The European Union Times |
- Swiss Military Chief Orders Nation To Arm Itself Over Global War Fears
- Buchanan Predicts Dissolution of EU, Is US Next?
- 17 million people face flood threat as Missouri rivers reach record high level
- New Yorkers risk being find 250k for offending transgenders
- Indonesian couple lashed until collapse under Sharia for being seen together
- US aimed to nuke civilians during Cold War – Declassified Document
- Ex-Pentagon Chief Warns of ‘Real and Growing Danger’ of Nuclear Doom
- We Should Not Fear Muslim Extremists Just Because They Kill Us – George Soros
- Right-wing forces rise on back of worst refugee crisis since WWII
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Posted: 30 Dec 2015 02:17 PM PST
 Switzerland’s Chief of the Armed Forces, Lieutenant General André Blattmann.The “hybrid wars” feared by General Blattmann that are leading to World War III, this report notes, are being “instigated/directed” by Turkey’s “madman/insane” President Recep Tayyip Erdogan—who this week has traveled to Saudi Arabia to declare himself as the leader of the entire Islamic world (and whose followers are now calling him a “god”) in his bid to ignite a global conflict between Russia and the West—after which he, Erdogan, will be able to establish his caliphate thus resurrecting the Ottoman Empire. Curiously echoing General Blattmann’s fears, this report continues, is the elite American news organizationPolitico, who this morning published an article titled “On the brink, with Erdogan” openly questioning the Obama regime if it was going to allow Turkey’s “madman” to push US/NATO into war with Russia. Likewise, this report notes, the elite American news organization CounterPunch has begun questioning the Obama regime as to why it is even supporting Turkey in the first place by stating: “Many prefer to view Erdogan’s actions as whimsical or as contrary to the wishes of the United States or NATO. According to this narrative, Erdogan is a madman but he is acting on his own. This is a mistake. Let one who claims so answer candidly the following questions:Answering both Politico and CouterPunch’s in their questioning of the Obama regimes support of Erdogan, this report says, is the former US President Ronald Regan administration official Paul Craig Roberts—who in his article this week titled “Why World War III Is On The Horizon” states that the Obama regime (as well as past ones) labels as a “hostile power” any country sufficiently strong enough to have a foreign policy independent from Washington’s—and of which he gravely warns: “The Russian government has learned that Washington does not respect Washington’s own laws, much less international law, and that Washington cannot be trusted to keep any agreement.With the Obama regime backed Erdogan now strengthening his alliance with Saudi Arabia against Russia too, this report continues, the sheer insanity of these adversaries to the Federation appear to know no decent bounds either—and as exampled by Saudi Arabia’s slamming of Russia for this past weeks airstrike killing of the fearedwar criminal Syrian terrorist leader Zahran Alloush—who in 2013, while being openly supported by the Obama regime, vowed to slaughter all Christians, Jews, Shiite Muslims, everyone in fact, by openly stating: “The Mujahedeen of Shaam will cleanse Shaam of the Filth of Rafidis (rejecters who believe in anything other than Sunni Islam) and Rafidism; they will cleanse it for ever in sha Allah, till they will cleanse the land of Shaam of the filth of the Majoos (Fireworshippers) who fought the Religion of Allah the Almighty.As to General Blattmann’s fears of global economic chaos spreading civil unrest throughout Europe too, this report further notes, it may be nearer than anyone cares to openly admit—especially when viewed in the light that by Saudi Arabia’s flooding the world with cheap oil in order to destroy the oil industries in both Russia and the United States (two of its main competitors), it has not only created for itself a staggering $135 billion deficit, it is, also, bringing its own economy to near collapse. Likewise, this report concludes, with Saudi Arabia’s actions, combined with Western sanctions, driving the ruble to new lows, the oil and natural gas dependent Russian economy itself is now cracking under the strain leading one top Kremlin official to warn that the government has only a few months before worsening economic conditions begin to fuel social unrest. But before that happens, and as Swiss General Blattmann well knows, President Putin will destroy both Saudi Arabia and Turkey, no matter what the cost, before he allows that to happen—one can only hope that President Obama knows this fact too, or at least can read a history book. Source           |
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Posted: 30 Dec 2015 01:51 PM PST
