re: #285 William Lewis

Sigh… How it can be.

bbc.co.uk

Thing is, over here in Europe most countries are still basically ethnostates. I personally believe it’s the same reason that the US could pass a New Deal last century: the benefits go to people that look like themselves. Once other ethnic groups start getting benefits, the pushback begins.

Sweden has Somali and Syrian minorities, basically from refugees. You started to see the kind of resistance to benefits, and to more immigration, once that got on people’s radar. There have been new laws limiting benefits for certain classes of immigrants, and a marked decrease in the popular approval for equal benefits. Denmark’s been really shocking about this if you’re not familiar with European politics.

So, I’ve been telling Europeans, tactfully, not to feel superior to the United States over benefit and minority issues, because the US is way ahead of them when it comes to ethnic diversity. Take these American struggles and crises as warnings for what Europe will increasingly face with a more and more diverse population, not a smug reminder of their own greater wisdom.