Conservatives, Liberals and Danes

Submitted by Dave (United States), Oct 28, 2022 at 21:18

Here are some views in regard to cultural identity.
Superficially, the Conservative vs Liberal views:
This is the most obvious. Conservatives understand and value the desire of people to be with those with whom they share things in common, or, to put it in the vernacular, to be with their own kind. They reject the idea that this means that they are racist, and it's in fact not racism, since it does not necessarily imply that others are inferior. Nevertheless, liberals and leftists are uncomfortable with this basic manifestation of human nature, which they often denounce as racist. Just as Socialism seeks to erase greed, the open-borders crowd wars against the natural human impulse for cultural familiarity.
It's no accident that conservatives are more sympathetic to Israel, a state defined by an ethnic-religious paradigm with a strict immigration policy. Leftists really dislike that whole concept and sometimes accuse Israel of apartheid, which is nonsense, but these attitudes are consistent with each faction's philosophy.
In sum, the Left really would like everyone together in a hot tub, holding hands and singing Kumbaya. Conservatives want to put up an electrified fence to keep the riffraff out.
The Islamic challenge:
Immigration from Islamic countries challenges some basic liberal assumptions. While Muslim immigrants may provide diversity and come from societies previously under colonial rule, they often themselves carry very illiberal ideas about women, gays, free speech and members of other religions, especially Jews. In the West, many of these views would be considered unacceptably far right, but that reality tends to be masked by outward appearances.
Credit liberal Danes for seeing through the mask. I'm not surprised by this change of heart by the mainstream parties in Denmark. Denmark truly is liberal in the finest sense of the word: In its tolerance, humanity and love of freedom. Denmark stood heroically against the Nazis in World War II and, with great sacrifice, saved their Jewish minority (including some of my relatives).
Danes may not explicitly express their disdain or wariness of Islamic culture, but it's hardly surprising that these champions of human rights would balk in the face of such reactionary attitudes of many of the Muslim immigrants. It's a hard choice for a soft-hearted people, but their national survival may depend on it.

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