Nina Kummer about a new roar of anger online
A while back in my column I was amazed at people and their incredible outbursts of anger when it comes to food. People insulted a vegan butcher shop and a gray biscuit in the worst possible way. I could have bet the next excitement would be created by the ground corn mold beetle or the shredded house cricket in baked goods, but I was wrong.
Of course, insects as a potential food cause incomprehension, but the much louder roar of anger was directed towards a newly opened shop in downtown Chemnitz. Why are people so angry again? Does this shop cook puppies alive? No, this store simply sells American candy and snacks.
I always thought that there was reason to be happy when young people wanted to stay in Chemnitz and build something, but the comment column on the internet saw it differently. Under a Facebook report about the reopening of the shop, bad-tempered people got excited. They complain that this place is bad for your health, that it contributes to “Americanization”, demonize “the stuff that first has to be shipped across the pond” and suspect, without ever having been there, that it doesn’t taste good anyway and is too expensive.
Again I wonder why do people freak out so quickly when it comes to food? Or is the complaining actually a problem of the internet? Is it because of Facebook? Or is it simply Chemnitz, Saxony, the East? I can’t explain it to myself with the best will in the world. But I do know that when the store opened, a line snaked through downtown and the store spat out happy-looking people. I keep scrolling the internet and find a post about a little cat that was rescued from a burning house by firefighters. The first and most liked comment under the message: “How expensive was the mission? And who paid for it? Me, the taxpayer. Anger smiley.”
I quickly close my laptop because otherwise I get in a bad mood. (kuni)