The result of the recent Greek parliamentary election is in line with my prediction of the European ultra-nationalists coming to power in two election cycles.
Golden Dawn, one of Europe’s most violent far-right parties, has emerged as one of the biggest winners of Sunday’s general election in Greece, consolidating its presence in parliament and power on the streets. The neo-fascist group came in third with 7% of the vote, behind the triumphant leftwing Syriza and conservative New Democracy….
“Golden Dawn is a movement of power, it is not a protest movement any
more,” the party’s Swastika- tattooed spokesman, Ilias Kasidiaris, told
Star TV as it became clear that the extremists had retained their
position as the country’s third biggest political force. “Golden Dawn is
the only party seeing an increase in its percentage. In October when
Greeks begin to experience the consequences of the memorandum and
illegal immigration you will see our support increase radically,” said
the former marine, berating the country’s mainstream media for
boycotting the party.With 18 MPs in the 300-seat house, around 500,000 Greeks cast ballots
in favour of Golden Dawn. The organisation performed especially well in
Attica, the greater Athens region and the Aegean islands of Lesbos and
Kos where voter support doubled. Both islands have been overwhelmed in
recent months by thousands of refugees and migrants fleeing conflict and
poverty.Golden Dawn’s anti-immigrant stance at a time of mounting fears over
Greece’s frontline role in Europe’s biggest humanitarian crisis in
recent history, almost certainly helped. The party, portraying itself as
the “only nationalist choice” played heavily on fears that Greeks could
soon become a minority in their own country. But, so too, did its
shrill opposition to the internationally sponsored bailout accords, or
memoranda, that the extremists have said amount to “ethnocide” or death
of the nation. Polls showed that some 16.6% of those who voted for
Golden Dawn were victims of record levels of unemployment – the most
grievous side-effect of massive budget cuts and lay-offs enforced as the
price of being bailed out to the tune of €326bn creditors in the EU and
International Monetary Fund (IMF).“In terms of absolute numbers Golden Dawn was the only party to hold
its ground,” said Aristides Hatzis, political commentator and Athens
University professor.
The Fascists and the National Socialists came to power in the 1930s because they were the most credible options available to the Italian and German publics at the time. Don’t confuse the beginnings with the ends; 1933 was not 1941 or even 1939. Fascists were not elected with the idea that they would throw in with German imperialism (it is usually forgotten that Mussolini was an ally of France and Great Britain and only threw in with Germany after Great Britain betrayed Italian interests), and the National Socialists were not elected because they promised they would invade the Soviet Union, slaughter the Jews in Eastern Europe, and get Germany into a war with the USA.
One can’t learn anything useful about the future prospects of revolutionary parties by what other revolutionary parties did AFTER they came to power, one can only learn about their prospects by looking at what the other parties were doing BEFORE they came to power.
The worst thing about the established anti-nationalist European parties is that they have failed so spectacularly that even the violently murderous anti-immigrant parties will be preferred to them by even the most sane and civilized elements of the electorate. In a time of invasion, it doesn’t matter how dangerous the only party willing to defend you might be, what matters is that they are the only ones willing to defend you, your family, and your children.
As for those who are historically ignorant enough to point out that Golden Dawn only won 18 seats in the Greek parliament with 7 percent of the vote and therefore will never come to power, I will type very, very slowly and point out that in 1928, five years before they took power, the National Socialist Workers Party won 12 seats in the German parliament with 2.6 percent of the vote.
Two election cycles. And then you will see an absolute sea change in Europe. And if the EU attempts to entirely abandon even the pretense of democracy in defense of the invasion, the change will come even faster. And harder.