Saturday, July 30, 2011

Night in the Face of Daybreak

To wrap up Poetry Day, for a change of pace here is an excerpt from a poem by the 19th-century German romantic poet Theodore Fontane. The original German is followed by a translation of the same lines by our Austrian correspondent Elisabeth Sabaditsch-Wolff.

Consider this a protest against al the lies that are flying around the MSM and internet these days about what we do, and what we say, and what we stand for:

Ich glaube an die Wahrheit.
Sie zu suchen, nach ihr zu forschen in und um uns, muß unser
            höchstes Ziel sein. Damit dienen wir vor allem dem Gestern
            und dem Heute.
Ohne Wahrheit gibt es keine Sicherheit und keinen Bestand.
Fürchtet es nicht, wenn die ganze Meute aufschreit. Denn nichts ist
            auf dieser Welt so gehaßt und gefürchtet wie die Wahrheit.
Letzten Endes wird jeder Widerstand gegen die Wahrheit
            zusammenbrechen wie die Nacht vor dem Tag.

I believe in truth.
To look for her, to search for her within us and around us
            must be our highest purpose. In that, we serve
            first and foremost yesterday and today.
Without truth there is no security and no continuity.
Be not afraid when the pack starts to scream and shout.
            For nothing in this world is more hated and feared
            than the truth.
Nevertheless, at the end of the day, any opposition to the truth
            will crumble like the night in the face of daybreak.