Yesterday was a busy day for the Orbán propaganda machine’s special “migrant workshop,” which met to discuss an “aggressive attack against Hungary” during the early morning hours by a group of about 60-70 migrants at “an emblematic spot where a similar attack took place in September 2015.” The “migrant workshop” consists of members of the government who are in some way responsible for the security of the country. Yesterday’s meeting was deemed so important that even Viktor Orbán attended. After the gathering concluded, a press conference was held where Károly Papp, director-general of security within the Hungarian police force, Sándor Pintér, minister of the interior, and György Bakondi, the prime minister’s chief adviser on security matters, spoke to the journalists gathered for the occasion.
Károly Papp explained that two attacks took place yesterday, one at 5:20 a.m. and another at 5:30 a.m. “Migrants in groups and in an aggressive manner” tried to enter the territory of Hungary at the Röszke crossing. During the second assault, the intruders numbered about 60-70 people. Three security guards tried to keep them at bay without success until one of them fired three warning shots, at which point they scattered. Policemen, apparently stationed farther back, managed to turn this crowd back to the Serbian side of the fence. The police suspect that “human traffickers were waiting for them” in Hungary.
György Bakondi, who is the butt of jokes in the Hungarian independent media, stressed the tremendous migrant pressure of late and pointed out that, just in January, 3,000 migrants tried to enter the country. He also indicated that the Hungarian authorities expected the attack, although Sándor Pintér called it a surprise onslaught.
The spot the intruders used is an official crossing, which is open between 7:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m., so the fencing there is not that sturdy. As for the strange presence of ordinary security guards, two women and a man, at the crossing, Pintér explained that their task was only the protection of the buildings and not the border itself. The system of having only security guards at the crossing and a second ring of police a few hundred yards behind has worked well in the past. Nonetheless, he announced that within ten days there will be a review of the practice. In response to questions about the security of the crossing, Pintér admitted that the iron gate wasn’t locked, only closed. He also had no information on whether the Serbian authorities had forewarned the Hungarians.
One of the three award-winning heroes who prevented a migrant invasion of Hungary
MTV sent a crew of reporters and cameramen to Horgoš on the Serbian side and prepared a colorful report in which they describe a group of young migrants who are “discussing their future illegal border crossings.” An Egyptian apparently told the Hungarians that they are determined to get to Hungary and from there to Austria and Germany.
“Experts” on migrants also appeared on state television. Georg Spöttle, a “security analyst” with Nézőpont Intézet, expressed his belief that George Soros’s NGOs from abroad and from Hungary were involved in helping this particular group cross the border. Zoltán Lomnici, Jr., who claims to be a constitutional legal expert, was now paraded on TV as an expert on migration. According to him, the border crossing was “a test because it is clear that the migrants are not giving up.” He described the young men as “former soldiers who knew exactly what they were doing.” Another expert, József Horváth, a left-over security official from the Kádár regime, believes that the Serbian border patrols assisted the men because Serbia wants to join the European Union, and therefore its government “is eager to demonstrate its pro-migrant position.”
An opinion piece in Magyar Nemzet by one of the paper’s regulars, Dávid Megyeri, suggested that what happened at the border yesterday “was a coordinated action” by some of Orbán’s enemies: EU Migration Commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos, Klára Dobrev (whom the Orbán press invariably calls Mrs. Gyurcsány), the LIBE Commission of the European Union, and Soros NGOs (which are also inciting the Romas of Gyöngyöspata against the Hungarian government). But Hungary is strong, and its enemies will not be victorious.
Obviously, the government is trying to make the most of this incident. The question is, however, whether it was real or staged. A growing number of people have serious doubts about the genuineness of what happened yesterday morning at Röszke. After the police released a video of the “attack,” the general impression of those who saw it, including me, was that something was very wrong with that video. It was supposed to have come from the feed of a security camera that faces the border crossing. But most security cameras are stationary, whereas the camera that took the video released by the police kept changing angles to follow the movements of the intruders. So, it’s no wonder that Péter S. Föld of Hírklikk published a humorous opinion piece with the title “Young men looking like migrants for immediate hire.”
The video can be seen here:
https://www.facebook.com/mtva.hirado/videos/489799005056841/?t=0
If it is true that Árpád Habony is back at work as a key adviser on matters of propaganda, it is possible that the “aggressive attack” of migrants is part and parcel of his remedy for the troubles Fidesz has been facing lately. Viktor Orbán attacked the no-good Gypsies, the jailbirds and their lawyers, and now comes the renewed threat of migrants, reminding people of the dreadful situation Hungary had to endure during the summer and fall of 2015.
Finally, let’s not forget about the three heroic security guards. At an impressive ceremony they received an award “for being instrumental in preventing a larger group of illegal migrants from Serbia from entering Hungary.” The women also received flowers from the “deputy prime minister” — that is, Sándor Pintér, who is the head of the government while Viktor Orbán is abroad. Orbán apparently was invited by the Gyöngyöspata community for a friendly chat, but he had another engagement in Portugal, where he is holding out his hand for a large chunk of money from the European Union.
