On the day that Sebastian Kurz was announced as the new head of the ÖVP, the now start-up entrepreneur published a post on his blog, strolz.eu, in which he outlined why, from his point of view, the Kurz system would not exist and ultimately in a “tragedy”, not only for Kurz himself and the party, but also for Austria.
The short episode was a “predictable tragedy for him personally, for the party and for our country”, wrote the former top politician recently in a Facebook post and took his blog article from the archive on the occasion.
In his opinion, the “Inferno stuck closely to the oppressive script” (see below). Strolz wrote, for example, that “IThe entire Facebook and blog post for reading:
“I personally wish Sebastian #Short all the best – especially as a father-to-be. I told him personally via SMS last week.
Even as a club chairman, he will not be able to hold his own. It couldn’t work – why, I told him several times, most recently in the summer of 2018 in a personal conversation. Before that, several times in public in Parliament, and for example in 2017 in this blog below.
The short episode is a predictable tragedy for him personally, for the party and for our # Austria.
The inferno stuck closely to the oppressive script (see below). Here is my blog post on the (then) strolz.eu website on May 14, 2017 – the day he “took over” the # ÖVP:
“Renewal, yes, but how !?
Published by Matthias Strolz May 14, 2017
Today is an important day for our country. In the evening, a political competitor will probably set the course that will mark the end of the previous logic of the Second Republic. The end of the People’s Party as a party that supports the state will come sooner than I expected.
As a citizen – and even as a competitor – I was hoping for a sustainable all-round renewal of the People’s Party. Incidentally, social democracy needs them as well. Because democracy needs vital parties and parliamentary forces. So why am I criticizing what is happening here?
Even if it will take some time before it becomes obvious: I consider the (probable) decisions of the VP leaders to be wrong – for our country, for the People’s Party and also for Kurz personally.
9 ½ entries in the #history book from 9 perspectives, why the authoritarian short approach will not work in the medium term and is bad for our country.
1) As a citizen: Because we don’t need a pocket-sized Orban in Austria.
2) As an analyst: Because he creates it as a blend of Haider 1986, Grasser 2006 & Stronach 2013. Sooner or later all three failed.
3) As an observer: Because the intrigues and underhandedness of Reinhold Mitterlehner’s bullying will fall back on Kurz.
4) As a democrat: Because parties in democracies need a minimum of internal party democracy in order to be compatible with democracy.
5) As multiple founders: Because positive togetherness in participatory organizations is created through constructive cooperation and not through blackmail.
6) As a father: Because children who blackmail their mother are trapped in destructive entanglements. They are the opposite of cut off and free.
7) As a systemic: Because the force of disdain and aggression against one’s own organization will one day be discharged to the same extent against the aggressor.
8) As an organizational developer: Because the ÖVP will be dead after the short hype. It’s a shame for Austria because it also has many historical merits.
9) As a competitor: Because Austria needed a renewed ÖVP, none was abolished. A real renewal would have potential – for coalitions, the country and the people.
9 ½: Anyone who tilts from one extreme to the other extreme in life usually lacks grounding. The switch from “decentralized-alliance” to “authoritarian-centralistic” is an open-heart operation People’s party, carried out with a hammer and kitchen knife.
Nevertheless, I wish the ÖVP and Kurz all the best. For Austria I hope I may be wrong. Because otherwise the damage to the country will be great.
In any case, Sebastian Kurz became a politician today. That changes the game tremendously for him. I respect his determination, even if I consider his methods to be incorrect and his demeanor and approach to be incorrect. If he seriously and honestly wanted to start a new political movement, he must step out of the party. So he will – even if the hype will be great at the beginning – pretty much demolish a pillar of the Second Republic without anything sustainable after his departure.
Kurz will certainly have a different view of things here personally. As a competitor, I am looking forward to a critical discussion in the electoral arena. Hopefully in a fair struggle for the best ideas and solutions for our country. “
