The Heinkel Coup: How to Silence a Spark Plug

So nolw it´s official: I`am being expelled. Last weekend, the board and supervisory council of the Heinkel Club met behind closed doors – and without so much as a phone call or conversation, they sent me a brisk email informing me of their decision: I’m out.

No mediation.
No dialogue.
No interest in de-escalation.

Why? Because I dared to speak up.
Because I asked uncomfortable questions.
Because I founded a website – treffpunkt-heinkel.de – to give visibility to regional Heinkel groups, many of which are the real backbone of the community, but receive little to no presence on the official site.

Because I created space for open discussion.
Because I criticized with humor.
Because I value democracy – even within a vintage scooter club.

Let’s be clear: This is not about a website.
It’s about control vs. cooperation.
About obedience vs. opinion.
About whether a club wants engagement – or just quiet submission.

“But he’s just stirring up trouble!” some say.
To them I reply:
It’s not about causing unrest – it’s about defending a culture of dialogue against a climate of fear.

🔧 A bit of history…

The project treffpunkt-heinkel.de didn’t emerge overnight.
It grew out of the long-standing, peacefully tolerated group “Heinkel Club Bonn/Rhein-Sieg” and the more recent initiative “Heinkel-Freunde Rheinland” – both created without explicit blessing from the club’s “chief of order”. That alone was seen as a provocation.

But instead of embracing grassroots engagement, the club’s leadership saw competition. And where others saw a bridge, they saw a threat.

I even offered cooperation long before launching the website – suggesting we integrate such a regional platform into the club’s official site.
Rejected.

Later, I offered to shut the site down immediately if the club committed to creating a comparable tool.
Not to save my own skin – but to preserve harmony.
Still rejected.

🗳️ So what happens now?

The matter isn’t closed.
According to the club’s statutes, the members themselves can decide whether my exclusion is justified – at the next general assembly.

That means:
You decide whether I stay or go.

I call on everyone who believes in:

• 🗣️ Free expression
• 🤝 Constructive criticism
• 🔍 Transparency
• 🔧 An open club culture

👉 Join the next members’ meeting.
Let’s make this a real discussion – not a backroom verdict.

Because clubs should build community,
not compliance.