germans could finally say to themselves that they have recovered from World War 2.

from those who are originally from parts of the arab world which were once colonized by France, so that history likely plays into a psychology of revenge. ?

Germany, on the other hand, has long been aligned with Turkey, which was an ally from WWI and WWII.

exploitation that, further, reportedly continues right up until today. Even though they are no longer colonies, significant wealth from a number of African nations still flows to France. And France has a long history in the Middle East too.

Only remembering the movie The African Queen for Germany, I just took a quick glance, and, yup, Germany's African history is mostly sub-Saharan -- that is, not in previously Islamic lands.

But the reality is that history MATTERS. And yes, the former colonies have continued to be yolked with French interference and exploitation.

I don't like Islamophobia, either.

So here you are, responding by stalking me around the board, sniping. lol

not liking the Times of India sounds suspicious? The only thing could be India. It's an award winning newspaper.

I don't like Indiaphobia or Jewphobia.

There are reasons why terrorists attack. The fact that those reasons exist, or pointing out that there is a reason, is not a justification unless one is making the additional lead that "this reason JUSTIFIES the attack".

If I were to say that a drug addict was desperate for money when they robbed someone, I'm not justifying the robbery, I'm explaining the reason behind it (drug addiction), not saying "well they have a medical problem, therefore robbery is ok".

Germany's alliance with Turkey. I do remember that the Ottoman Empire ruled a huge, advanced, and relatively peaceful mostly Islamic empire out of what is now Turkey. I imagine you or scholars could explain how Germany's association with that comparatively golden era of Islam is a definitely happier association than colonialism.

too.

is so more than you imagine, and Islam is far more similar to Christianity than you realize. They truly share the same roots. Affluent middle easterners were reading poetry by fountains in beautiful, elegant gardens when northern Europeans were still throwing their bones on the floor. The north was colder in those days, and the Mediterranean moister. Geography rules, not racial superiority.

The Ottoman Empire was a center of culture, learning, science, technology that drew people from the north to learn and bring advances home.

And yes,the French were brutal to the Natives in the Colonies. Read any book about the French Foreign Legion,and these people were a bunch of blood thirsty mercenary's. Long memoirs come back to haunt.

Doesn't sound very exotically romantic. Actually, I had read a little about other colonial practices, which definitely constituted a surfeit. Never think white people are more "civilized."

...do the majority of their planning while in Hamburg? Just sayin'.

many other European countries.

Since Germany has so many recent Muslim arrivals, it is interesting that the terrorist attacks have been in other countries.

they disrupted a planned attack at a soccer game. Had good intelligence, apparently.

Germany and France's Muslim populations have different origins, and economic integration could maybe play a role too. I recall France having issues with extremely high unemployment among Muslim youths. Large groups of unhappy directionless young people would provide fertile ground for infiltration and recruiting.

Or maybe Germany is just better at thwarting potential threats.

and of course all the unrest from national economic problems piled on top of an already unsustainable situation.

Wouldn't be surprised at that last, but, of course, ultimately no nation is going to be good enough. We left Los Angeles for more positive reasons, but I was glad to no longer wonder if terrorists might some August take down the water and energy supplies to over 13 million people surrounded by nothing but high mountains, desert and salt water.

What is it about Peru that makes it immune to terrorist attacks? How about China? What magic to they wield?

Go to the State Department travel advisory site, and they have threat assessments listed for every country, based upon theoretical risks (poverty, instability, etc.) and also risks specific to the geographic region to which you are traveling (significant numbers of crime reports associated with risk factors which you may or may not share with other travelers from your region who did become crime victims).

Yes, there are indeed educated answers to the question of "why does Germany seem immune to these terror attacks?", as well as the same question on Peru and China and anywhere else.

No reason to make this harder then it actually is.

but they had their own problems with Shining Path.

Too far away. And no US interests and alliances related to the decades of siege in the ME.

That it hasn't happened doesn't mean it won't.

Given the recent inflows, it's almost a numerical certainty that some ISIS operatives have set up shop in the Fatherland.

terrorism, and the Germans have developed some very good law enforcement and military units and intelligence methods related to international terrorism, that is bound to cut down on it.

In the 1970s and 1980s we were seeing terror murders and bombings and a number of incidents that I was aware of, for instance being told that my group of a couple of dozen American guys who were sleeping in tents on the grounds of a German Special Operations unit were being observed by a known terrorist in a stolen car, or that a cell had been caught with maps and a plan for the American Wiesbaden base , or one of our group identifying a terrorist and calling it in, or the killing of a GI in a Frankfurt nightclub for his military ID, or walking through Frankfurt airport as the bombing repairs were being done.

