Category: Foreign Affairs

LOL Poll

Foreign Affairs, Funny Stuff, Trumpism

Seen at Don Surber’s place, this tongue-in-cheek poll:

There are two points to be made here.  Surber points out, correctly, that Alberta ain’t Alabama.  Albertans are only conservative compared to, say, their Ontario compatriots.  Adding AB to the U.S. would give the Socialist Party two new U.S. Senators and several U.S. House seats.  This, by the way, is true of all the Canucki fiefdoms (“Fiefdoms, Kim?”  Remember that the actual political leader of Canada — albeit of the rubber-stamp variety — is King Charles III, as Surber also points out).

In the larger sense, this is also true of Cuba, Venezuela and any of our neighboring countries — they’re all frigging Commies, and we sure as hell don’t need more of them in our blessed Republic.  So, as my old friend Patterson would say, fuck that idea for a bowl of cherries.

And as much as the last suggestion (de-stating Minnesota) may seem appealing, that opens Pandora’s Box of Nastiness, because then we’d have to consider the idea of doing the same to (deep breath) California, Massachusetts, Illinois and New York.  (Also, as attractive as it may seem at first, we should forget throwing out New Mexico unless we want an actual Mexican Salient sticking into our underbelly.)

Nah.  Let’s keep all the kiddies in the house, so to speak, and just control their behavior the old-fashioned way:  by whacking their little pee-pees, politically speaking, whenever they get too obstreperous.

Funding Culture

Culture, Foreign Affairs

I don’t always agree with what John Konrad says, but on this topic he’s spot-on:

Civilization is the ability to sustain itself.  By that measure, Europe isn’t a civilization at all.  It’s a dependency with better wine.  That’s not a threat. I t’s a weather report.  Build a Navy.  Or don’t.  But stop lecturing the people who made you “better than us”.   Our “crudeness”, our “stunted liberal education”, our “ugly strip malls” are because we sacrificed our culture to support yours.

Read the whole thing, it’s worth it.  The question is, though:  how many Europeans are going to read it and wake up to its reality?

Yeah, Right

Foreign Affairs, Wars & Other Fun Games

From Russki Strongman-In-Chief:

Russian President Vladimir Putin condemned the killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei on Sunday, calling the death, which came amid strikes from Israel and the U.S., a “cynical violation” of norms.

Uh huh. Let’s talk about “cynicism” for a moment.  Lessee:

  • Murdering dozens, perhaps hundreds of political opponents and even jailing people who dare to criticized his rule:  A-OK
  • Murdering said critics and opponents even when they’re living outside Russia in places like the UK:  A-OK
  • Executing generals and other military officers who failed to conquer Ukraine in three days, as promised, taking instead over three years (and still failing):  very much A-OK

But killing the head of a terrorist state which has financed and encouraged terrorist acts all over the civilized (and not-so-civilized) world for the past half-century… well wait a minute, that’s just beyond the pale, you know.

Fuck you, Vlad, and that fucking horse you rode in on.

Just be thankful there wasn’t a rocket sent in your direction.  (It could still happen.)

High Hurdles

Foreign Affairs, Immigration

Speaking of the Swedes, I see that they’re following their Danish cousins and getting serious about immigration and citizenship:

The right-wing coalition government in Sweden has announced plans to significantly increase the threshold to obtain citizenship in the country, including a prohibition on migrants who fail to learn the native language.

The Swedish Ministry of Justice said this week that a series of new citizenship requirements will take effect by June 6th of this year. The ministry said that the measures will seek to “strengthen the importance of citizenship and increase incentives for individuals to become part of Swedish society, which also strengthens the Swedish community.”

According to the MoJ, the government will require migrants to live in the country for at least eight years to become eligible for citizenship, up from the current five-year standard.

It will also become necessary to demonstrate “self-sufficiency”, with a monthly income of around 20,000kr ($2,250).

Finally, prospective citizens will now have to demonstrate the ability to speak Swedish and knowledge of Swedish society.

All good stuff, and all quite reasonable qualifications to joining what is, after all, one of the more civilized nations of the world.

The only thing I’d add — were I a Swede at that level of power and influence — would be a limit on non-citizen residence to eight years:  in other words, if you don’t become a citizen after eight years, then out you go.  Once again, quite reasonable.

Gone Forever

Foreign Affairs, Third World

Here’s one statement from the Trump administration that’s guaranteed to get me angry:

The larger issues facing Europe include activities of the European Union and other transnational bodies that undermine political liberty and sovereignty, migration policies that are transforming the continent and creating strife, censorship of free speech and suppression of political opposition, cratering birthrates, and loss of national identities and self-confidence… if current trends continue the continent and its economic issues are “eclipsed by the real and more stark prospect of civilizational erasure.”

Back in 2004, after I returned from a trip to Paris, I posted this pic of an impromptu street concert by some students from the Sorbonne, taken in the little square just in front of the university:

The classical music was quite lovely, the musicians very accomplished.  I stood, entranced, and watched them for the entire time they played — well over an hour, as I recall.

I also remember commenting on the old website that if the Muslim theocracy and culture were ever to establish itself in France, joyful concerts of this nature would completely disappear, suppressed no doubt by some bullshit aspect of shari’a law, and a little bit of the joie de vivre  would be gone from Paris streets.

And that is precisely what the Trump administration means by “civilizational erasure”.