The American Mind

Nationalism and self-preservation

William Hillman

(1/2019) The Gilets Jaunes uprising in France is about more than just a gas tax revolt. It is the result of failed socialism and globalism that elitism have forced on unwilling populations. It’s true that citizens will put up with a government that takes care of them, but the middle classes have their limits. And nationalism is a strong force.

For those that do not remember, the fall of the Soviet empire was a time of great rejoice and hope. "It is a time for the rise of a new world order" – George H.W. Bush

In the late 1980’s as the Iron Curtain was falling, I had the pleasure of meeting and carrying on correspondence with the Chair of Economics at the University of Budapest. He wrote about the coming wars in Western Europe and the Middle East. I remember one letter I sent him challenging this prediction. How could countries who have suffered so long and are predominately Christian, suddenly turn on themselves? His answer was along the lines of, "Your question shows your naVveté, youth, and idealism. Nationalism and tribalism are very powerful forces that exceed the bounds of religions. Time has not healed those old wounds, some of which go back centuries." He told me those new lines dividing up Europe will never stand. As soon as these nations are freed from the Soviet bloc, they will turn back to their old struggles. He warned me of a time to come of great skirmishes. History proved him right.

Those who argue that nationalism is, xenophobic, are racist is denying reality. Nationalism is very powerful, more powerful than religion, and far more powerful than globalist idealism. The bonds of neighbors and community that form the core of nationalism are a natural defense mechanism against tyranny and consolidation of power. (Yes, sometimes, like biological antibodies, nationalism has its problems).

Throughout history the ruling classes have attempted to unify Europe. Greeks, Romans, Hapsburgs, and Germans all have failed. The latest attempt has been the European Union. And now the EU is showing signs of failing under the weight nationalism.

What we see in Belgium, Poland, the Czech Republic, England, Hungary, Sweden, and in grand style France, is a rejection of the EU and Globalists’ expansion of power and control. Mass immigration is an attempt to dilute and ultimately destroy the political power of the middle classes that have those undesirable nationalist tendencies. Immigration must be done in large scale so there is no chance the immigrants will assimilate into the middle classes. This is about replacement.

The problem is the cost. Importing and caring for a large immigration influx with little to no skills, a different language, and expectations of "free stuff" is not cheap. Who will pay for it? That is where the arrogance of the ruling elite fails itself. Their answer was to tax the middle classes to pay for their own replacement. Things are not going as planned.

Prime Minister of Belgian Michel, who took office in 2014, lost the backing of the New Flemish Alliance over his support for the UN Migration Pact. His resignation came two days after demonstrations against the pact in central Brussels descended into scuffles, with police being forced to use tear gas and water cannons to restore order.

Hungary, Poland, and the Czech Republic have moved back to nationalism, building barriers and increasing protection for their own workers and citizens. This has led to EU protests and, in some cases, economic sanctions of these countries. President Andrzej Duda called the EU an "imaginary union from which Poles derive few benefits."

In November, Switzerland’s voters rejected a referendum proposal from nationalists for isolationism. Isolationism is an extreme of nationalism. The vast majority of nationalist have no interests in isolationism. Confusing the two is dangerous. The leadership in Switzerland who took this as a "green light" to increase government ties with the EU is discovering the wrath of the people.

Britain gave the EU its biggest black eye with Brexit. The ruling class has tried to wiggle and shame its way out of the deal, but the middle class, whose towns and jobs have been destroyed by open immigration, will have none of this backing down.

A quick note about Ireland. Poor Ireland. After centuries of suppression under the thumb of foreign empires, it is approaching the centennial of its independence. Sadly, it will not see another. Earlier this year, Prime Minister Leo Vardakas revealed his 2040 plan to reshape Ireland. For those of you, like myself, who love the quaint, rural towns in Ireland with one or two pubs and overflowing with character, charm, and Irish life, visit while you can. The 2040 plan calls for spreading the "new" Irish population around the island by rebuilding and expanding all those outdated town centers. The plan calls for importing more than one million into a country of 6 million. These new immigrants have no culture connection to Ireland.

"No deal," writes Michael Copeland, of the online magazine "Gates of Vienna", "This is Population Replacement — you know, otherwise called Ethnic Cleansing. The mass migration will be of a million foreigners, such as from Africa, the Middle East, Pakistan and Afghanistan. They will very likely be illiterate, and not speak English or have employable qualifications. If the UN, who chooses who will migrate, has anything to do with it, the new arrivals will be mostly Muslim. They will not swiftly join the productive workforce.

"The luckless taxpayers of recently bankrupt Eire, Bank of Ireland, will have to pay not only to be colonized by their replacements but to maintain these cleansers for years and years on welfare. At the same time, they will be browbeaten to permit polygamy, child marriage, genital mutilation, and niqab oppression on the spurious grounds of ‘religious tolerance.’"

Then we have the French, who are not taking the destruction of their middle class lying down. They are known as the "Yellow Jackets", or, les deplorables. The Blogger, Rex, summed it up in his article published in the online magazine QuodVerum—"It’s a powerful totem for the French deplorables, a unifying symbol of ordinary, working class folk across the nation. And they are in a state of fury at a ruling class who not only let the population suffer, while enjoying a life of luxury and wealth, but who also blame ordinary people for their own suffering."

What makes the Yellow Jackets’ protests unique? Their main gripe? Elites blaming ordinary people for problems that the same elites have caused; elites never being held accountable for their incompetence; and elites never having to experience the conditions, that their failed ideas cause.

French people are sick of being held in chains by a ruling class. They are sick of being poor and unemployed. They want a new direction, for their beloved nation. Sound familiar?

Mr. President, for the love of your people, hold firm on the wall!