a reply to:
grainofsand
There are some nations, grainofsand, whose actual governments, not some amorphous entity which operates across borders, but actual governments, are
absolutely opposed to ideals like freedom and liberty as we understand the concepts. People living under those systems can be radically opposed to
them, its true. But they can also be in a situation rather like Stockholm Syndrome, in which they find themselves unable to disconnect themselves from
the habits and the constraints of the life they have thus far lived in that country. For example, Saudi Arabia. In Saudi Arabia, for no reason that
any person in our country could possibly accept, one can be beheaded. Petty crimes, things which are not actually crimes at all, get people their head
cut off there.
Female Genital Mutilation and so on, is common in some parts of Africa for example, and elsewhere besides. No one who considers either beheadings for
petty or non-criminal offenses, or the idea of mutilation of the female form as a control mechanism acceptable, or honour killings righteous, ought to
be able to enter this country freely, with the intention of putting down roots. Folk arriving from these countries whose regimes and power structures,
or street level societal norms include these things and other horrors, should have to demonstrate that their wish to live here stems from precisely
the fact that we do not do things that way, before they get permitted to live here, simply because we cannot have people coming to our country who do
not understand that the moment their feet touch this soil, even as holiday makers, the law is as we say it is, not as it was where they came from.
However, I would also add that refugees are an entirely separate matter. They should be supported in coming here. They should not have to walk across
continents and spend money on poorly built or maintained boats, just to get here. The government should transport those its actions have displaced, to
places of safety where we, the taxpayer who paid for their displacement, can look after them, treat their wounds, heal their hearts where possible,
sooth the broken edges of their sanity if at all possible, at least make an effort in that regard. Nothing appalls me more than the fact that we have
left so many people, whose anguish we have paid money to create, to suffer. These things do our nation no honour at all, are a stain upon not only our
reputation as a country, but also on my heart as a citizen.
EU nations though, have no recent history of conflict, have no recent history of what we would consider barbaric activity on the part of society or
government, are not rife with sadistic, violent and murderous ideologically driven acts. It stands to reason then, that persons from EU member states,
because of the standards accepted all throughout those states, do not require those same checks and balances, to ensure they are not the sort to go
about mutilating their children, cutting the heads from those who wrong their God, or killing family members because they fall in love with the
"wrong" person.
Furthermore, it is significantly more common, for the proxy agents of western governments, that is members of IS and other radical groups, to be
found in places other than the EU. While I am not in the least under the impression that all, or even a large percentage of Muslims pose a threat to
me or the country as a whole, in fact would oppose any position that stated that they did pose a threat in the main, I would also be realistic in that
persons coming from certain countries have a higher chance of being members of such groups, than do those coming from EU nations.
I do not wish to exclude cultures sir. I love the fact that my country has many cultures residing in it, the fact that down every street near me,
there are people who hail from all over. I love the taxi driver from Iran who regularly drops me off after a night out (who also acquired a rather
nifty flashlight for me a few months back, which is an invaluable tool for night work), and I love the discussions he and I have about the
geopolitical climate. I find him a very well informed person to talk to, intelligent and despite his awareness of the sicknesses in the world,
cheerful. I love my friend Lamin, who is from Nigeria and has lived in Norway, is a massive metalhead and a party animal. I love the fact that I live
in a country where these people and so many others, can come from anywhere on the face of the Earth, and live in a kind of peace that they may have
found difficult to gain elsewhere, all the while adding the light they bring with them to the mish mash that is this multi-culture we live in.
I adore it. But protecting the equilibrium which promotes the safe co-existence of the cultures on these shores, requires a certain amount of
vigilance. It is for this very reason that I would rather stick pins in my gonads, than see the American President visit our country, because he is a
person who has not proven his dedication to things like human rights, having been recorded as saying that "Waterboarding is too soft" amongst other,
utterly ridiculous things. I would also argue against permitting fascist elements from the EU to live here, because I believe that these attitudes too
are a threat to the co-existence of our various cultures here in the UK.
I love my country, and all who reside in it, no matter where they are from, no matter what faith they hold, as long as they offer me the same love in
return, by abiding by the law and accepting the moral norms we live by, for what they are worth. I do not think that this is an unreasonable position
to take on these matters, nor a discriminatory one. It is simply a matter of practicality. If I want this country and its various cultural contents to
co-exist in peace with one another, to move as one, to operate our power as a collective to guide this country away from stupid conflicts, spend its
money more wisely, on things like our NHS, schools, making university education free once more, re-nationalisation of institutions and public
services, then it makes no sense at all to threaten that balance, because once tipped and upset, regaining it will be the work of yet more decades,
and enough time has been wasted on that as it is.