Victor Davis Hanson—Europe’s Riots Shake the World

Victor Davis Hanson—Europe’s Riots

VICTOR DAVIS HANSON-EUROPE’S RIOTS. “In the news right now, they have rioting in France, rioting in Belgium, rioting in Italy. Even rioting in Albania with other countries experiencing threats to riot. Do these people consist of students angry at their subpar classrooms? Or of socialists driving the unrest with hostile immigrants? Obviously, the latter.”

So begins podcaster Victor Davis Hanson’s penetrating analysis of Europe’s massive failures. I know of no one else with such depth and breadth in his political worldview. Though not an overt Christian, he shows himself Christian-friendly in his advocacy of western values. I’m devoting two articles to this trimmed and streamlined version of his recent podcast. But you can see the whole thing at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=97XqS6hBol8. Called “The Consequences of Europe’s Failed Assimilation,” it has much relevance to our midterm votes. Here’s how the first half goes:

The left created this problem. The centrists or independents or the right approve of immigration with a qualifier. They insist that immigration be legal and diverse from all over the world. Not just from Asia or Africa or south of the border. They insist it be measured. Not a million, two million, three million a year. But in the thousands.

Also, they insist that the thousands acculturate, assimilate and integrate. If not, they bring their own culture into the West, and the West becomes non-West. And the critics of the left insist that immigration be meritocratic. Because we can’t accommodate everybody. We can have a few for refugees. We can have a few from family reconciliation. And we can have a few people that have outstanding talent. But we have to have the majority speaking the native language and willing to acculturate. And most importantly to have self-supporting skills so they don’t burden the social welfare system.

See below how to pray about this

That’s not happening in Europe right now. The historic loge town hall in Limoges, France has burned down. It’s toppling. If you go to Marseilles, you often see the historic statue of Marion, the symbol of France. It’s been defaced and is threatened with destruction. At Lyon, they destroyed the 175-year-old town hall.

So what is what is driving this coalition? Well, we have a very strange phenomenon happening in Western countries. Over the last two decades especially about 15% up to 20% consist of first generation immigrants from outside Europe. Most come from the Middle East, Asia or Africa.

They come at a time when the West does not value its culture and civilization. So the state does not try to assimilate, to acculturate, or to integrate. Or to teach people about Greece and Rome or the medieval period or the Renaissance or Enlightenment. Or the founding fathers here in the United States or Volltaire or Shakespeare or Plato, none of that.

People are coming here because they have rejected with their feet their own culture. Yet they receive praise as if their failed cultures which drove them out are superior. Therefore they can retain their own cultural identity within a western nation. With the caveat that they get western security and western freedom. And they can have western economic prosperity that they didn’t have in their own countries.

Socialist-Islamicist alliance

We can’t sustain this new alliance between socialist immigrants and Islamicists. We’re seeing it in the US as well. We see all of these candidates running for Congress, for state office, for Senate, for mayor of New York. And they have nothing good to say about the United States. They have a lot of good to say about countries from which they came. And to which they under no circumstances want to go back.

That makes for geostrategic implications. We are becoming estranged from Europe. And Europe is becoming estrange from Europe. Prime Minister Meloni in Italy called French president Macron responsible for opening Europe’s borders.

European countries now have 15 to 20 to 25% first generation immigrants. And unlike past immigration waves, the second generation is not acculturating very well. In Canada, they have 45% first and second. In Australia, they have nearly 50%. And across Europe, it averages about 25 to 35% of the entire population as first or second generation.

The West can’t sustain it. The welfare cost for northern and western European nations consists of about 40% of their entire budget. That cost consumes over 30% in many countries of their total GDP. They give that money to people unable to support themselves in this socialist utopia.

And that fuels the resentment of the taxpayer. The more you give someone the more they interpret that as weakness to exploit. Not as magnanimity to be reciprocated in kindness.

Tune into the alarming conclusion in the next installment of this warning.

PRAY WITH US about Victor Davis Hanson-Europe’s riots

Father God, we exalt You and Your sure Word at a time when fiery words and acts gain attention. Many fear that Western civilization is falling with its falling buildings. And they fear that Islamicism will begin to prevail as it has prevailed in much of Asia and Africa. There it has dominated countries for 1400 years.

But to You a thousand years is as a day, and a day as a thousand years. And You can change the whole direction of these developments in a day. So we pray You ignite Your own movement and spread it, day after day. Turn fear to faith, hopelessness to hope, and hatred to love. Show that the greatest of these is love, which never fails. As the old Europe fails, begin a new work for a new Europe with Your sure Word as foundation. And let Your enemies scatter as You do this new work. In Jesus’ name, amen.

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