Posted under Europe
American liberals have long identified Europe as a sort of left-wing utopia. More so than the United States, European countries have experimented with various forms of socialism, but these implementations were largely in small, homogenous countries – the only environment where socialism has ever “worked.” As Christopher Caldwell has pointed out:
Alberto Alesina and Edward Glaeser, the Harvard economists, have shown that roughly half of Americans’ antipathy towards European-style socialism can be accounted for by the ethnic diversity of the United States. This view is given support by the recent work of Robert Putnam, the sociologist, who finds that people living under conditions of diversity “hunker down”. They trust their neighbours less – even neighbours of their own kind. They are less philanthropic, less social and less inclined to pay taxes.
Thus, when liberals look at Europe close up, past the thin veneer of socialist programs, their enthusiasm wanes. Matthew Yglesias, having just returned from Europe, today writes:
And I think there’s also often a kind of image of Europe as a place where more of the progressive agenda has been achieved than in the USA. But I think that you’ll find if you look at Europe through the eyes of the liberal agenda that while the German left has certainly been more successful than the American left at securing universal health care, it’s been much less successful at promoting a tolerant, integrated, multicultural society. And allowing for the errors implicit in making any kind of sweeping generalization, I’d say that’s pretty generally the case across Europe. This Swiss People’s Party campaign poster would, I think, make Jesse Helms blush. And I’m not even sure which of the Northern League posters from Italy is the most egregious.
Europeans have deeper blood and soil roots than most Americans. They have real nations, in the sense of the Latin natio, implying link by blood. I predict that in the near future we shall witness more promising right-wing movements in Europe than in the U.S. And it’s going to be real shocker for American liberals.
Filmer on 21 Oct 2009 at 6:24 pm #
“while the German left has certainly been more successful than the American left at securing universal health care, it’s been much less successful at promoting a tolerant, integrated, multicultural society.”
The Cultural Marxists show their true colors. Who cares about feeding the hungry or treating the sick? What they are all about is getting white people to voluntarily displace and disenfranchise themselves and be happy doing it. Refer to the Lawrence Auster post below.
Patroon on 21 Oct 2009 at 7:52 pm #
Good article, good points made. Perhaps we can create some “Little Europes” in our “forgotten corners” of the nation of people who simply make the choice to say, I wish to live in a like-minded community and not have it become a crime. If some wish to live amongst diversity or prefer it, that’s fine too. No sin there either.
Polprav on 23 Oct 2009 at 6:15 am #
Hello from Russia!
Can I quote a post in your blog with the link to you?
Attack the System » Blog Archive » Updated News Digest October 25, 2009 on 24 Oct 2009 at 2:43 pm #
[...] Right-Wing Europe by Bede [...]
Race in America and Europe | America at War on 02 Nov 2009 at 6:06 pm #
[...] (by James Baldwin) The White City Denmark is the world’s happiest country – official Right-Wing Europe If it didn’t suck to be poor: why Europe is different Wie deutsch soll s denn sein? (in German) [...]
Thomas on 06 Nov 2009 at 9:17 am #
Very good point. Although the Left in Europe is being slowly Americanised (and is the source of much of its electoral woes), still in many parts of the continent the Left focuses on issues of class, finance, ownership, public services, war, imperialism, etc., not on gay sex and unlimited immigration.
That said, the feminism up here in Scandinavia can approach that witnessed only at American universities.
Treason Lobby Pushes (again) for Amnesty | Conservative Heritage Times on 18 Mar 2010 at 9:17 pm #
[...] who’ll promise more handouts. But we’ll not end up with a semi-functional European socialist nation of the 1960s, because our shrinking and disproportionate tax base will not allow it. We’ll [...]
jon w on 18 Jun 2010 at 6:27 pm #
i want to move to europe because i am european and want to live with other europeans and not thes spineless liberals in the us just look at ther president n”><:r