It’s that time of year again, wherein people flock to Munich where the men put on leather shorts and lederhosen, and the women, dirndls, to celebrate one of Germany’s greatest traditions – Oktoberfest.
But this year it’s a little different. Oh, the beer will still flow freely, and there will be ample supplies of wiener schnitzel and sausages, and cries of “Zicke zacke, zicke zacke, hoi hoi hoi!” will still echo across the venue. The polka bands will still play, and inebriated partyers will still attempt to dance.
But this year, attacks by Islamist nutbags are prompting heightened security for the annual beer-drinking festival. Can these savages leave nothing alone?
Munich’s Oktoberfest, the world’s biggest beer festival, opened Saturday under heightened security following a string of attacks in Germany attributed to jihadists.
“We will make the Oktoberfest as safe as possible,” Munich mayor Dieter Reiter pledged ahead of the 189th edition of the event, which runs until October 6.
Billed as the world’s biggest folk culture festival, the Oktoberfest last year drew more than seven million visitors who consumed a total of 6.5 million litres of beer.
That’s a lot of beer. But the threat from the Islamists is real, and given their antipathy towards not only alcohol consumption but the notion that somewhere, someone might be enjoying themselves, the targeting of Oktoberfest seems likely.
The tighter police security this year comes after a spate of extremist attacks, including a deadly knife rampage in the city of Solingen last month.
Police arrested a Syrian man who had allegedly claimed allegiance to the Islamic State group ahead of the attack that killed three people and wounded eight more.
And earlier this month, Munich police shot dead a man after he opened fire on them and at the city’s Israeli consulate in what was being treated as a suspected terrorist attack.
Before anyone asks, yes, “Oktoberfest” was originally held in October, but was reportedly brought up a month to take advantage of the beautiful late-summer Bavarian weather. One should, after all, drink beer while the sun shines.
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Oktoberfest is a great old tradition, and generations of German immigrants to the New World have brought the holiday along. We once attended a great Oktoberfest celebration in Park City, Utah, in a beautiful setting that could have passed for Bavaria. We had a great time; I watched my beer intake as I was driving, but I managed to ingest a big plate of schnitzel and spaetzle, along with some sauerkraut and a few sausages. It was great fun but it was not the Munich original, a bucket-list item I have yet to check off. Now, with these kinds of threats in play, one wonders if the great German holiday will continue.
I’m guessing that protestations from Bronze Age savages or no, asking Germans to forgo Oktoberfest will be a bridge too far. One must draw a line somewhere.
On that note, in a few moments, the wife and I will head to our favorite Susitna Valley establishment for our usual Saturday lunch, during which I will consume my customary two beers – and I will raise a glass towards Munich in a salute to what will hopefully be a peaceful and fun Oktoberfest.
Ich trinke auf deine Gesundheit!
