Populism: Are politicians appealing to our basest proclivities and fears

just to get themselves elected?

Across West, Populists on Left and Right Find New Scapegoats (Trouw, The Netherlands)

“The emergence of states like China and a scarcity of raw materials can result in only one victim: that part of the world that has the most to lose and which has dominated the planet for centuries. That’s right: I'm talking about us. ... While trying to resolve a new financial crisis like the one that followed 9-11, we are picking new scapegoats and proposing simplistic and counter-productive solutions. Scapegoats and simplistic measures only serve to get voters on your side. The mobilizing effects, and not the actual results, are considered of paramount importance."

By Rob de Wijk

Translated By Marion Pini

June 2, 2012

The Netherlands - Trouw - Original Article (Dutch)

The first decade of this century were years of struggle against Muslims and terrorism. These have now been seamlessly exchanged for Europhiles and austerity measures. But in both cases, foolish discussions about scapegoats that conceal the really important matters have been on offer.

President Bush’s rash struggle against terrorism began, leading to wars that cost $150 billion per year and contributed to the colossal budget deficit that put America in a sorry position when the financial crisis began. In the Netherlands and the rest of Europe, this narrow minded obsession with Muslims led to a social polarization that sapped the strength of the political system as the euro crisis escalated.

On both sides of the Atlantic, at a time of rapid global change, this obsession with Muslims and terrorism diverted our gaze from the critical issue of how to safeguard our prosperity and security. The emergence of states like China and a scarcity of raw materials can result in only one victim: that part of the world that has the most to lose and which has dominated the planet for centuries. That’s right: I'm talking about us.

Posted by Worldmeets.US

But While trying to resolve a new financial crisis like the one that followed 9-11, we are picking new scapegoats and proposing simplistic and counter-productive solutions. Scapegoats and simplistic measures only serve to get voters on your side. The mobilizing effects, and not the actual results, are considered of paramount importance. Look at the plan of France’s new President Hollande to add an additional tax burden on the rich. It sounded reasonable, but led to an exodus to Switzerland, London and Brussels. Labor Party leader Diederik Samsom’s plan to “skim off dead capital” (from savings accounts of more than €150,000 [$187,000] will similarly lead to tax evasion and capital flight. Honest taxpayers, who have consciously remained debt-free, find his terminology alone offensive. They will want to safeguard their property, especially as confidence in the capacity of their politicians to resolve the euro crisis diminishes by the day.

They have every reason to be skeptical. In the run-up to the [Sept. 12 Dutch] elections, and within the context of a fragmented political landscape, I see not a single coherent view on economic growth. How do we earn money in this rapidly changing world - and how do we use the position of Europe to it? I fear there are no answers coming. Necessary measures like boosting the attractiveness of the Netherlands as an entrepreneurial country, as a location for innovative companies and investing in innovation, have gotten snowed under by nonsensical rants about Europhiles and “the rich.”

If politicians in Europe are unable to resolve a little problem like the Greek debt crisis, then they will be incapable of resolving anything. Adapting to the new geopolitical reality created by the emergence of countries like China? Forget about it! Since the 9-11 attacks, the effectiveness and legitimacy of our political systems have gradually eroded. Reform from the rational political center is urgently needed. But populists on the left and right are lining up to test out their simplistic rhetoric on all of us, in an attempt to talk us into a Europhile-free, free-spending paradise behind sealed and secure borders.