. Nog extra toevallig is dat je haar op die plaats tegenkwam.Een jaar of vier geleden heb ik Adep en [...]
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During the euphoria I seem to have said that Europe could do with a politician like Barack Obama. On second thought – and after reading this cover story in one of our weeklies – I realize this is, apart from being nonsensical, also a serious error of judgment.
If he really would be our President elect, we could brace for an overkill of change. He would target some of the gems of our society . Yes, he could.
Of course he would abolish that charming relic of our feudal times, the Kingdom. He is convinced follower of the republican system. So goodbye to our gorgeous Princess Maxima. No more Queen’s day. And no longer our national squads, teams, sportsmen and sportswomen would wear the outstanding traditional orange shirts in international competitions.
But really serious would be the effect of his policies on government, social security and taxes. BO would be appalled by the 52% tax rate we have to pay for every Euro earned over € 53000 a year. He even announced, though the US rate is only 25%, a tax cut for every US citizen earning less than about € 150000. And of course he would drastically diminish both our government (still more privatization) and social security – because compared to his program ours is outrageous. But very dear to us.
Moreover Obama officially opposes most of what is characteristic about our liberal society. He is against same sex marriages, he is against ‘late-term’ abortions, he is against our ‘coffeeshops’ (places where one legally can have soft drugs). These kind of policies might be backed by a few people from our luny right, but it’s not exactly what the Dutch majority would consider wise or would want.
Nor do most of us think it is a good idea to boost the war in Afghanistan. Yet President elect Obama plans a ‘surge’ in order to overcome the Taliban. The present situation is that Dutch troops now in Afghanistan will definitely leave the battle grounds within 1,5 year. I guess most of us regret already their presence over there and at least want to stick to the promised date of withdrawal by august 2010. We could forget about that however with BO as our head of state.
Nuclear power is almost taboo in the Netherlands – no more plants, as long as the nuclear waste problem hasn’t been solved. During an Obama administration however, we would have to make a U-turn. Because he is in favor of what he calls a ‘realistic’ energy policy. Which means: much more nuclear power.
And another one or two. Of course we’ve abolished capital punishment. And private possession of weapons is very limited and strictly regulated. Obama wants it quite different. We would have to reintroduce the death penalty (for serial killers and perverts who have raped and/or murdered a child) and the possession of weapons would become much easier because he thinks ‘it’s an individual right to bear weapons”.
Well, with such a political program Barack Obama would not have been elected here. So after all I think under no circumstances we should import a Barack Obama from the US. No, to me it seems to be a much better idea to export Peter-Jan Balkenende, our prime minister, to the US.
What you are describing here is not Obama, you are talking about the American way. America is a lot more conservative than Europe. If you simply put Obama and his policy to Europe, of course the European would not want him. But you have to remember that Obama is a lot more liberal than most Americans are. If Obama was raised and does his politics in Europe, he would probably be one of the most liberal politicians in Europe.
@ Dino: It may surprise you that I totally agree with you. I did make a very unfair and nonsensical comparison ( well, I casually mentioned it:”apart from being nonsensical”)
My point is however that “we”, not only Europeans, are too much mesmerized by the man and did not pay much attention to the typical US notions and ideas he stands for. It is necessary to keep the different philosophies of this American politician and those of our own, in mind, otherwise we will be taken by surprise and get disillusioned and cynical about his administration.
(PS: Dino, for some mysterious reason I didn’t manage to reach http://www.dinosjournal.com. But I keep on trying.)
Probably something along the lines of ‘to each his own’ applies here.. A different set of beliefs (believes..?) apply to different countries, so yeah.. You’ll probably love your own version of “Obama” when s/he comes along, and the world will watch, full of envy as s/he gets elected.
Nice blog you got here. Salam kenal.
I guess there’s nothing wrong with being skeptic but to be fair, the US runs on an entirely different system than Europe. You simply cannot apply one country’s policies to another. That’s being reckless. Our roots are not grounded in a ‘liberal’, centralized, big government type of system. We thrive on capitalism, the free market, competition. Its not the best system, I admit, but its what we have. And anyways, is there such a thing as a perfect system?