Perhaps the Slavs should have built a wall before the seven tribes of Hungarian migrants crossed the border and stayed to make the area their new home.
Perhaps, but they did not. In the place of older cultures a new culture emerged. Why would any incumbent culture embrace that future, and by future I mean no future, because extinction implicitly means no future!
Hilarious! So 60 to 70 people who just want to pass through Hungary to get to someplace better are somehow a threat to Hungarian culture? Does this clown really have so little respect for Hungarian culture that they think a few people from somewhere else will extinguish it?
You are hilarious Reality Check (or not). Hundreds of years ago the continent of Europe saw a mushrooming of its population, which coincided with North America’s population getting decimated, mostly by disease. The population of one continent, which was overflowing, overwhelmed and largely pushed aside or absorbed another that was native to the land.
Today, we see a very similar demographic event, the difference being that the Europeans do have the power to say No! What is missing is the will to survive. But the population of ME-Africa is on a doubling path of every 35 years or so, while the native European population is on decline, thus the demographic trends that made the tragedy of the Native Americans reality are in place.
Those 70 people were just a daily symptom of it. Your comment is beyond absurd, and extremely desperate. And really, since it is in support of a demographic trend that threatens the very existence
of dozens of native cultures in Europe, not so hilarious. Vicious, hateful, bigoted!
“Vicious, hateful, bigoted!” = Zoltán
The rabbi said it best: Hungarian culture is nothing more than baggy pants and peach schnapps…
Zoltán, you really should ask the dictator no longer to allow any foreigner to change plane at Budapest airport! Every day many more than just 60 – 70 people travel through Hungary, what a crime against our culture!
It depends on the culture. Cultures had always been in contact and in some sort of competition. When romans invaded Greece they ended up by being strongly influenced by the greeks rather than the other way around. If one is truly confident in one’s cultural values has nothing to fear about. Why do you fear so much of extinction? You belong to a strong nation, capable of assimilating a few people in dire need for safety.
Catalin, Zoltán is in fear of everyone who is no white racist. He has no values and knows even less about Hungary, since he is from Canada.
I heard that Zoltan farts prodigiously and that makes him a first-class Hungarico…
Do you think the native Americans were not confident in their cultural values? How about the countless other cultures that disappeared due to demographic shifts throughout human history? Can you provide an example to the contrary, where a similar demographic trend of one group demographically overflowing on top of another ended well for the incumbent population? If not, than what kind of evidence do you base your argument on? Demographic colonization is used by China to decimate native minority cultures within its borders. Do you think the Tibetans lack confidence in their own values? They stated on many occasions that it is an attempt to wipe their culture out. Romania used it in Transylvania, methodically and strategically, moving about 1 million ethnic Romanians and Rromas into areas inhabited by minority Hungarians or Germans. In countless towns and areas it was highly successful if one looks at resulting demographic changes. Beyond idiotic your comment is! A few people you say? Have you looked at the demographic evolution of Africa-ME? Nigeria alone can provide a majority population for the EU by the end of the current century, while still maintaining its current population of 200 million. What planet are you living on?… Read more »
Said colonist Zoltán
Gyula te Nagy on tusko lehetsz az bisztos.
I wonder if there were really as many as it was repoted. It might have been so dark that our heroes could recognise half a dozen people a crowd, couldn’t they?
“But most security cameras are stationary..”
Most modern surveillance camera are “pan–tilt–zoom” cameras
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pan%E2%80%93tilt%E2%80%93zoom_camera
“Young men looking like migrants for immediate hire.”
Serbian police said later they had arrested 37 people for trying to cross the frontier illegally….“My friends they have tried to cross the border and the police of Hungary, they reacted badly about that, they were hitting them, they broke their phones,” said Mohab, a migrant from Morocco, who acted as an interpreter for the group. “They shoot bullets in the air and people run,” he said.
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-europe-migrants-hungary-border-idUSKBN1ZR0UV?taid
Óvoda, cameras can turn and zoom, but you need someone to do so (cameras don’t know what is important) and still they remain physically on exactly the same point and can’t jump to another view.
You have problems with rotating images/point of view in your mind, probably because it is combined with zooming as well. To help you, look at this video (few times if needed to fix it in your memory) and then look again at the video with the migrants
“Óvoda, cameras can turn and zoom, but you need someone to do so (cameras don’t know what is important) and still they remain physically on exactly the same point and can’t jump to another view.” Exactly this proves your video.
The camera doesn’t jump. Look for instance as it starts- it begins at 5:30:21 and goes until 5:30:24 – then the time jumps to 5:31: 22 and goes until 5:31:36 – but it is the same camera and the same group which in the first sequence was away (and zoomed) and it was running toward the camera and the fence, while in the second sequence the group has reached the fence area and the location of the camera (now tilted slightly to the left to follow them)
“Exactly this proves your video.”
It only proves that when technical inepteness combines with a tendency for political paranoia the result is a conspiracy theory.
“technical inepteness combines with a tendency for political paranoia the result is a conspiracy theory”
Words from a true expert in idiocies – how often did you present the most stupid claims here? Lost the number!
