The piece examines the AfD’s gains in Saxony-Anhalt after the September 2026 state election, where it won 44 percent of the vote and 39 of 83 seats. The author argues that the result gives the far-right party a route to influence well beyond its vote share: with the BSW’s support, AfD deputy Tobias Rausch became parliamentary speaker, and the BSW is expected to back regional leader Ulrich Siegmund as state premier. The author presents control of the speakership as an initial step toward weakening democratic institutions and advancing the party’s “remigration” agenda. The AfD parliamentary group is also sharply male, with only two women among its 39 members.
Much of the piece profiles deputies and their alleged extremist ties, misconduct, and personal scandals. Siegmund is linked to the banned neo-Nazi youth group HDJ and the “Wannsee 2.0” deportation meeting, and faces nepotism allegations involving his father. Rausch is described as having a record of theft, false credentials, and involvement in job-swapping allegations. Other figures are associated with racist conspiracy theories, pro-Putin politics, neo-Nazi networks, antisemitism, paramilitary activity, and Nazi songs. The author also depicts the party as a “community of looters,” citing claims of fake jobs for relatives and associates, misuse of public funds, and taxpayer-funded travel. Together, these examples support the central argument that electoral success has brought extremists and self-interested operators closer to power.
Summary generated by AI from the linked article. hn.today is not affiliated with Hacker News or Y Combinator.
Developer Mister_Grave has released Alien 3 CD32 Edition, a major overhaul of the 1993 Amiga game. Its rebuilt engine uses the CD32’s AGA hardware to improve graphics, sound, and performance while bringing in features from the Mega Drive version. (handheldhideout.neocities.org)
Meta planned to discredit a prominent social-media critic and restricted internal research into youth mental health, according to newly released court documents. The author argues that the company’s efforts to shape scientific debate echo tactics used by tobacco and fossil-fuel industries. (cailinoconnor.substack.com)
EA reportedly asked BioWare to remove an LGBTQ flag from the canceled game Mass Effect Universe. A former employee said EA’s new management opposed the studio’s inclusive content. (polygon.com)
Elizabeth Holmes and Donald Trump both use constant visibility and claims of radical transparency to create an illusion of openness while shaping reality to their advantage. The documentary about Holmes frames her carefully managed vulnerability as a familiar form of celebrity victimhood. (theatlantic.com)
Thirty California billionaires spent $293 million - about 0.07% of their wealth - to defeat a proposed one-time 5% wealth tax expected to raise at least $107 billion. The satirical piece frames their campaign spending as a seventyfold return and mocks the political influence it buys. (dsrupt.news)
A Kentucky man received a religious exemption from using AI, described as the first such exemption granted to a humanist. The exemption treats his humanist beliefs as grounds for opting out of AI use. (religionnews.com)
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