Austria’s Health Minister Rudolf Anschober (Greens) is leaving office. His successor will be the doctor Wolfgang Mueckstein. Ansсhober justified his departure by saying that last week, due to overwork at work, he had a vascular collapse for the second time. “I realized that it was time to put on the brakes,” the 60-year-old minister said publicly. Observers see his resignation as a worrying sign.
Online hate drives people crazy
The general denigration of the culture of the political dispute has made the work of current politicians incredibly difficult, ” Der Standard notes:
“With his departure, that is, showing at first glance weakness, Rudolf Anshober actually proved his strength. … Ansсhober just reached the handle, and the level of rudeness that everyday communication has reached in social networks, probably played a much greater role here than the usual barbs that one politician can afford to address another. If a member of the government, who is working hard to overcome the pandemic, needs police protection, then this clearly illustrates how perverse what was previously called a political or socio-political ‘polemic’ between the various camps has now turned out to be.”
Burnout syndrome
According to the Sгddeutsche Zeitung, this resignation is doubly remarkable:
“Rudolf Anschober, who a few years ago was already on sick leave due to burnout syndrome, with his honesty helps to remove the stigma of illness and fatigue in politics – or rather, arising from working in politics. Too little is said about the fact that the burden faced by those working in public positions is simply enormous, and the respect of society for those who are able to make personal sacrifices is very rare. The Minister also reported threats of physical violence: all the anger of opponents of the quarantine policy fell on him. The crisis presents us with very difficult tasks, and everyone makes mistakes – including Ansсhober. But hatred, instead of constructive criticism, destroys people, and ultimately, the entire society.”