Overall a pathetic article. Starting with the cameras comment, as well as other attempts to deny the details of the event, not to mention ridiculing a state for doing what any state’s government has a duty to do, namely secure its borders. For a no-borders globalist it is of course something to be ridiculed, but for most people, they will agree that their state should secure its borders.
Even in Eva’s current country of residence 80% of people think that borders should be secured.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2018/jan/23/roughly-80-of-all-voters-say-us-needs-secure-borde/
It is understandable why a site sponsored by Soros would be against securing borders. Not surprising by any means!
Zoltán, Hungary has to protect its borders. Just by legal obligation. But what the regime does is against European law of the Schengen group (by some reason Orbán wants to remain part of the Schengen group and this means that common rules apply, application signed on 16 April 2003), regulations of the Council of Europe (Hungary joint on 6 November 1990), breaks the Geneva Convention of 28 July 1951 (ratification on 14 March 1989) and is in the critics by every single organisation and where possible has been repeatedly for the respectively courts for these violations. And without the violation of law the Orbán regime commits every single day the events (real or not) were just impossible to happen.
Actually, Hungary has been one of the few and certainly the first to fulfill its Schengen obligations by securing its borders. As for the Geneva convention, it does not apply given that not a single migrant that reached Hungary’s borders was fleeing anything at the time when they got to Hungary’s borders. To my knowledge there has never been a case of Serbs trying to kill them.
The arguments against Hungary in this regard are mostly built around the false claim that the people trying to enter Hungary are still refugees, even though they passed through several safe countries along the way. Its the same idiotically false argument which handed Turkey EU’s testicles right into its palm and now it can threaten to squeeze any time it wants to.
You just repeat the lies of the Orbán propaganda machine. The Schengen Border Code (law in Hungary as well) tells that everybody without proper permission to enter, but asks for protection needs to be admitted and the case has to be investigated.
Geneva Convention does not say a single word where geographically a refugee turns into an “illegal immigrant”. And seen the entire civilised world acts different from Orbán and offers shelter, we should conclude that the “interpretation” of Orbán is made by bad intention only.
According to my knowledge Serbia is not providing any help fitting into the European declaration of human rights – conviction by the relevant court declare the opposite.
In Turkey rules a dictator that is not better than the Hungarian one. So blackmailing is how they perform politics. Nobody should be surprised.
For a moment you had me there, zolidiot – but the Wash Times is just a Trump fake news paper, just look at their current propaganda.
No connection to real news like NYT or WP. 🙂 🙂
How do you manage to find these crazy sites?
Do you have a list – from breitfart to WT?
Of course it is neither New York Times, nor Washington Post. They only try to create the image of being a quality newspaper by mixing names of high reputation.
PLAUSIBLE ??? ··· Dont know, Éva. This could be on the up-and-up. I know that modern surveillance videocams can pan, tilt, zoom [PTZ]. They are run by surveillance software that can track movement. Whether what I saw was government-staged is another matter. Question: Why would migrants do a breakin in winter? More questions need to be asked.
MAGYARKOZÓ
NATURE SURVEILLANCE ??? ··· Naturally, even nature needs protection from predatory squirrels. Forget green, what about concrete?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surveillance#Cameras
CHICAGO MAYOR ON STREETCORNER SURVEILLANCE
NONCAMPAIGN PROMISE ··· In 2009, Chicago Mayor Richard Daley, good friend of our own Chicago István, announced that all streetcorners would be vidcam-equipped by 2016. That can be found in paragraph 3, above. The article itself covers well ubiquitous worldwide video surveillance.
Some of the facts you will learn will astound. How about this: Tampa, Florida police scanned the Super Bowl XXXV [January 2001] crowd with facial-recognition software [FaceIt]. Nineteen wanteds were recognized.
MAGYARKOZÓ
Well its 2020 and former Mayor Daley’s dream of having cameras on every corner has not been realized. But there are indeed many survailance cameras in Chicago along with robotic speed detection systems which can issue speeding tickets. I bought a special system for my cars which blocks the robotic speed tracking systems which works great, I would be glad to pay a ticket if I was seriously speeding but the rule is you get a ticket if are 3 mph over the posted speed limit. I find that absurd, so I fight technology with more advance jamming tech, it like an arms race actually. My next door neighbor has four cameras on his home and he can watch it on his cell phone whenever he wants to, I have two large huskies, an alarm system, and of course I am a legal gun owner. So yes Chicago is a security state, really no question about it. But criminals in Chicago sometimes now wear masks and hoods because of the cameras. So it sort of frustrates the security state strategy. It has only occasionally helped convict criminals, who are wise to this and even steal car plates replacing their own… Read more »
Scotty, beam me up
Why would they? Because they do not respect the laws of a country, thus they violate its sovereignty. Such occurrences have become rather common at Croatian border, which became more common route after Hungary decided to protect its borders. It is common during all seasons, so your question is absurd. About as absurd as Eva’s cameras comment. Most of the article and its contents are absurd, so are the people who Eva cited as the “independent Hungarian media”.
Yes, everything and everybody is absurd if not fulfilling the ordre du mufti of sovereign dictator Orbán.