I never hear of ISIS attacks inside Iran. They would seem to be a prime target for radical Sunni psychopaths. Some Iranian troops and Shiite militias have even been fighting ISIS in neighboring Iraq and Syria.

I don't get it. Smells kinda fishy.



As for Belgium, one report I heard today is that in recent years Belgium has welcomed quite a few poor people from Muslim regions with open arms for their cheap labor. Subsequently much of the manufacturing there closed down leaving the cheap laborers with nothing to do and nowhere to turn. Apparently the Belgian government has been ineffective; something like six different police departments in Brussels. EU countries don't share much intelligence for privacy reasons. Etc.

As for Germany, up until last year their more effective government may have had a better handle on who exactly was in Germany and what exactly they were doing there.

I wouldn't be surprised if Schengen was suspended at least temporarily until EU countries can get a better handle on who exactly is there and why.

Yes, Shias are apostates for sunnis, but in order to reach Iran, ISIS-agents would have to travel through Iraq or "Kurdistan". Nobody travels to Iran, except for business, so it would hard to sneak in as a tourist or refugee.

My youngest son was in Berlin several years ago on a Fulbright. He couldn't open
a bank account--which was required for deposit of his scholarship funds--until
he had registered with the local police and obtained his residency visa.

They knew all about him in order for him to get money in to Germany.

Think about how easy it is to open a bank account in the US.

(or Pakistani, which might be said to be the ethnic group which has been mainly responsible for British attacks or attempted attacks).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Germany#Migrant_background_and_foreign_nationality

Arabic: 0.6%
Other South/SE Asian (which included Thai, Indian and Pakistani): 0.4%

There are many with a Turkish or Kurd background, but they have not been particularly involved in terrorism.

Germany Arrests Algerian Suspected of Planning Terrorist Attack

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/05/world/europe/germany-raids-isis.html

Paris terrorist 'planned attacks in Germany'

http://www.thelocal.de/20160322/paris-terrorist-planned-attacks-in-germany

that said, it's probably just a matter of time.

Germany needed workers after WWII, so they took in turkish guest-workers in the 1950s and 1960s. These guest-workers eventually brought their families to Germany and since then Germany has a big turkish minority.

And as modern Turkey was founded explicitly as a secular nation, turkish Islam isn't that fanatic.



IMO that's the reason: Islamic extremism has a hard time establishing itself in Germany because the muslim community there has always been pretty moderate.

(A spokesperson of the "Central Council of Muslims in Germany" said about a year ago that it will be interesting to watch how the religious landscape of Islam in Germany will change: It was dominated by turkish Muslims and now there's a huge influx of arabic Muslims.)

Both of the "loner kid shoots up his school" and the "Kosovar militant shoots up civic building" variety.

Arabic people as Brussels. I would always hear of 'my cousin/brother/friend in Germany' in passing conversation.

I was discussing this today with a young, very, very smart person. We concluded that the next wave of attacks could come as early as this weekend, and that the highest potential targets could likely be Berlin, Munich or Frankfurt; then possibly Rome, for the Easter celebration, and possibly Milan. Rome is only considered a target in this exercise for the Christian value and numbers of people for the mass.

Germany and Belgium have a lot of market trader traffic in common, and the cities are relatively close to each other. Before November, the Arabic populations traversed back and forth frequently; it's now a bit tighter due to the terrorism, but the traffic is still relatively 'normal'.

I would fear also for Amsterdam and Copenhagen, but further down the list.

If Rome isn't attacked this weekend, I would move the German cities back up to the top.

Further yet down the list is Cannes for the film festival, but I am hoping that in addition to all the private security that will be on hand, that the city is making serious advance security and protection efforts. There is a heavy duty criminal element in Marseilles, just down the road, that has a demographic with potentially serious possibilities, and with the Festival's focus on US Film stars, this isn't out of the question.

These guys are trying to make 'political' statements at this point, case in point, the targeting of American Airlines in BXL. They can't get close to Paris any longer, so they have to set their sights on what they perceive as other 'high value' targets. Whether or not they are prepared and supplied well enough is one issue, and if that supply chain has been interrupted. We can only hope....

That's my take on it. I hope, beyond all expectation and prognostication that I am completely and utterly wrong and that I look like an absolute idiot. The problem is that I'm usually right about these things, and that's kinda scary. I really really really want to be wrong.

My father in law is a retired German engineer. He worked for several years for a Saudi Arabian oil company. On Hitler's birthday, the Saudis would have a birthday party that my FIL had to attend.