seasonticket skriver om sin oplevelse ved på det nærmeste at flygte fra England kun for at konstatere at ja, det kan være og blive værre – i Danmark:
When I came here, I felt I was fleeing the repressive regimes being set up in the UK. ID cards, political rhetoric based on difference, banning of protest, political leaders cozy-ing up to business leaders and exclusion of real debate.
Not that I believed that Denmark would be better, I had applied to countries that have much worse track records in terms of freedom and democracy. I came to get perspective and you know what, mission accomplished.
Things can be worse, after all.
Though, if you had told me that I would be worried my nightmares might come true in sleepy little Denmark… the country with the Lego… the one with all the fairy stories? The country in Scandinavia somewhere? I would have been more than confused.
Sure, Europe has a reputation for being …worse… than the UK in terms of things like tolerance and racism. This is a reputation which is broadly deserved, by the way, Europe.
But Denmark has a reputation for being easy going, politically liberal and progressive.
The reputation is out of date. People are being warned away from peaceful assembly if it has not been cleared with the Police. Certain people are being threatened with deportation and mass detention for over a month for vaguely described “offenses”. Certain people are being asked (nicely at the moment), to leave if they do not fit an ideal, no matter how long they have lived here. People born here are given fewer opportunities if their parents were born in certain countries. People born here are given harsher punishments if their parents were born in certain countries. People who want to move here are treated differently not according to what they can offer but from how their home culture is perceived.
People who pay taxes here are warned to keep their mouths shut about possible improvements to systems as they “are guests”.
Repression, then: a very disturbing turn of events. In little easy going, progressive, happy Denmark.
The Danes are a funny lot, you think you know what they are like and then they surprise you.
Der er selvfølgelig mange mennesker i Danmark som ikke bryder sig om Dansk Folkeparti, som er imod alle de stramninger og absurde, totalitære tiltag vi efterhånden ser, og som er helt på det rene med, at en stemme på Lars Løkke er en stemme på Pia Kjærsgaard.
Men, som hun siger: De gør jo ikke noget. Folk gør ingenting, men ser passivt til, mens Dansk Folkeparti og deres hadefulde retorik lige så stille overtager det hele. Og så gælder det jo ikke rigtigt med den stille modvilje.
Link: Escape