»Phil.Cologne« | Political information report on Sloterdijk

Dear Comrade XY,

Regarding the question of whether Comrade Sloterdijk is a true communist, as Comrade Žižek claims (“A communist at heart”), after attending the Cologne event “Garden or Engine Room of Humanity? – The Future of Education in the Digital Age,” which took place as part of the “Phil.Cologne,” I come to the following conclusions:

1. There is currently no doubt about Gen. Sloterdijk's impeccable Marxist convictions. I firmly refute the class enemy's propaganda that presents him as one of their own. Of course, Gen. Sloterdijk has repeatedly thrown up a few smoke bombs by criticizing socialism (but who among us doesn't do that now and then?) and praising the FDP . His rejection of the French Revolution and the work of Gen. Georg Lukács can also be safely justified as an attempt to gain respect from the class enemy.

2. At the event in question last Friday at the "Balloni" halls in Cologne-Ehrenfeld, I counted four Marx quotations in the first ten minutes, and more were added. Heidegger was cited less frequently, Augustine even less frequently. Carl Schmitt and Ernst Jünger, on the other hand, were not cited at all.

3. In response to Cai Werntgen's question on the podium as to whether saving democracy was no longer possible, Gen. Sloterdijk replied that the inhabitants of Western states had long since been "Putinized." Westerners were becoming "autocratic, not only in the Kremlin," and no longer wanted to be told what to do (see the protests against the anti-coronavirus measures). Rather, all these petty everyday autocrats only communicated "from Kremlin to Kremlin or from SUV to SUV." In contrast, according to Sloterdijk, humanity has always meant permeability—a life outside the fortress must be relearned. In this context, "the figure of the teacher" (by which he naturally meant Gen. Lenin) played a significant role: In times when the teacher no longer knew "how hard to take action," education disappeared in favor of mere gardening.

4. This was followed by a plea for collectivism: We humans are in truth "not citizens or individuals," but rather need each other and are therefore "actually magnets" that constantly emit attractors. We want to become one with our other Platonic sphere and constantly realize that individuality is virtually impossible. The question, according to Sloterdijk, is how we can please ourselves without becoming complacent or narcissistic.

5. Communism—we must grant such a chameleon-like comrade of global renown that much leeway—is what Sloterdijk calls "co-immunism." His ideological steadfastness is particularly evident with regard to the socialist product of labor. He repeatedly advocated for a strong proletariat ("Against the demonization of high achievers") and supported Gen. Ulbricht's New Economic System ("If the idea of ​​achievement is lost, that is also a sign of decadence").

6. For Sloterdijk, in the face of digital catastrophe, the thinker's only option is to escape into the world of space—including temporal space. Looking back over the centuries, China's rise to a digital world power is merely revenge for the Opium Wars of European imperialism against China in the 19th century. Back then, one in ten Chinese people became addicted to opium; today, the Chinese are making us addicted to cell phones. So, when it comes to anti-imperialism and a relaxed relationship with China, Sloterdijk is a sure bet.

7. Unfortunately, both interlocutors defined the concept of the digital too one-sidedly, as is common today: "The soul as a habitable entity" (Sloterdijk), for example, is different on social media than it is in a computer shooting game. Not everything that has to do with a screen can be reduced to the term "digital." Nevertheless, the general is of course right in not seeing the digital world as a habitat for the universally developed, unalienated socialist human being. "Thinking in the big picture" is simply different from thinking in the small cyberspaces.

8. Conclusion: I advise against making things too difficult for General Sloterdijk on our part. He largely discussed the matter without platitudes and avoided commonplaces. His knowledge of Marx is above that of the average member of the Left Party. I propose that General Sloterdijk be definitively removed from the list of suspects and that he be awarded a fitting prize for his socialist services, such as the Golden GDR Banana for exceptional performers.

With socialist greetings and Red Front,

M.G.