Quote:
Posted by
sdv
Quote:
Posted by
Mike
I'm not trying to nerd out on you Bill or be a grammar Nazi, but the word "multiculturalism" actually refers to different groups of people (different races, cultures. ethnicities, religions etc) existing in the same space but all in their own little bubbles, with no unifying values re the other cultures around them and no attempt to assimilate or integrate into the dominant culture.
In that way, Russia is indeed multicultural, but it's not really a good thing in my view. There's less violence there between Muslims and everyone else but mainly because Russia is so huge and a more punitive country that it's western counterparts (I wish the west was more punitive like Russia). If you took those same Muslims and Russians and squeezed them into the UK I think it would be just as much of a disaster.
I only found out what the word "multiculturalism" really meant maybe 1-2 years ago, so again I'm not lecturing anyone. But what most people really want to say when they use the word "multiculturalism" is the word "pluralism".
Or maybe you already knew all that and meant exactly what you meant:)
The above is a complete misunderstanding of multiculturalism. It is the the coexistence of diverse cultures, races, and ethnicities within a single society. You emphasise the separateness but overlook the different 'groups' being part of one country. You also ignore the interaction and overlapping between the groups that does happen in reality, without destroying either culture, and what different cultures have in common. It is kind of like a human body being composed of different parts joined together ... one body and one identity ... I could stretch that analogy until it bursts like a balloon with too much air! The nature of humankind is diversity and there are many parts of the world where it is normal. Americans (like Israelis) are rejecting multiculturalism and embracing fascism to do so. Unless you live on North Sentinel Island or perhaps North Korea, imposing monoculturalism in a country is impossible in this world without suppressing others.
Take a walk in the mountains like Bill does and you will notice that everything on planet Earth is about diversity. The clouds are never the same, the vegetation may change in the same valley, the stones in the streams are never the exact same shape or colour, the soil changes colour and texture, and even your hiking companions will be different from one another.
The thing about multiculturalism is that it seems very natural, fair minded, reasonable & in-keeping with the very essence of biological reality - after all none of us can determine where we are born, which cultural group we find ourselves living among: why should our national/cultural origin prevent us from living wherever we choose?
Of course like everything in our world, the details matter!
Nothing about existence, or human life is fair, reasonable or compliant with universal ideas of "Justice" unless we choose to impose these.
I recall being introduced to this academic concept of "Multiculturalism" in the 1980's from my Bachelor studies in Philosophy, Sociology & the very fashionable (in the 80's) subject
of 'Cultural Linguistics' which had been inserted into the Tertiary world by Noam Chomsky, but most vigorously by the French/Swiss/German academics of this time (philology & psychology had made enormous contributions) & we had that hideous concoction of word salad analysis termed 'Semiotics' - this really was the origin of what we all see coming out from Brussels, & the EU Commission's entrails, it gave rise to the open borders and Merkel's suicidal immigration policies, the ideas of the Fabian heroes such as Tony Blair, really this Post Modern club is an expression of the European intellectual class, terms such as 'Cultural Marxism' began to be exchanged, it is the true history of our present calamity: gad Sadd has produced some excellent work on this, his expression of "Suicidal Empathy" is now doing the rounds on all of the 'Right wing' Podcasts, (Far Right me dear)...I recognize all of this so clearly from my nascent analysis of the 'Semiotics' days, I recall feeling very uneasy about the post-modern intellectual landscape, everything about this clashed with my innate knowledge & appreciation of the Classical traditions, and our Western solidity of generating "Meaning"
Words matter, because all of our ideas & ability to co-create our social reality is dependent on our language - our Western academic foundations were systematically dismantled by this post-modern disorder, creating dis-ease, unease & anxiety about our very essential nature.
Multi-culturalism CAN take place, but not through political compulsion, and imposed rejections of Caucasian culture: in favor of an imported raw, often contrary mix of cultural groups. The tyranny of multiculturalism is what we are all experiencing in our '5 eyes countries' - you look at this today & you propose that multiculturalism is a benevolent matter?
It is not, nor is it natural, or desired: we cannot force white culture to kneel at this altar of multiculturalism, we can see clearly this is not having a very nice result, at all.