 The European Union is seemingly heading to dissolution, unraveling along ideological, national, tribal and historic lines, US conservative commentator Patrick Buchanan observes, asking whether the multiracial and multicultural United States will face similar fate. The European Union, overloaded with an economic recession, a refugee crisis, and growing secessionism, risks falling apart at the seams, Patrick Buchanan, a prominent political commentator and syndicated columnist, warns. In his article for the American Conservative Buchanan refers to his pessimistic prognosis regarding the future of the European Union written back in 2002 and states that what was predicted 14 years ago has come to pass. “Europe is dying. There is not a single nation in all of Europe with a birth rate sufficient to keep its population alive, except Muslim Albania. In 17 European nations, there are already more burials than births, more coffins than cradles,” Buchanan wrote in 2002, drawing a gloomy picture of upcoming refugee crises, an upsurge in secessionist movements across the EU and Europe’s aging population problem. Alas, Buchanan’s dismal prognosis has seemingly come true. The columnist stresses that the tide of migrants into Germany has reached one million in 2015. Brussels’ attempts to “bribe” Ankara in order to stem the flood of asylum seekers have not yet borne any fruit: refugees still continue to flow into the EU. In response, the agenda of anti-immigrant right-wing parties has caught a second wind. “My prediction that European ‘patriots will recapture control of their national destinies,’ looks even more probable today,” the US conservative commentator notes. He points out that UK Prime Minister David Cameron and Marine Le Pen, the head of France’s anti-EU National Front are scoring political points by demanding a return of national sovereignty from the EU. The EU’s Schengen Agreement is being violated and is actually hanging in the balance amid the ongoing refugee crisis. Europe is facing an economic and cultural clash between a rich North and a less affluent South — Greece, Italy, Spain and Portugal — frustrated by constant demands of the EU northern nations for greater austerity. To complicate matters further, Islamic and Third World migrants, entering the EU at a growing pace, are not assimilating into the European community. “The enclaves of Asians in Britain, Africans and Arabs around Paris, and Turks in and around Berlin seem to be British, French, and German in name only. And some of their children are now heeding the call to jihad against the Crusaders invading Muslim lands,” the US columnist stresses. In a word, the “Mother Continent” is crumbling, being torn along ideological, national, tribal and historic lines. The question remains open whether the United States, with its decreasing white population would face similar fate, the conservative commentator notes. Source      |
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Posted: 30 Dec 2015 01:37 PM PST
 Missouri is in a state of emergency as flooding continues with record water levels expected over the coming days. 17 million people in the US are currently living in areas with flood warnings, with 400 river gauges nationwide over their flood capacity. Missouri is one of the worst affected areas with three major rivers, the Missouri, the Meramec and the Mississippi all above the flood stage. The St. Louis Office of the National Weather Service said Missouri will have “major to historic river flooding through early next week.” The Mississippi River is currently over 13 meters above the flood stage and is expected to continue to rise, peaking at what is expected to be a new record level on December 31. Sections of Interstate 44 were shut down as parts of the road became flooded. Five soldiers were killed at the weekend when the car they were in was swept into a river after driving onto a flooded roadway, according to CNN. At least 20 people in total have died in the state due to storm-related incidents. Areas along the Mississippi River have been ordered to evacuate and the National Guard has been activated in the state to assist. In the neighboring state of Illinois a prison on the Mississippi had to be partially evacuated when staff warned of minor flooding in some cells. The US is experiencing one of its worst months of weather on record, with some areas not seeing a break in rainfall for several weeks, with many pointing the finger at El Nino. The phenomenon occurs every two to seven years when a warming of the eastern Pacific leads to more frequent and intense storms. A reported 69 tornadoes touched down in the US in the month of December alone, well above the average of 24 for the month. Forty-nine people were killed in the past week in the country in storm-related deaths. Source      |
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Posted: 30 Dec 2015 01:08 PM PST
