Wednesday, July 25, 2012

The Discredited Idea of the Nation-State

Ummah Norway

The museum director quoted in the article below is an exemplar of the well-educated cultural elite in Norway. Like most other people in his cohort, he does not believe in the legitimacy of the nation-state, and views nationalism as a dangerous atavistic sentiment.

He is a reminder that the real enemy we face is not Islam. The people who threaten Western civilization are its privileged scions. They are some of the most intelligent and well-educated members of our societies.

Our Norwegian correspondent The Observer, who translated the article, includes this note:

This article talks about a museum in Trondheim (the third largest city in Norway) that refuses to fly the Norwegian flag because the director believes that it is a racist nationalistic symbol.

The museum director should also reflect a little bit upon the fact that he can freely insult his fellow countrymen (if he indeed is Norwegian) or neighbours (if he is, as I suspect, a Swede) without being physically harmed or fearing any other serious repercussions. He wouldn’t be so easygoing if the target of his derision were Islam.

By the way — in the penultimate paragraph the museum director is obviously referring to Palestinians, but doing so in a very subtle way.

The translated article from Adresseavisen:

Refuses to fly the Norwegian flag

The director of the Museum of Art in Trondheim, Pontus Kyander, hopes that the decision will generate a debate about the meaning of the flag.

In a post on the museum’s Facebook page today, he says that the national flag will never fly from the museum building as long as he is director.

“The Museum of Art invites everyone, regardless of origin or nationality. Nations are ideas of the 19th century,” Kyander claims.

He believes that a flag can be used and misused, and by not flying the Norwegian flag the museum hopes to generate a debate about the meaning of a flag.

“A national flag can symbolize nationalism, which in some cases can result in a nation seeing itself as superior to others,” he adds.

Venstre [Liberals] politician reacts

The Liberal Party county leader in Sør-Trøndelag, Trond Åm, reacts to Kyander’s decision.

“Kyander kicks the flag into the hands of nationalists and extremists, which is a pity, because the flag is well suited as the lowest common denominator in a society characterized by ethnic and cultural diversity,” he says.

Åm believes that the Norwegian flag is a symbol of belonging in a liberal democracy.

Wants to discuss nationalism

Last Saturday the Museum of Art opened the exhibition “Sammen” (Together), which is the first exhibition hosted by the Museum since Pontus Kyander took over. The exhibition is about the ‘human community’ with July 22, 2011 as the backdrop.

“Now it’s time for us to discuss nationalism, and not simply focus on Breivik’s sanity which we have debated since the nationalistic terrorist attack occurred last year. Clearly the flag means something completely different to Breivik than it does to you and me,” Kyander says.

The Museum Director is pleased that his decision to not fly the flag has generated such a debate

“Of course people are going to react. We want to create a discussion. Our job is not to decorate the community with nice pictures,” he says when describing the mission of the museum

Despite the unwillingness to fly the Norwegian flag, Kyander is open to the idea of flying the Sami flag [indigenous ethic group in Northern Norway] or the flags of “other nations” without territory.

The Museum of Art in Trondheim is not required by law to fly the Norwegian flag, as it is a private institution.

Fjordman adds this about Pontus Kyander:

He has studied and worked in Sweden:

  • Writes art critiques on a regular basis for Sydsvenska Dagbladet, Malmö, Sweden.
  • Chief editor for the contemporary arts program Format at SVT (Public Swedish TV).

19 comments:

Anonymous said...

"He is a reminder that the real enemy we face is not Islam. The people who threaten Western civilization are its privileged scions. They are some of the most intelligent and well-educated members of our societies."

You'll recall Tommy Robinson saying when he announced that he and Kev Carroll were joining Paul Weston that he (being a working class lad) had tried talking to middle & upper class people in England, but they just wouldn't listen to him.

I was listening to AC/DC earlier today, and I remember Brian Johnson being on Top Gear - the announcer said to his audience that no one would have heard of his guest - on this occasion I'll take Clarkson at his word.

One aspect of the problem outlined by the Baron here is that these people believe they are better than the rest of us.

If you're working class you're just not going to get through to them, no matter what you say or do. It's a waste of time even trying.

It follows that we have to get through to our own. Don't listen to their lies, don't try to argue with them. Don't play their game.

We need to play our game. Talk to our own people - working class people who fortunately at this moment still have the vote - and that's the only real lever of power we can exercise here. Get enough of our own people to jump off the "vote for established parties" train and vote for the likes of Paul Weston and Tommy Robinson.