Break-in to get to the LIBAMAJ!
One can only hope, for the sake of the Hungarian population, that the border authorities will never see a qualified challenge.
After all, unarmed civilian pedestrians, as terribly scary and eminently dangerous as they are, are ultimately pushing the authorities’ protective capacity to heroic limits.
Yes, if this was a “violent attack” what did Orbán do, when he removed during his time in opposition the fence at Kossuth tér against valid law? Orbán was a violent criminal according to this definition.
I watched the video and read some of the comments. I felt that there were more comments questioning the event than I have seen in the past on other such fb posts. Whatever happened there, orchestrated or a convenient truth, I think we can safely say that the propaganda machine is being cranked up again. It is definitely getting much attention. Let’s see how long they will keep the story warm. Maybe there will be a few more laws coming or some such thing.
“Whatever happened there, orchestrated or a convenient truth”
It has been checked by Reuters, the Serbian police arrested 37 of them for attempted illegal crossing, and Reuters interviewed one of them -Mohab the Marrocan- confirming the official account.
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-europe-migrants-hungary-border-idUSKBN1ZR0UV?taid
– “Maybe there will be a few more laws coming or some such thing”
Yes, maybe Orban will follow in this case the lead provided by the US (you know, that beacon of “freedom, rights and democracy”). Elizabeth Warren – Harvard’s Law School “first woman of color” and now a presidential candidate- has just called for “criminal penalties for people who spread disinformation online”
Orban should pass such a law and apply it with vengeance, to the left/liberal media of course.
Óvoda, back to kindergarten, there the knowledge of Hungary might be higher – regardless of the country! Orbán passed as one of his first crimes against the rule of law regulations to obstruct reporting the truth. Of course with massive sanctions to silence critic media if news are not “balanced”. What means “balanced” decides a FIDESZ staffed committee. Anyway, even if the USA passed such a law – and HS is an American based site – reporting about obvious lies of the Orbán regime and asking for truth about questionable reports the Hungarian propaganda minister issues can hardly regarded as disinformation.
Anyway, even if the USA passed such a law..
Anything is possible now in US, even a Civil War 2.0. let alone passing such an illiberal law. US is more ravaged by identity politics than any other advanced western country. The American old-style liberalism (what is still left from it after the civil-rights revolution of the 1960s, the affirmative-action quotas, the repeal of the freedom-of- association right, etc.) is now caught as in a vise between the censorious elites on one side and the insurgent populism on the other, and it is rapidly unravelling
As for Orban, I was joking. He has made it clear repeatedly that he stands for the freedom-of-speech principle in Hungary.
As for Orbán you were joking right now! Orbán is standing for the freedom of speech if he likes what is said – opposition, media and citizens are risking economic existence when they say something the dictator dislikes. At least we aren’t jailed for free speech yet.
Ovoda, that’s the best joke I’ve seen this week!
O1G standing for freedom of speech …
That’s why almost all independent tv networks and newspapers had to close down or were taken over by the Mészáros mafia.
That’s why the CEU was thrown out of Orbanistan.
Back to Hungarian reality:
My wife just told me that face masks are sold out …
Seeems as if the powers-that-be in Hungary need to polish up their skills at generating professional quality staging skills…
‘Cause they appear with their antics always at the most politically effective moment for their purposes !
How can it be otherwise, when the moment you hear of an integrated consolidated action against the border-authorities here, the FIRST thing that pops into one’s mind: and here again, a NEW fake staged event.
For a detailed analysis of the video (in Hungarian), see this: http://www.zonaporkolt.com/hirek/video-a-migranscsoport-roszkei-betoreserol-a-tortenet-eleg-gyanus/ .
The video shows a group of people wearing masks or balaclavas, very similar-looking clothing and carrying just small picnic backpacks, they climb the fence and don’t even try to disperse and hide as soon as they have crossed the border but continue marching on the well-lit road in a group, towards the Hungarian border guards, and then all of them just turn round and go back, looking pretty relaxed all the time and not hurrying too much. (70 desperate men attempting an “organized” attack?) The Hungarian border guards must have been expecting them – but they don’t try to encircle the intruders and catch them. In sum, neither the intruders nor the border guards behave as one would expect.
Thank you for the link. I missed it. Yes, there are problems with this break-in.
When the government organizes a farce and it turns out to be this ludicrous, then it is not funny any more. This and the similar ”actions” of this hapless government are the reason why in Europe there isn’t anyone left willing to have a conversation with Viktor Orban. In the meetings of the Council he is standing and lingering alone, the others wouldn’t look at him, wouldn’t speak to him, he is a marked man: a pudgy little fascist amongst the most civilized people. He doesn’t care, Europe doesn’t care, but the Hungarian public soon will have to care. This ”little farce” is becoming more than just an embarrassment, but a national tragedy.
OT: Zsolt Darvas is one of the smartest Hungarian macro economists (and who researches the EU and understands the political situation as well). He has a long interview at portfolio.hu which I recommend for those who speak Hungarian.
https://www.portfolio.hu/unios-forrasok/20200130/borzalmas-hatasa-lenne-a-magyar-eu-kilepesnek-a-britek-pedig-akar-vissza-is-lephetnek-413945
Just one word: Brilliant!