 Political correctness is officially out of control in New York City. According to brand new rules that were just issued by the New York City Commission on Human Rights, you could potentially be fined $250,000 if you purposely offend someone that is transgender. This includes such offenses as calling a transgender woman “him” when she wants to be called “her”, or not allowing a transgender woman to use the women’s bathroom. These guidelines are particularly focused on the behavior of landlords, employers and businesses, but they will undoubtedly create a chilling effect on speech all throughout New York City. Needless to say, these new regulations will result in a flood of litigation as transgender individuals exercise their new “rights”. According to the New York City Commission on Human Rights, employers must now use “an individual’s preferred name, pronoun and title” when referring to that person. And some of the pronouns that were given as examples by the Commission were only recently introduced to the English language and many people don’t even know how to pronounce them. The following comes directly from the new “guidelines”… The NYCHRL requires employers and covered entities to use an individual’s preferred name, pronoun and title(e.g., Ms./Mrs.) regardless of the individual’s sex assigned at birth, anatomy, gender, medical history, appearance, or the sex indicated on the individual’s identification. Most individuals and many transgender people use female or male pronouns and titles. Some transgender and gender non-conforming people prefer to use pronouns other than he/him/his or she/her/hers, such as they/them/theirs or ze/hir. All facilities in New York City will now also be required to allow transgender individuals to use whatever bathrooms and locker rooms they prefer. Here is more from the new “guidelines”… The NYCHRL requires that individuals be permitted to use single-sex facilities, such as bathrooms or locker rooms, and participate in single-sex programs, consistent with their gender, regardless of their sex assigned at birth, anatomy, medical history, appearance, or the sex indicated on their identification. The law does not require entities to make existing bathrooms all-gender or construct additional restrooms. Covered entities that have single-occupancy restrooms should make clear that they can be used by people of all genders. So what would stop some sick pervert from pretending to be transgender just so that he can go into the women’s locker room at the gym? Presumably nothing. You would think that New York City would have far bigger priorities to deal with than this. Right now, almost 60,000 people are sleeping in homeless shelters in New York City every night, and the homeless crisis there has gotten so bad that it is being called an “epidemic”. This is just another example of our society’s growing obsession with political correctness. And if you think that it is bad now, just wait until the next generation takes over. Our colleges and universities have become political correctness indoctrination centers. One survey found that 62 percent of our colleges and universities have implemented “speech codes” that “severely departed from First Amendment standards”, and students are going to ridiculous extremes to try to insulate themselves from any language that could possibly be considered “racist”, “sexist” or threatening. Just check out the following excerpt from a recent article about political correctness at U.S. colleges that was published by the Telegraph… The lexicon of college has changed: students now speak about “micro-aggressions”, “trigger warnings” and “safe spaces”. The notion of the “safe space” first emerged to describe a place of refuge for people exposed to racial prejudice or sexism. But the phrase has changed meaning to the point where now it often implies protection from “exposure to ideas that make one uncomfortable”, according to Nadine Strossen, a prominent law professor and former head of the American Civil Liberties Union. At Brown University – like Harvard, one of the eight elite Ivy League universities – the New York Times reported students set up a “safe space” that offered calming music, cookies, Play-Doh and a video of frolicking puppies to help students cope with a discussion on how colleges should handle sexual assault. And all over America, colleges and universities are seemingly obsessed with getting our young people to use the right words. For example, just check out what is happening at the University of Michigan… Dozens of posters plastered across the University of Michigan caution students not to say things that might hurt others’ feelings, part of a new “Inclusive Language Campaign” at the state’s flagship public university that cost $16,000 to implement. Words declared unacceptable through the campaign include “crazy,” “insane,” “retarded,” “gay,” “tranny,” “gypped,” “illegal alien,” “fag,” “ghetto” and “raghead.” Phrases such as “I want to die” and “that test raped me” are also verboten. Meanwhile, the quality of the education being served at these institutions has plummeted and millions of students are graduating each year without any real marketable skills. Most parents assume that their children are being prepared for “the real world” when they attend college, but in many cases that simply is not happening. I attended public universities here in the United States for eight years, so I know what I am talking about. Instead of learning skills and abilities that apply to the marketplace of tomorrow, our young adults are being taught all sorts of gobbledygook. The following are some real courses that have been taught at U.S. colleges in recent years… -“What If Harry Potter Is Real?” -“Lady Gaga and the Sociology of Fame” -“Philosophy And Star Trek” -“Learning From YouTube” -“How To Watch Television” But these mindless courses are actually preferable to the courses which systematically