Even if we run candidates as "spoilers" and ruin things for established political figures - that's a start. And we need to make a start.

In fact it's overdue.

Anonymous said...

As we all know by now, if you try to argue logically (using facts and clear thinking) with these "elites" who see working class people as nothing, then you will get nowhere.

They either won't listen (as Tommy Robinson said) or if you do present them with some uncomfortable facts, they'll ignore what you actually say and spend a great deal of energy attacking you personally. Either way, you're on a loser.

Strategically then, it would be better to spend our finite resources convincing other working people that these "elites" (as they see themselves) are well, what we all know they are.

Muddle-headed, lying, deceitful riders of the political gravy train who are out for no. 1 always, every time, who deserve our contempt, and who are certainly not worthy of our votes.

We need to discredit them (not difficult) and persuade normal people to start voting for real candidates - before it's too late.

It can be done - a sea change in voting patterns can occur. Look at the Tories in Scotland post-poll tax. They were finished right there, right then, and they've remained that way ever since. The Tories are finished in Scotland; we need to see them finished in other areas too.

1389 said...

These self-anointed elites don't exactly see us as nothing - they see us as contemptible prey, as a useless obstacle, or as a waste product, depending on the situation at hand.

Anonymous said...

One day soon i hope to stand as a representative of sanity, tolerance and freedom & hope in the E.U outpost destined to become an UMMAH outpost, the portion of the United Kingdom once well known as Scotland, the sanity and tolerance and hope will come from the British Freedom Party and how i so long to rub the NOSES deceitful corrupt gravy train riders masquerading as respectable council leader, police and politicians... Oh to rub their noses in their MARXIST faux MULTICULTURALISM. Things must be changed, with British freedom we have a chance.

babs said...

You only have a chance if you go door to door and get out the vote. That takes a whole lot of people willing to spend quite a bit of time talking to their neighbors. Do you have these people?

Findalis said...

How glad he is that he is living in Norway and not the United States. If he had tried that here with that phony, multicultural excuse, he would be very lucky not to be tarred and feathered.

Anonymous said...

At least this globalist is willing to face the public.

Anonymous said...

The elites and the white upper middle-class of the U.S. isn't much different. The latter has their collective heads buried up their rear end and the only they think about is their next Mercedes purchase and what Ivy league college to put their spoiled brat in. Oh yeah they also despise the lower classes.

And the elites(from both sides) just hate the lower classes and think they're will be the new aristocrats who the Muslims and others will obey. More likely they will go the way of the Jews did in WWII except there will be nowhere for them to hide.

And like the other posters stated. Its a waste of time dealing with them. They won't wake up until some Muzzies shred a Ivy League school or uses the Mall of Americas customers for target practice. But the elites never will learn. They are at war with us even more than the Muslims. These are the people that sent our jobs and factories to Asia and left us a hollow nation. These are the people that opened our borders and use every trick to keep them open.

Anonymous said...

It is self-hating 68'er globalist ideologues like Kyander who are being discredited throughout Europe and beyond. The idea of the nation will disappear from the human makeup at about the same time as language, religion, culture, and other fundamental identifiers of who we are.

Anonymous said...

PS: And this is exactly why the 68'ers are so eager to abolish Europeans' cultural signposts. Europeans are inherently evil oppressors, who must be stripped of their culture and identity in the name of some delusional concept of egalitarianism. All other groups are encouraged to retain whatever aspects of their culture and traditions they wish, because that is "multicultural vibrance."

I've also never heard a 68'er discourage Muslims from pride in the Umma, or tell Tibetans that they need to move away from the idea of Tibet, and learn to be more open-minded and inclusive toward the Chinese.

The 68'ers perceived tolerance and nobility of spirit are really just thinly-veiled forms of bigotry and racism toward European whites, with the goal in mind of destroying or supplanting European civilization.

Anonymous said...

"They are some of the most intelligent and well-educated members of our societies."

Trust me, these people are not intelligent. They are actually mentally defective.They have the intelligence of lemmings on a bad day.
Paris Claims

Baron Bodissey said...

Paris Claims --

I disagree. I know some of people just like this Kyander fellow (but Americans), and they are quite intelligent. Deranged, but intelligent.