Though a little naive about the French election system. I can easily imagine that Le Pen could win once. Or a male Le Pen. She is like Daniel Ortega or Orban for that matter.
They don’t care if they lose an election, their party is theirs only, so they just try and try and try and once they will get lucky, because the people will be fed up with the incumbent. And then they entrench themselves for good.
The French post-WWII political system, just like the Italian one, collapsed and therefore it’s very difficult to say that oh conservatives will always vote for a Socialist or vica versa (in order to avoid a Le Pen); no, once they will not vote for the more moderate candidate. It’s only time. Of course France is a great country with string democratic traditions, so it cannot be taken over quickly like Hungary was.
Marty, even if the parties of the centre don’t give an advice, French voters do know what they need to do. When 2 democrats are running for president the 2nd vote is with very low turnout, but compare that to the 2 elections a Le Pen got into the 2nd round! Talking about political culture French are pretty unbelievable: They can fight hard in the streets against a government, but will vote for it if democracy is in danger. A change in parties is not relevant for this behaviour, the election of Macron is just the French answer to corrupt Republicans and useless Socialists. In Hungary many people don’t want to be bothered by politics, in France they act.
This is a very optimistic take with which I don’t agree. The voters will try this and that politician and once the majority will support Le Pen or a similar politician. Macron is there because voters abandoned the mainstream parties. He is a bit similar to 5 Star. Many of those who are disappointed with Macron will find another new player and won’t go back to the mainstream parties.
Well, whether optimistic or just realistic only time will teach. Anyway, although never member of a traditional party Macron is very mainstream in the sense of his liberal to conservative politics. His république en marche can become over the years a constant factor in French politics, there is no reason why not, just as there is a possibility that they are a short living party of course. In a multi party system parties new are founded and parties disappear. But the only that Macron and 5 stars have in common is that they came to power by disappointed voters that left the other parties. But for the rest Macron is a realist, while the 5 stars are utopists.
The British political system (older than even WW2) has collapsed as well. The last elections saw the realignment of British politics with the working class deserting Labour.
Macron’s “Marche” is a fake, a political fraud. The same neoliberal/globalist in economics and socially liberal/progressive/ ‘Center’ was repackaged and sold as a new-shiny-up-beat solution for the malaise which has been created by the same ‘Center’ in the last 30-40 years.
It is a counterfeit, which necessarily can be sold only once, and not the real change. In fact the Gilets Jaunes movement is the calling out the this bluff. But eventually Macron will have to go and the real change will come to France as well.
The figure to watch closely is Boris Johnson. We will see what he will actually do but at the level of discourse he keeps getting all the stuff right : big increase in infrastructure spending, state aid for failing firms, renationalization of the rails and a levelling up agenda combined with tough new measures on migration reform.
Boris Johnson leans left on economy and right on culture, the winning formula.
Óvoda, the British political system did not collapse, but has proven again that it is not made for democracy, because the majority in parliament does not represent the majority of the voters. That one party is in a crisis does not mean that the entire system collapsed. Fact is that Johnson won’t have the money to finance his program. He can use imaginary EU contributions only for imaginary projects. So no means for infrastructure, state aid for failing firms (always a good way to throw away money), as long as he doesn’t want to add to the economic abyss ruined state finances. Johnson wants to ban Romanians and Hungarians from migrating into the UK in favour of immigration from the former colonies for his friends as workers, since these are cheaper and can be treated worse than Polish citizens. The formula for disaster. Concerning France you should know that France before Macron was governed by either left or right leaning parties during the entire 5th republic. Macron is the first liberal president – to be exact a liberal leaning economically to moderate conservatism. Macron never declared anything else. So his party is as relevant player in France completely new indeed,… Read more »
No man, it did collapse. It was rebooted and it realigned in a new structure not seen in 100 years.
The crisis was felt by both, Tory and Labour, but Johnson dealt with it better, more decisively, by simply kicking out of the party the ‘remaniers’ and realigning the party along the working class positions and interests.
Whatever you may think about the representativeness of their first-past-pol system ( I don’t like it either) it has served them well for centuries.
How stupid are you? “Working class interests” are definitely not closing factories and moving them to the continent. That the tories were changed into a party where only one opinion is relevant and those with another opinion are excluded is remarkable, but better? And in a modern multi party system only proportional representation represents the voter democratically. When the election is between independent candidates the UK system might be okay, but that idea is centuries old and not of the 21st century.
Let’s hope it’s not the kind of an alignment that happened in Germany in the 30s. Hitler won over the working class as well.
Wow, if the winning formula for the alt-conservatives nowadays is renationalization and anti-migration, all I say is that they themselves will be at the mercy of the claws that so desperately wanted a “change”. Politics playing on the fears and terrors of a destitute social fabric always turns in disaster, sooner or later.
The truth is, alt-right is just outright xenophobia packaged into some economic mish-mash that truly does not make any sense (nationalization and protectionism, go figure).