As a reminder, nothing is free in America. Most of us live on debt. We have no universal healthcare. Insurance companies are strangling clients. College isn’t free unless you’re a genius or you intend to serve in the army. The middle class pays the bulk of the country’s tax while corporate companies get a pass. So yes, we are appalled by the 52% tax rate Europeans have to pay. If I had to pay that much, I’d be living in a cave right now.
You need to check your facts and rephrase. Its very misleading.
First, Obama IS PERSONALLY AGAINST gay marriage because he is a Christian. However, he HAS ALWAYS VOTED FOR gay rights and gay marriage. He believes that every state (as we don’t believe in federalism) should have a right to choose whether they would like to legalize gay marriage or not. I call that fair and balanced.
Second, Obama HAS ALWAYS BEEN PRO-CHOICE. Look at his records. Now, he DOES say late-term abortion needs more regulation (not abolish it). However, he HAS ALWAYS VOTED FOR WOMEN’S RIGHT TO CHOOSE. This is a pretty risky position for a Black American Politician running for president.
Third, Obama is PRO-MEDICAL-MARIJUANA. And he said he would legalize soft drugs under strict conditions. However, legalizing soft drugs isn’t exactly on the top of the US to-do list these days. Plus, its even more satisfying under the table. Hahah. Canda.
Fourth, the war. Obama has pledged to make a definite exit time table, just like
The Netherlands. But looking at the situation in Afghanistan, and how the army just got their asses bombed by the Taliban, i wouldn’t expect a less aggressive response from a chief executive of the most powerful nation on the planet.
Fifth, a realistic energy plan is NOT much more nuclear power.Barack Obama’s government in waiting has not mentioned nuclear power in its energy plan.
Sixth: Obama is about for gun control but not an absolute weapons ban. Why? Well, you need to understand that in the US there is still a big debate on what the 2nd amendment of our constitution means (the amendment concerning the right to be armed). Obama’s move is very politically wise.
Seventh, where do you get your sources?
Final thought: Instead of saying No, thank you. Europe should probably say “Hmmh, I’ll give it a try”. After all, if there is one thing that America has proven, its that we are past the days of institutional racism. Do you think your country would give its highest ranking position (i’m not talking about parliament)in government to a colored-man?
To be honest, I might be biased..haha..afterall, I did vote for him.
Love the blog!
Cheers,
Irene Yuen
@ atri: spot on.
@ irene yuen: Thanks for your extensive comment. And it’s pretty imposing. I’m really grateful for the trouble you took to correct me where I was wrong (totally and everywhere, I’m afraid..).
But I’ll try to make amends.
To your “To be honest, I might be biased..haha..afterall, I did vote for him” I may add : To be honest,…I would have voted for him if I’d been an American citizen. To the question whether or not OB is the best (also in the sense of: most sensible, most liberal) that has happened to political US of A in this century, I ( like 90% of my compatriots and fellow Europeans I guess) will answer: definitely he is. So, thank you for voting for him. And I’m sure he will be the key to the revival of the Trans Atlantic partnership, which is in a coma now because of the Bush administrations.
Yet as you perfectly point out, he is the right man in the right place at the right time – in the US. But I’m a little worried about all of those non-Americans who consider him to be the Savior of the world. This admiration should be kept in check. I for one would not like the charisma of the new American president to encourage (people like the French president Sarkozy for example) to promote the export/import of US socio-economic philosophies ( you described) at the cost of our own ‘social economy’ (Soziale Marktwirtschaft) which is capitalistic, competitive and free market for sure, but with government involvement for general public interests like housing, health, education, infrastructure etc.
I just wanted to make clear why OB is not “our man”, but just a (great) US politician.
As for your factual criticism, I do not intend to argue the facts you mention. Because I don’t notice much difference between “yours” and “mine”. You put them, correctly, in US context and I did put them, incorrectly but on purpose, in a Dutch context.
PS: One more question btw. If you write: “Obama IS PERSONALLY AGAINST gay marriage because he is a Christian”, the word “because” puzzles me. As far as I know some Christians are and others are not.
My point is however that “weâ€, not only Europeans, are too much mesmerized by the man and did not pay much attention to the typical US notions and ideas he stands for.
Brilliantly said. This is what I’ve been trying to say to my Indonesian friends. They are also mesmerized by Obama too much without looking at what he stands for.
My blog is currently down, Colson. I did not extend my hosting because it was too expensive. I am going to move to a new hosting but I have not done it yet. Thanks for asking.