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| Europe |
| Swiss to deport lawbreakers & families |
| 2007-09-01 |
| GENEVA (AP) - Consider the source, the Antiamerican Press The campaign poster was blatant in its xenophobic symbolism: Three white sheep kicking out a black sheep over a caption that read "for more security." The message was not from a fringe force in Switzerland's political scene but from its largest party. The nationalist Swiss People's Party is proposing a deportation policy that anti-racism campaigners say evokes Nazi-era practices. Under the plan, entire families would be expelled if their children are convicted of a violent crime, drug offenses or benefits fraud. Now I know what country Rantburg is in. The party is trying to collect the 100,000 signatures needed to force a referendum on the issue. If approved in a referendum, the law would be the only one of its kind in Europe. That shouldn't take long. But it may spur immigration from other EUropean ex-countries. "We believe that parents are responsible for bringing up their children. If they can't do it properly, they will have to bear the consequences," Ueli Maurer, president of the People's Party, told The Personal responsibility? Whoa. Ronnie Bernheim of the Swiss Foundation against Racism and Anti-Semitism said the proposal was similar to the Nazi practice of "Sippenhaft" - or kin liability - whereby relatives of criminals were held responsible for his or her crimes and punished equally. Nazis, the Swiss are all Nazis, like the Amerikkkans Similar practices occurred during Stalin's purges in the early days of the Soviet Union and the 1966-76 Cultural Revolution in China, when millions were persecuted for their alleged ideological failings. This is serious, the AP is even bringing up Stalin in an unfavourable light. Next thing you know they'll be damning Fidel or Hugo with faint praise. "As soon as the first 10 families and their children have been expelled from the country, then things will get better at a stroke," said Maurer, whose party controls the Justice Ministry and shares power in an unwieldy coalition that includes all major parties. Wow! Might the same thing be true for illegal immigrants to the US? The party claims foreigners - who make up about 20 percent of the population - are four times more likely to commit crimes than Swiss nationals. But it's only an unsubstantiated claim from those well known prevaricators in Switzerland. Commentators have expressed horror over the symbolism used by the People's Party to make its point. "This way of thinking shows an obvious blood-and-soil mentality," read one editorial in the Zurich daily Tages-Anzeiger, calling for a broader public reaction against the campaign. Ja, dees are Neo-Nazis or Neo-Soviets. Zey haf oferrun our beautiful Switzerland. So far, however, there has been little popular backlash against the posters. "We haven't had any complaints," said Maurer. Sheeple The city of Geneva - home to Switzerland's humanitarian traditions as well as the European headquarters of the United Nations and the U.N. Refugee Agency, or UNHCR - said the campaign was likely to stir up intolerance. The UNHCR said the law would run contrary to the U.N. refugee convention, of which Switzerland is a signatory. I suspect the Swill will take that under consideration for when they get to the BFC items on the agenda. But observers say the People's Party's hardline stance on immigration could help it in the Oct. 21 national elections. Dja think? In 2004, the party successfully campaigned for tighter immigration laws using the image of black hands reaching into a pot filled with Swiss passports. "It's certainly no coincidence that the People's Party launched this initiative before the elections," said Oliver Geden, a political scientist at the Berlin Institute for International and Security Affairs. "The symbol of the black sheep was clearly intended to have a double meaning. On the one hand there's the familiar idea of the black sheep, but a lot of voters are also going to associate it with the notion of dark-skinned drug dealers," said Geden. Sure have been a lot of lynchings and carbecues in Geneva lately. The party also has put forward a proposal to ban the building of minaret towers alongside mosques. And one of its leading figures, Justice Minister Christoph Blocher, said he wants to soften anti-racism laws because they prevent freedom of speech. Brush up your German, Start practicing now. Brush up your German If you won't kow-tow. |
| Posted by:Nimble Spemble |
| #7 Redneck Jim: It is an honor even to be nominated for so high an award in Rantburgian society. |
| Posted by: Excalibur 2007-09-01 21:49 |
| #6 What a bizarre association to make. Why would anyone think of drug-dealers having dark skin? Excaliber, I nominate you for "Snark of the Day". |
| Posted by: Redneck Jim 2007-09-01 14:33 |
| #5 There may be an angle around this. If a family has a member they deem "incorrigible", there is usually a legal remedy to expel them from the family, called "emancipation", available in many western countries. That is, the rest of the family might be law abiding, but they have, usually a son, who is a repeat offender and who ignores his family discipline, often physically menacing them. This allows them to kick him out, so that they no longer have any responsibility to him, and often goes hand in hand with a judge restraining him from going anywhere near his family. |
| Posted by: Anonymoose 2007-09-01 14:20 |
| #4 Terrorism runs in the family. Period. Terrorism is an almost exclusive feature of high context societies. Familial ties, personal connections, prestige within the community and persuasive ability are all hallmarks of any high context culture. Terrorism thrives in such societies because the secrecy and support of kinfolk make it possible to conceal individuals and their activities. Try as they might to portray this move by the Swiss People's Party as Hitlerian or Stalinist, Islam has more in common with those two thugs than anything being protested by the Swiss Foundation against Racism and Anti-Semitism. While there remain ideological similarities between Islam and Nazism, there really is no comparison. Islam represents a far more numerous and monolithic threat to Western civilization. The close kinship brought about by consanguinous marriage in Muslim cultures creates an overarching element of protection. Combined with religious fervor and the immense support network provided by so many houses of worship, Islam assumes an unprecedented threat level. High context Muslim culture is so sensitive to shame and humiliation that it is nearly impossible for any disgraceful conduct to escape the notice of family members or relatives. This is why it makes so much sense to deport all kin of those who engage in terrorism or other anti-social behavior. They know damn well what is happening, so if damage to their host nation is not of concern then integration and assimilation are not happening. Unwillingness to assimilate is the hallmark of fundamentalist Islam. Additionally, preservation of high context traditions or culture creates an enabling atmosphere for radical strangers and kinfolk alike. This intolerant mindset is so often accompanied by radicalism and terrorist activity that—once an individual's activities attract legal attention—no fragment of those who abet or support such conduct must be allowed to remain. Attempts to tar this as "sippenhaft" ignore the wholly unjustified discrimination that was applied by the Nazis against Jews as opposed to the entirely warranted suspicion of terrorism within close-knit fundamentalist Muslim families. America would be very wise to begin putting similar measures in place. |
| Posted by: Zenster 2007-09-01 13:59 |
| #3 "The symbol of the black sheep was clearly intended to have a double meaning. On the one hand there's the familiar idea of the black sheep, but a lot of voters are also going to associate it with the notion of dark-skinned drug dealers," said Geden. What a bizarre association to make. Why would anyone think of drug-dealers having dark skin? |
| Posted by: Excalibur 2007-09-01 13:29 |
| #2 makes sense to me - immigration is a privilege, not a right. If you break the laws, or don't assimilate, expect that privilege to be revoked. Since "family reunification" is such a big justification for immigrants' families being allowed to join them, expect it to be invoked when they ship Omar's criminal ass back to Shitholeistan |
| Posted by: Frank G 2007-09-01 11:32 |
| #1 IIRC there are four official languages in Switzerland*. German, French, Italian, and a languishing offshoot of old Roman holdouts. Very accommodating. Guess there's a limit and it appears they've reached that limit. * Although I also recall that the federal office responsible for education said that the second language taught in every school was to be English, due to its predominance in business, technology, etc., much to the consternation of the French speakers. What do the Swiss know that American educators don't? |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2007-09-01 11:30 |