First of all I want to thank Marty to posting the link to the interview with Zsolt Darvas which I just read and found most interesting because he was not familiar to me due to the fact he generally has worked only in the European context and his doctoral work in economics was exclusively done in Hungary. I recommend reading in conjunction with this interview his Curriculum Vitae (http://bruegel.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/Curriculum_Vitae_Zsolt_Darvas2.pdf ) it is extensive but explains in greater way some of the many aspects of his interview. It should also be noted immediately that Darvas is in part of the EU bureaucrat par excellence, he works currently for Bruegel the Brussels European and Global Economic Laboratory. He lectures at Corvinus pretty rarely. He also had in the past direct ties to ARGENTA FAKTOR Zrt. which is a Hungarian debt consolidation firm which acquires debt from from Hungarians in debt via the the assignment rules of the Civil Code, Formally it is what is called part of the financial intermediary system of Hungary. Darvas worked there for three years. This entire sector has been characterized as part of the Housing Mafia. Historically these firms have set unfair terms in their agreements and… Read more »
Where it reads “I discuss this as a low age economy” is an obvious typo it should read: I discuss this as a low wage economy.
Examples of successful storming. Same strategy, large group pressing at once and overwhelming the guards, Ceuta -Spain, plenty of videos on YT.
Migrants, gipsies, Jews always work, always will work.
People can’t get tired of being terrified. Terror always works.
Orban will only double down on this. It’s also “cheap”, I mean the propaganda machinery’s costs are comparable to public education but it does not involve buying popularity by increasing pensions, family subsidy etc.
So I cannot imagine it not being continued and seeing the operations against mayor Niedermüller in district 7 of Budapest (Catholic Conference press release, demonstration by Zsolt Bayer, printed material distributed overnight etc.) this will continue.
Meanwhile the opposition has nothing, no own story, own narrative.
Whether this incident is true or false, we can be sure there will be a lot more made up stories, as part of the Orbán election campaign, as the Fidesz machine comes up with more and more scare tactics to frighten the voters into electing VO once again.
Re: the election campaign
If only the opposition was in the position to counter the fact that Fidesz influence precisely focuses on putting the electorate in positions where they leave themselves open to being influenced.
Fidesz when on the rise has apparently broken the plaster that encased electorate minds and then does the fill-in. What’s in the opposition for fill-in? Maybe some influential ‘dynamite’ to lower the boom?? There’s alot of pretty bad encrustation in some electorate minds that will have to be scoured away in order not to elect a king and his dance-to-the-tune retinue again.
Full raw footage of the incident. 4 minutes, not the short 50 seconds of that FB-link. You can now easily see that it has all been shot with a single pan-tilt-zoom surveillance camera .
https://3speak.online/watch?v=rairfoundation/jomgyfis
according to your link the incident took place on the Hungarian-Romanian border ….
Not only Romania! Did you see the flashing reflections of blue lights on the board and a bit later on the gate at the beginning? So the bad, bad migrants went directly to Hungary, where some official vehicle using their blue signal lights waited for them?
lame
Facts!
Glory and honor! What did they receive (pictured)? First class Iron Cross?
Pure show-running for propaganda.
What should a migrant look for in Hungary? The free-to-death? What a posse!
Re: ‘award winning heroes’ and the ‘attack’ of the migrants Don’t know if we are perhaps seeing a new future occupation of the military and police who protect the borders. A new magyar ‘condottieri’ to eventually get hired to do their mercenary work in this era of time ‘protecting’ borders for far rightist feeling terrible siege in their domains. They are learning their jobs for potentially being the pit bulls of the continent. They will do their work relentlessly and with no quarter to the ‘attacking’ hordes. And they’ll want to be paid for it. At this point what’s seen is only learning and training through action. Ironic that decades ago the Soviets were the ones blocking borders. Now it is the country’s government itself picking up where they left off and setting ‘tea’ with them as much as they can. The fear of the unknown is palpable. But that’s how the future is. Leaders appear to show that they have no use of imagination to take hold of a future. Now if they want to use the past they just might find looking to the ‘East’ , those ‘foreigners’, are probably their biggest problem when it comes to modes… Read more »
Since Eva’s readers and all of us are following the spread of the coronavirus this article will be of interest. https://www.politico.com/news/2020/01/30/wilbur-ross-coronavirus-jobs-109445 US Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross sees the economic impact of the virus as potentially benefiting the economy of the USA and Mexican industry owned by US firms. Effectively China’s infrastructure for urban disease control is not up to the concentration of population that has occurred with the unleashing of market forces in China. Some older readers of this blog who under communism read The Condition of the Working Class in England written in 1845 by Friedrich Engels will recall how he described large industrial cities such as Manchester and Liverpool, mortality from disease (such as smallpox, measles, scarlet fever and whooping cough) was four times that in the surrounding countryside, and mortality from convulsions was ten times as high. That is similar to the reality of Wuhan today, but basic antibiotics contain many of the ancient killing diseases of the past and help unleash the modern ones too. Wuhan is a manufacturing center that grew immensely, it is also one of the areas promoting modern industrial changes in China. Wuhan has three national development zones in it. So Secretary… Read more »
David Marples in the latest issue of Visegrad Insight has an interesting essay on Russian hegemony over its western neighbors and what to do about it if anything at all. It can be read at https://visegradinsight.eu/quest-hegemony-russia-ukraine/ .