pump radical leftist propaganda into the minds our our impressionable young people. Thanks in part to our system of education, each generation of Americans has steadily become more liberal. And at this point we are already so far gone as a society that it appears that there is not much hope left for us. If you doubt this, just look at what is in the headlines. Once again this year, Barack Obama is “the most admired man” in America. He has now won that title eight times. And Hillary Clinton was once again crowned “the most admired woman” in America. She has won that title 14 years in a row, and 20 times overall. The American people love Obama and Clinton and the politically correct system that they represent. I wish I could be more optimistic about the future of our country, but at this point it is hard to see much hope. So what do you think? Is there any hope that any of this could ever be turned around? Please feel free to tell us what you think by posting a comment below… Source      |
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Posted: 30 Dec 2015 12:54 PM PST
 Hundreds of people gathered outside the mosque in Banda Aceh to watch the caning, with some spectators holding up cameras.Nur Elita was marched to the yard of Baiturrahumim Mosque in Banda Aceh for violating the region’s strict Sharia laws, after she allegedly showed affectionate behaviour to a fellow university student. Under the law men and women, who are not spouses, are not allowed to get too close due to the ‘khalwat’ offence and punishment is by public caning. After being brought to the stage as the crowd cheered, the woman was forced to kneel down while a masked man repeatedly whipped her with the cane. She received five lashes and at the end of the punishment could be seen lying on the floor doubled over in pain. Eventually she was carried off the stage, into an ambulance, and had to be taken to hospital. Also being caned was the man she was accused of getting too close to and he was forced to stand while being whipped.  The man was forced to stand as he also received five lashes to his back for breaking strict Sharia law. As well as the couple, four other men were also caned after being found gambling, which is banned under Sharia law.According to the Jakarta Post, the caning ceremony was carried out in front of the deputy mayor of Banda Aceh Zainal Arifin. And before the ceremony he warned the crowd that had gathered that the canings were a lesson to everyone. He said: ‘Take these punishements as a lesson. What has been done by these convicts should not be taken as example. ‘And I hope their canings today will be the last ever.’ Banda Aceh is the only province in Indonesia to implement Sharia Law, which was first introduced in 2003 following the province’s awarding of special autonomy status. SHARIA LAW: THE ISLAM LEGAL SYSTEM DERIVED FROM THE KORAN Sharia law is the legal system of Islam which is derived from both the Koran and the rulings of the religion’s scholars. It acts as a code that all Muslims are adhered to live to and include rules of prayers, fasting and donations to the poor and covers both public and private behaviour. Offences are divided into two categories – hadd offences, which a serious crimes with set penalties and tazir crimes, where punishment is left to the the discretion of a judge. Hadd offences include theft, which is punishable by the amputation of the offender’s hand and adultery, which can result in being stoned to death. Apostasy, or leaving the faith, is also against Sharia law and can also be punishable by death. Other offences against Sharia law include denying Mohammed, gambling, drinking alcohol and women talking to a man, who is not her husband or relative. Source      |
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Posted: 29 Dec 2015 10:00 AM PST
 A newly released Cold War-era list of nuclear targets shows the US planned to inflict “systematic destruction” on enemy cities and target the “population” of those areas. It is the most comprehensive Cold War nuclear target list to become declassified. The Strategic Air Command (SAC) Atomic Weapons Requirements Study for 1959, produced in June 1956, was published by the National Security Archive on Tuesday. Totaling almost 800 pages, the document details targets in over 1,200 cities, including Moscow, Beijing, and Warsaw. The list for each city contains details on targeting the population, along with industrial and infrastructural targets. Moscow and Leningrad were marked as priority one and two, respectively. Moscow had 179 Designated Ground Zeros (DGZs), while Leningrad had 145, in addition to “population” targets. In both cities, the list identified air power installations such as Soviet Air Force command centers, which the US would have demolished with thermonuclear weapons early in the war. The document also includes lists of more than 1,100 airfields in the Soviet bloc, with a priority number assigned to each base. The Soviet bomber force was the highest priority for nuclear testing, and the list labels Bykhov and Orsha airfields, both located in Belorussia, as priority one and two, respectively. Medium-range Badger (TU-16) bombers, which would have posed a threat to the US and NATO allies, were present at both bases. Soviet airfields were to be targeted with bombs ranging from 1.7 to 9 megatons, which were capable of inflicting heavy damage. The US also hailed the necessity of a 60-megaton bomb (4,000 times larger than the Hiroshima bomb’s 15 kilotons), which was capable of delivering “significant results” in the event of war with the Soviet bloc. The National Security Archive, based at George Washington University, obtained the nuclear target list through the Mandatory Declassification Review (MDR) process. Source      |
