Quote:
Originally Posted by The Batlord
Alright, I'm gonna try to read the last two-thirds of that tomorrow, but I'm drunk, and I think the general gist is that globalism is wreaking havoc on the local cultures and economics of just about everywhere. Some people swing to right wing nationalism and some swing to left wing nationalism, so long as those politicians are promising them some kind of security.
While I don't at all agree with the racism behind so much of the sentiments behind these constituents' rhetoric, racism is not the core issue of their concern. It's loss of what they see as their way of life, in far more ways than just all-white neighborhoods.
It would be wrong to bow to their more racist demands, but to ignore their point of view without considering anything else they have to say is short-sided and blind to the views of a very large portion of Western society. The racists might not end up "taking back" society, but they will most certainly divide it until it barely functions (as they already have to a significant extent).
Whatever you think of these people, you can't ignore them and their demands.
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I think your spot on in, some sense, in that I believe that racial politics, and racism in general, is generated by real or perceived economic competition, and the fear of displacement that may result from it.
We've had what one would call mass immigration in the western world since the 1990's, and although it has been a gripe for many for a long time, we didn't actually see backlash against it (the rise of Trump, UKIP, National Front ect) until after the stock market crash of 2008.
As Frum noted, the middle & working class have never fully recovered from the crash of 2008, but the elites that are pushing the same old policies have.
I think it's unfair to broadly paintbrush Trump, UKIP, supporters ect as racists though. They are for the most part white working class people who have seen their wages and quality of life diminish over the decades and have become extremely frustrated that neither the Democrats or Republicans (Labour/Conservatives) are defending their interests.
Here is what I think is happening:
1) In the United States & the Western world,
wages have been stagnating while
the cost of living has been continuously
rising, as a result
economic globalization (as you point out). Some are swinging to Sanders others to Trump.
2)
The Left Wing: The liberal/social democrat parties in North America and much of western Europe
have long since stopped representing the interests of the native born working class.
-This is largely in part because the working class (particularly skilled workers) slowly started to drift towards conservative/republican parties once they started to rise on the income ladder.
- It is also do to with the de-industrialization of the west and shrinking power of trade unions, which has led to these parties being
led primarily by white collar professionals (human rights lawyers, University professors, special interest lobbyists ect)
- So the old alliance of the hardened trade unionist representing black & white factory workers in Detroit has been replaced by a
new alliance of human rights activists defending the interests of new immigrants & undocumented workers who came through the southern border.
In fact, the Democrat Party I believe now has 5 electoral college seat advantage in California largely due to its swelling in population do to both legal and illegal immigration.
Once the party of economic nationalization and controlled immigration, it is now a party of free trade and mass immigration. There is however one candidate who represents the old socialist model of closed borders & anti free trade;
Bernie Sanders, but guess what, he can't attract the Hispanic vote,
the specter of racial balkanization.
3) The Right Wing: Up until now Conservative parties have been the net beneficiary of the white working class vote, but that alliance, particularly in the United States is imploding.
-There is a steep ideological
divide between wall street republicans and blue collar republicans, and up until Reagan, the working class republicans held the balance of power. Under
Eisenhower & Nixon the republican party was still the party of low taxes but they also
enacted protectionist policies and had a tight border policy. Economic classical liberalists like Barry Goldwater & Thomas Friedman were left twiddling their thumbs and writing ideological books.
-
Under Reagan and particularly under Bush 1 & 2, the economic platform shifted in the favour of wall street (Rockefeller) Republicans. In fact, if my facts are correct,
Bush 2, signed the most free trade deals and had the
biggest net migration of immigration than any other President in the United States, setting the stage for the
Toby Keith implotion of the current Republican primaries.
Conclusion
You have a white working class with declining wages that feel they are getting doubly screwed by free trade & offshoring on one hand, and mass immigration on one hand, with two parties that favour free trade and continued high levels of immigration and then....
along comes Trump, and he says. "Hey you in the Budweiser cap! Remember in the 70's & 80's when you all had good paying jobs & got laid in your Trans Ams listening to KISS. Well I'm going to bring that back by making America great again! And I'm going to do it because I'm going to bring back American jobs and seal off the southern border. I'm hear to protect your interests, and I'm going to do it because I'm a born leader!"
There you go: The Trump phenomenon explained!!!