I have exposed myself this point view few times here and even posted – if I recall correctly it was in reply to your very postings- the links to Mearsheimer’s “Chicago Realist School” (of intl. relations) take on Russia, US, and the Ukraine crisis.
It won’t happen as long as ‘the blob’, not the elected president, runs in fact the State Dept.
Re: Russian hegemony Very interesting articles. It would have been interesting if Ukraine did make a decision to shore up its eastern region with US given materiel prior to the Russian invasion. But that of course would scare the bear. Understood. But there’s the theme: Russia in conflict with a country just ‘thinking’ about the West will travel then along the lines of give an inch and they most likely will take more than a yard. The US ‘reset button’ with Russia in the past decades hasn’t worked too well. It’s worse. Why? Russian propaganda, support for far right European coalitions, dispensing rampant untruth and disinformation and an aversion to anything resembling democracy and disrespecting its hard won traditions. If there are European or US political/social scabs to be rubbed they are there to envenom it. The democratic world appears an irritation to him to be swatted like a fly. And he’s infected more to lean to ‘his’ team. The Russian military is always ready and able to back up its foreign policy. They know actions always speak louder than words. If now Putin ruling in a post-Soviet era is not a demon according to Evans then he representing Russia… Read more »
These are indeed important times when the respective spouses of Anikó Lévai and Ildiko Eötvös get together to shield the nation against a common enemy. These two are, of course, the Field Marshall and his Assistant in the Hungarian Christian Army that stands ever ready to disperse and drive off the alien invader. Perhaps these stalwarts need to be reminded of the words of Bishop Áron Marton, some 75 years ago who wrote in part:
“For us [Christians] my dear brothers, the fundamental premise of our belief, the command to love one’s fellow man, still holds, and its acceptance and practice is even more of a duty today than in former times. The appellation Christian… …compels us to do so, my brothers!”
But hey, guys, if you can’t manage that, cut the pseud christian bull-shit and continue behaving like the selfish, power-hungry, money-grubbing bunch of criminals that you are, OK?
There now! That was an easy choice to make, wasn’t it?
The Hungarians are practically a secular, post-Christian, nation. All this Christian talk sounds empty, meaningless today for the overwhelming majority of them.
If you want to see a “true believer”, Abrahamic, nation go to Iran or Saudi Arabia, they are hanging the homosexuals and the heretics there.
@Invidious, 12:18 pm
My reference was to “the respective spouses of Anikó Lévai and Ildiko Eötvös”, who are members of a gangster organization (the Hungarian government) which does claim those famous christian roots. In this context, Iran, Israel and Saudi Arabia are irrelevant, but thank you for your interest.
bimbi, of course he didn’t understand your comment. But it is remarkable that he knows that religion has no relevance in Hungary – while he is otherwise claiming the triumph of christian Orbán.
“The Hungarian government which does claim those famous christian roots”
Don’t bother about, or be afraid of those claims, they are not serious. They are sort of cultural flavor. The homosexuals and the heretics won’t be hanged anytime soon in Hungary, and the Marroccan migrants will not be allowed to flood in either.
@Invidious, 1:17 pm
Ah, so we agree. All the stuff about “Christian roots” really is bullshit. I knew we could find common ground if only we sank low enough.
No, we don’t agree, I only wanted you to relax. Your suddenly discovered fondness of Christianity when it comes to migrants is just too hypocritical to have any effect.
@Invidious, 2:40 pm
“hypocritical”? No. I would like you to address the question of trying to live as a christian. It turns out that that is very hard, very demanding and likely to lead to failure, as church leaders in Hungary discovered with their “too late” too half-hearted or not at all” efforts to stop the Final Solution. But, let’s face it. Aniko Levai’s husband doesn’t even try to behave as a christian – all that stuff about “thou shalt not bear false witness” and “Thou shalt not steal” – just garbage for Sunday morning, “but not for me”.
Otherwise, please don’t directly contradict your 1:17 pm post – “Christian roots”, not serious, a sort of cultural flavour.” Quite so. Bullshit.
It is the dictator himself, who want to change us into a radical “christian” sect, of course without pope, without bible, just with the word of Viktor. And just like you he would like to hang homosexuals and heretics here as well.
Or burn them, especially witches!
Isn’t it O1G who coined the expression “Christian democracy” after “illiberal democracy” wasn’t applauded so much?
Afaik they mean the same fascist kind of Leader regime.
@wolfi7777,
You should be careful with the witches. It turns out (my wife assures me) that Hungary very early on decided there would be no witch burning, while England and the raggety bits that would become Teutschland were all “Feuer und Flamme” for that form of entertainment.
Actually, I think Anikó Lévai’s spouse came up with the catchy phrase “Christian liberty” – which means, of course, that you can do anything so long as it is what we tell you to!
