A Clash of Western Civilizations

2015. október 20. 08:48

On one side are politicians like Angela Merkel, Jean-Claude Juncker, Barack Obama and Pope Francis. On the other are Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orbán, Marine Le Pen, Donald Trump, Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu.

2015. október 20. 08:48
Diana Pinto

"Images from the refugee crisis in Europe have juxtaposed smiling crowds in Vienna and Munich with grim, unwelcoming faces in Budapest. The result has been a surge of commentary about the “two Europes” – one welcoming, one forbidding. The truth is that disagreements over whether countries should take in refugees are hardly unique to Europe. The contrast on display is symptomatic of a deep rift within the Western world.

The divide cuts across the United States, the European Union, and Israel – and, equally important, across Jewish and Christian communities. On one side are politicians like German Chancellor Angela Merkel, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, US President Barack Obama, former Israeli Welfare and Social Services Minister Isaac Herzog, and religious figures like Pope Francis. On the other are Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orbán, French nationalist politician Marine Le Pen, US Republican Presidential Candidate Donald Trump, Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu, the Cardinal of Hungary, Péter Erdő, and legions of other Eastern European clergy.

Each of the camps shares a fundamental outlook on the role refugees play in society. The first group consists of those who consider democratic values to be more important than ethnic or national identities. In their view, anyone who abides by a country’s laws can become a full-fledged citizen and contribute to the vitality of his or her adopted country.

According to this view, inclusion of “the other” – people from different countries and cultures – does not destroy national identity; it enriches it with new ideas and behaviors. Proponents of such cross-fertilization point to outsiders or their descendants who have attained high positions in their adopted countries: a Latino member of the US Supreme Court, German constitutional lawyers of Turkish origin, French prefects whose parents and grandparents arrived from North Africa, British lords and baronesses with roots in Africa and the Caribbean, and Italian writers of Indian descent. (...)

On the other side of the divide are those who fear the other as a threat to national identity. Their gut-level response is to build fences and walls, as long and as tall as possible, whether on the border between Mexico and the US, on Israel’s border with Egypt, or on Hungary’s border with Serbia (or even with fellow EU member Croatia). It is no coincidence that Hungarian and Bulgarian policymakers have turned to Israeli companies to seek technical advice on how to build their fences."

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kulalak
2016. december 29. 02:52
Riley @ Yahoo.com "Everyone calls us Australians hard hearted because we never allow illegals to ever set foot on our soil, we give them two choices. Food, water and petrol to turn their boat back and return back whereever the hell they came from, or they can choose go to Manus Island or Nauru. 9/10 times they choose option one. They closed down Christmas Island to refugees and it has become the New Alcatraz for deporting all duel citizens who are a threat to our nation and citizens, as well duel citizens who criminally repeat offend. Once they get sent to Christmas Island they immediately loose their Australian citizenship and once they served their sentence on their release they are immediately deported to whatever nation they or parents came to Australia from. Also if anyone joins ISIS they loose their Australian citizenship and are never allowed to return back to Australia. Our Australian migration requirements are just as high as Japans. We aren't heartless we are taking in genuine Syrian Refugees who are registered at the UN camp. That fully have their identification papers, can speak, read and write in English, no heath issues, no criminal records, who are professionals, skilled or semi skilled for employment that are non religious or Christian. They are are only being issued temporary working visas until they can return back home to Syria. If they give birth to child while in Australia the child won't receive Australian citizenship to be an anchor baby. As well they will be located only into country towns that need workers in all employment industries not capitol or major city's. Most all refugee in the UN camps are doctors, nurses, dentists, bakers, chefs, opticians aged and child care workers, teachers etc they are the ones we are taking in. Not the illegal undocumented ones paying people smugglers to legally go into Europe and into West European nations."
Box Hill
2016. március 26. 14:37
If you remember history correctly, dear Diana Pinto, Hungary has been severly punished for beeng multi-national, due to immigration.
ciseaux
2015. november 30. 22:10
If Diana Pinto doesn't realise that Islam is the single most dangerous treat on her very existence, it is beyond pointless to even argue with her on her misguided and over simplified views of the ailments of Western civilisation. Pinto, as our very own Agnes Heller are both Jewish, they are both socialized on zionist and cryptocommunistic ideologies, they both live in Paris, and they are equally blind to reality. They are what is commonly called "liberals". Idiots.
kulalak
2015. november 30. 21:51
"The risk of a few bad apples (Mexican drug dealers, Islamic terrorists, economic migrants, or those wishing to cash in on welfare systems)" FEW BAD APPLES? Again, trying to individualize the migrant crowd to attenuate the rejection. And yet, they commit their acts in groups with no faces. "rights of asylum-seekers" - in neighbouring countries but not a continent away. Bottom line: Noone has a right to force countries to accept anybody if said country refuses them.
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