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Posted: 29 Dec 2015 09:44 AM PST
 Former US Defense Secretary William Perry said a terrorist attack using a nuclear bomb or improvised nuclear device could happen “any time now – next year or the year after.” Before he served as Pentagon chief under President Bill Clinton from 1994 to 1997, Perry played a central role in developing and modernizing nuclear forces throughout the Cold War. Now, he is on a mission to warn of a “real and growing danger” of the very weapons he helped develop. During the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, Perry was secretly summoned to Washington to analyze intelligence on Soviet weapons in Cuba. “Every day that I went to the analysis center I thought would be my last day on earth,” he writes in a newly published memoir, “My Journey at the Nuclear Brink.” He said he believed then and still believes that the world avoided a nuclear holocaust as much by good luck as by good management. In an interview with reporters earlier this month, Perry recounted a harrowing incident in November 1979 when, as a senior Pentagon official, he was awakened by a 3:00 AM phone call from the underground command center responsible for warning of a missile attack. The watch officer told Perry his computers were showing 200 nuclear-armed missiles on their way from the Soviet Union to the United States. “It was, of course, a false alarm,” Perry said, but it was one of many experiences throughout the Cold War and beyond that he says have given him a “unique and chilling vantage point from which to conclude that nuclear weapons no longer provide for our security — they now endanger it.” Perry thinks the US nuclear force no longer needs land-based intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) and can rely on the other two “legs” of the force – bomber aircraft and submarine-based missiles. The ICBM should be scrapped, he says, adding, “I don’t think it’s going to happen, but I think it should happen. They’re not needed” to deter nuclear aggression. He also opposes the Obama administration’s plan to build a new nuclear-capable cruise missile. Perry looks at Russia’s nuclear modernization and US plans to spend hundreds of billions to update its nuclear arsenal and sees irrational nuclear competition. “I see an imperative to stop this damn nuclear race before it gets under way again, not just for the cost but for the danger it puts all of us in,” he said. Source      |
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Posted: 29 Dec 2015 09:37 AM PST
 Far left billionaire George Soros was an early supporter of failed President Barack Obama. Soros was behind the Occupy Wall Street. Soros was behind Black Lives Matter. Soros was behind the IRS targeting scandal. Soros funds far left media operations including NPR and Media Matters. Now this… George Soros contributed an opinion piece to the far left Guardian newspaper. Soros argues the West should not fear Islamist extremists just because they kill us. Leftists seriously idolize this nut. Via Zero Hedge and The Guardian: It’s not easy to resist the threats and the hysteria that surround us, but we must do, as fear is the greatest danger to open society Open societies are always endangered. This is especially true of America and Europe today, as a result of the terrorist attacks in Paris and elsewhere, and the way that America and Europe, particularly France, have reacted to them. Jihadi terrorist groups such as Islamic State and al-Qaida have discovered the achilles heel of our western societies: the fear of death. Through horrific attacks and macabre videos, the publicists of Isis magnify this fear, leading otherwise sensible people in hitherto open societies to abandon their reason. Scientists have discovered that emotion is an essential component of human reasoning. That discovery explains why jihadi terrorism poses such a potent threat to our societies: the fear of death leads us and our leaders to think – and then behave – irrationally. Science merely confirms what experience has long shown: when we are afraid for our lives, emotions take hold of our thoughts and actions, and we find it difficult to make rational judgments. Fear activates an older, more primitive part of the brain than that which formulates and sustains the abstract values and principles of open society. The open society is thus always at risk from the threat posed by our response to fear. A generation that has inherited an open society from its parents will not understand what is required to maintain it until it has been tested and learns to keep fear from corrupting reason. Jihadi terrorism is only the