Even if they didn’t burn witches, Hun Christians had many other “interesting” ways to torture. In Keszthely you find a torture museum and the Sümeg castle also has a torture room with all kind of instruments.
My “favourite” there is a construction consisting of two giant stone wheels which can be brought together to squash someone – wonder when the blood starts to flow …
@wolfi7777
Yes, I suppose that is where the expression “présház” comes from…
A comment on the “deal of the century” between Trump and Netanyahu (and shutting out the Palestinians (from today’s Guardian):
“An impeached president, an indicted prime minister and a sham peace deal. Western democracy is hanging by thread. Like the graffiti said on the church wall in ’28 Days Later’, “The end is extremely fucking nigh”. Western hegemony is crumbling, our countries are run by gangsters, we can no longer point to Russia and China and say however bad we may be, they’re worse. To regain any sense of equilibrium, to start to rebuild democracy, we must remove Trump from office.”
Yeah, right and follow on by kicking out the rest of them.
But it is nice to have some support in the contention that “our countries are run by gangsters.”
Quite so.
“Western hegemony is crumbling”
What do you want ? To have again the White men ruling the world and teaching the world how to behave ? White-man’s burden ?
Aren’t these cultures Islamic, Hindu, Chinese, etc. and their multicolored people wonderful ? And equal ? Nay, superior rather…can you eat a boiled bat as the Chinese, or have you seen a dog screaming while boiled alive in a Chinese meat-market, and then went to eat it ?
Man, this is cultural arrogance, White supremacy. Values are relative, all cultures are equal (save the Western-one which is inferior to them all).
Say thanks for the Arab and African enrichment of Europe. The brave new world is going to be great.
The world is the great melting pot. We have no alternative than to learn how to get along. But some refuse to deal with change and transience as the ‘new’ is strange and to be feared and act stupidly. But change is that lifeforce that comes out of turbulence. And it demands careful and proper attention in how it is dealt with.
Magyarorszag’s leadership thinks it can step in the same river two, three, four times. But that’s a misnomer. The river is ALWAYS changing every second. They would seem to ignore that life lived is always in a ‘permanent stage of transition’. No use in raging at it. It is the wrong response.
We’ll see if Magyarorszag gets lucky with what they’re tramping around in because of actions and policies of their inept leaders. Just maybe their roosters will lay eggs.
Orban has pushed Hungary ahead of the others in this change to a new political age/cycle. Hungary is already in the “post-liberal” phase while Britain has just entered it, Italy is waving, and France is not yet there but it is soon to follow.
Orban has been remarkable in his intuition. He correctly guessed that the 2008 economic-crisis was the beginning of the end for the existing neoliberal consensus. He has bet on its demise and he has won the defining gamble of his political career.
Over the past 40 years the consensus has been : globalization, the rise of the metropolitan middle class as the new ruling elite, social liberalism (progressivism) and market liberalism.
Brexit saw the defeat of the elites, and they are now being superseded. The nation state, the working class, social conservatism, and unconstrained democracy (not liberal democracy) will define the new age/cycle.
@Invidious, 3:42 pm
Gosh, your assessment of the state of current Magyar society is really rather off-base. Orbán has certainly “pushed Hungary ahead of the others” to his eternal shame since the country is now run as his personal kleptocracy.
“Orbán has been remarkable in his intuition” Indeed he carefully planned the transformation of his own country into a haven for lies, theft and hate, (but all controlled by his own steady hand) and he has succeeded. These days he steals what he wants, he ignores his own courts, the European Union (except, “Give us the money, it is our’s by Right”) and has imposed his personal Rule of Law.
Stick to the topic. The rest of your comment is waffle and space-filler.
P.S. Why do you think people refer to Hungary as “Orbanistan”? Just think it over…
What a genius Orbán was already in 2008! He started his orbánomics in 2010 with the clear exception that western economy, especially the German economy, will totally collapse within months. 10 years later we know that he crushed the success of Bajnai within weeks and we had to suffer for many years under orbánomics until it was the German economy, especially the German companies producing in Hungary, that took us into the growth we are currently in. The surrounding countries went over the crises way better, because we had the genius Orbán!
Same with Brexit! More elite than Johnson is perhaps only the queen, he is now delivering his friends the UK they wanted to create. This means abolishing living standards for the masses, no products made any more that could be sold to the EU as Johnson is for lowering all standards, but he will allow uncontrolled games at the exchanges and of course tax brakes for his friends.
All these nationalist idiocies have one thing in common: they destroy economy, they destroy democracy and the vast majority of the citizens are paying for the elite.
@Invidious, 2:04 pm
At whom are your comments directed? What I liked was the bit where s/he says “our countries are run by gangsters”. You have to admit that fits present-day Hungary rather neatly. After all you have already agreed that Anikó Lévai’s spouse’s use of “christianity” is all bullshit. I have no comment on the rest of what you write, except it seems a bit unbalanced.
wrfree
replying to OviFiu, a sheep pretending to be a shark dressed as a sheep, is like:
best don’t fancy his bait
PS: looking forward to the day when OV&Co’s xenophobic propaganda will backfire in a way like above cartoon…