latest example. The fear of nuclear war tested the last generation, and the fear of communism and fascism tested my generation. The jihadi terrorists’ ultimate goal is to convince Muslim youth worldwide that there is no alternative to terrorism. And terrorist attacks are the way to achieve that goal, because the fear of death will awaken and magnify the latent anti-Muslim sentiments in Europe and America, inducing the non-Muslim population to treat all Muslims as potential attackers. And that is exactly what is happening. The hysterical anti-Muslim reaction to terrorism is generating fear and resentment among Muslims living in Europe and America. The older generation reacts with fear, the younger one with resentment; the result is a breeding ground for potential terrorists. This is a mutually reinforcing, reflexive process. How can it be stopped and reversed? Abandoning the values and principles underlying open societies and giving in to an anti-Muslim impulse dictated by fear certainly is not the answer, though it may be difficult to resist the temptation. I experienced this personally when I watched the last Republican presidential debate; I could stop myself only by remembering that it must be irrational to follow the wishes of your enemies. To remove the danger posed by jihadi terrorism, abstract arguments are not enough; we need a strategy for defeating it. The challenge is underscored by the fact that the jihadi phenomenon has been with us for more than a generation. Indeed, gaining a proper understanding of it may be impossible. But the attempt must be made. Consider the Syrian conflict, which is the root cause of the migration problem that is posing an existential threat to the European Union as we know it. If it was resolved, the world would be in better shape. It is important to recognise that Isis is operating from a position of weakness. While it is spreading fear in the world, its hold on its home ground is weakening. The United Nations security council has unanimously adopted a resolution against it, and the leaders of Isis are aware that their days in Iraq and Syria are numbered. Of course, the outlook for Syria remains highly uncertain, and the conflict there cannot be understood or tackled in isolation. But one idea shines through crystal clear: it is an egregious mistake to do what the terrorists want us to do. That is why, as 2016 gets underway, we must reaffirm our commitment to the principles of open society and resist the siren song of the likes of Donald Trump and Ted Cruz, however hard that may be. Consider the Syrian conflict, which is the root cause of the migration problem that is posing an existential threat to the European Union as we know it. If it was resolved, the world would be in better shape. It is important to recognise that Isis is operating from a position of weakness. While it is spreading fear in the world, its hold on its home ground is weakening. The United Nations security council has unanimously adopted a resolution against it, and the leaders of Isis are aware that their days in Iraq and Syria are numbered. Of course, the outlook for Syria remains highly uncertain, and the conflict there cannot be understood or tackled in isolation. But one idea shines through crystal clear: it is an egregious mistake to do what the terrorists want us to do. That is why, as 2016 gets underway, we must reaffirm our commitment to the principles of open society and resist the siren song of the likes of Donald Trump and Ted Cruz, however hard that may be. Source      |
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Posted: 29 Dec 2015 09:22 AM PST
 Recently, three in five EU citizens told pollsters that they do not approve of migrants coming from outside the continent. With more than 1 million arriving in 12 months, rising tension is finding outlets at the ballot box and on the street. Angela Merkel’s Germany, the continent’s unspoken leader, has borne the main brunt of the inflows, while failing to persuade neighboring states to follow its lead. But, perhaps due to the historical guilt of Nazism, and a restrictive public discourse, growing anger has not yet gone mainstream. Merkel’s popularity has wavered, and her coalition partners have dismissed the open-door policy as a “grave mistake,” but she is not facing an unseating by anti-immigration forces – as yet. The anti-Islam Pegida has remained a loud and high-profile, but marginal movement, with its stronghold in Dresden, but scant presence in most major cities. Meanwhile, Alternative for Germany, formed in 2013 and one of a raft of new protest parties across Europe, has organized high-profile rallies, but suffered a debilitating internal rift over the very issue of migration half-way through the year, weakening its influence. The older National Democratic Party of Germany has also not capitalized on the migrant issue, with its Neo-Nazi-tinged past and symbols failing to appeal to most ordinary Germans. Merkel’s own cabinet has backpedaled furiously in the past several months, re-introducing border controls, putting more and more countries on black lists, and making it more difficult for migrants to secure permanent residence. Whether this will divert the people smugglers’ routes is unclear, but with over three-quarters of Germans telling EU’s Eurobarometer survey immigration was one of their two biggest concerns, Merkel had better hope she is not shuttering an empty stable. Historically, the socially-oriented Nordic states have been a prime destination for asylum seekers, with Sweden regularly receiving more applications per 100,000 of the population than any other European country, and Finland and Norway not far behind. But these are also some of the most homogeneous, cohesive societies in Europe, and the mass arrival of migrants has been highly noticeable, and has divided communities. More than 190,000 people crossed into Sweden without documents in 2015, among relatively high unemployment, an urban housing shortage, and a wave of violent and sex crimes that many attribute to recent newcomers (Swedish police are forbidden from recording the ethnicity of criminals). The anti-immigration Sweden Democrats have consistently polled in first or second place, all the while being branded “xenophobes” and “racists” by the respectable media. Each of their major demonstrations – including a gay pride march through a Muslim area in August – is followed by a counter-demonstration by radical left-wing activists, often forcing the police to break up the two. In Denmark and Finland, the electorate had a chance to vote for the anti-immigration parties at the ballot box. Both the Danish People’s Party and the Finns Party came second in their respective elections, but from then on their paths differed. Unwilling to compromise, the Danish party let a smaller right-wing party assume government, for which it is providing conditional support, while the Finnish party has become a part of the cabinet. The Finns have reason to regret the decision – as a junior coalition partner they have not been able to stem the flow of refugees, or implement their populist economic policies, and have seen their popularity tail off. With Marine Le Pen’s sights set on the Elysee Palace, the National Front’s 2016 presidential election frontrunner has bigger priorities than chasing single causes. But immigration and opposition of Islam remain fundamental tenets of her party’s appeal, with France’s two shocking terrorist attacks, both executed by Islamist extremists, adding to the party’s popularity. But the regional elections in December exposed the party’s limitations. Despite capturing first place in the first round, but not enough to take control of the councils of France’s large provinces, the party was then shut out in the second round, as its political opponents tactically voted for a compromise candidate, or withdrew one of the runners if it looked like the FN might grab a win. Still, the FN remains on the rise, and has only gained credibility throughout the year. With less fondness for political correctness, a history of Islamic occupation, and an idealization of Enlightenment-era European values, Eastern Europe has been the ideological trendsetter in the resistance to migration. Leaders that would have been in charge of protest movements in the rest of Europe are in office here, such as Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban. His forthright opposition to multiculturalism and desire to defend Hungary’s own heritage and borders saw him portrayed as an outcast of the European project. But as other countries began to experience hundreds of thousands of refugees on their soil, some began to view him as a pragmatist, and even a visionary. The biggest public protests in this region have been directed not at demonstrators’ own governments for accepting refugees, but at Berlin and Brussels for attempting to impose quotas. This is an issue that will continue to play throughout 2016, and the election of the conservative and Eurosceptic Law and Justice party in Poland in October shows that Eastern Europeans will battle for their right to sovereignty, while wanting to retain the benefits of EU membership in visa-free employment and travel. The most tangible political backlash against the arrival of refugees and migrants has not just happened at a national level, but often at a local one, particularly as hundreds or thousands of newcomers have arrived in isolated, monocultural regions. There have been more than 200 arson attacks on refugee shelters in Germany; in Sweden, the authorities made their location confidential, after citizens left threatening messages outside several temporary facilities. One of the most antagonistic and direct protests took place in Corsica, which enjoyed a turbulent Christmas of demonstrators chanting “This is our home!” and “Arabs get out” before setting fire to the Koran. While these actions are carried out by a minority of disgruntled Europeans, they reflect a pervasive unease and lack of easy integration for thousands of asylum seekers who have arrived in Europe. The partisan media reports these outbreaks either as understandable grievances boiling over, or evidence of racism, but with more migrants on the way, and no practical solutions in sight, Europe will have to get used to the hum of low-level confrontation with its migrant population, and the booming proclamations of triumph from its right-wing parties. Source     |