As I keep telling Fjordman, intelligence is overrated. The most intelligent people on the planet -- Europeans and the Japanese -- are in the process of committing national and cultural suicide.

The proof of the pudding is in the eating. Intelligence evidently does not offer any long-term selective advantage in the Darwinian sweepstakes.

The next two or three decades will tell us for certain.

Anonymous said...

This topic is sneaking its way into the media.On a german (liberal) radio station, there was a panel on the obsolescence of the nation state!
Unfortunatly, there were no antagonists of high potential.
The well known philosopher Peter Sloterdijk coined the expression "social-nationalist" in an obvious provocative intention.What he wanted to say was, that each and every social achievement (welfare,medical care,schools,universities,
museums,theatres etc.)in the modern states was created by those states and not by any supranational institution, and often paid with bloodshed of generations.Nobody on that panel asked crucial questions like:
if nation-states are obsolete, why don`t you go and live in Romania or Myanmar at a quarter of the costs of living here?

Anonymous said...

Future historians will see multiculturalism for what it is: a sociopolitical fad of the Western elites, briefly made possible by the discretionary prosperity and leisure time that were once hallmarks of Western civilization.

George Whale said...

Dear Anonymous from Scotland

Great to hear that British Freedom has your support. Could you drop me an email some time? We're very keen to build our support north of the border.

Best regards

George Whale
British Freedom
georgewhale@britishfreedom.org

Anonymous said...

I,too, am at a loss to understand how anybody could describe these people as intelligent. They have read a lot but lack the logic that is the hallmark of practical intelligence and the skilled artisan. The only equal of their class, or superior by far, was Enoch Powell who used logic to predict the eventual outcome of the multiracial/multicultural policies in Britain in the 1960s. Unfortunately, as somebody said, it was too much too soon for the brains of his illogical fellow parliamentarians to absorb. I bet his IQ was way beyond theirs. I can't remember how many languages were at his command and he was one of the greatest classicists this country has ever produced. The dockers marched for him because they knew he was right. Unfortunately, all of his fellow middle class compatriots, apart from writing letters to him, bottled out. Had they marched with the dockers then the government of the day would have had to accept the logic of his arguments and bowed to his demand to reverse the process in which he himself as Secretary of State for Health in the early 1950s had been involved.

Anonymous said...

I have been to Norway and it is a well-known fact that most Norwegians have a flagpole in their gardens with the Norwegian flag flying from it. Will the Norwegian government now pass a law banning the flying of those flags as ultra-nationalistic? I also visited the Resistance Museum in Oslo and you can understand after being there why the indigenous Norwegians do this. Unfortunately, the museum was full that day of New Norwegian schoolchildren who made a lot of noise and obviously were just going through the motions as it meant nothing to them - especially if they were muslim holocaust deniers. Here in England there are flags everywhere and many are adopting the Norwegian custom of erecting a flagpole in their gardens. At the moment there are many union flags in evidence as a hangover from the Queen's diamond jubilee. But there are also St George's flags possibly left over from the world cup. Normally it is the St George's flag that is flown, just as north of the border the flying of the saltire is becoming more common. It is hard to judge whether some of this is to do with the Olympics; but I suspect not a lot. Mitt Romney was right when he sensed a lack of enthusiasm from the British for the games. However, perhaps he should examine his own free enterprise obsessed American soul. The games have been hijacked by the fascists from Coca Cola and MacDonalds who are even dictating what people can wear to watch the games. The girl carrying the torch in my town worked for Coca Cola for Christ's sake and this has really rubbed the British up the wrong way. We are being subjected to commercial colonisation. This, plus the fact that we are now told that London is a world city and belongs to the whole world; but no longer the English; and is effectively a multicultural foreign enclave can explain why we feel the way we do. These are not the English games nor even the British games. They are everybody bar the Englishman's games and the province of American big corporations. For the educated and cultured Englishman this is a total turn-off. Capisce?

LN said...

"A national flag can symbolize nationalism, which in the worst case means that a nation sees itself as better than another", said Kyander to Adresse-avisen.

Ethnically Finnish Pontus Kyander has studied art history at the University of Lund in south Sweden, and he established himself as a prominent art critic for the daily Sydsvenska Dagbladet, where he wrote between 1994 and 2007. He has written a number of publications in addition to newspaper critics: exhibition catalogs, periodicals, books and reference books, including the Svedish National Encyklopedia. He has also worked with art for Swedish Television programs like 'Format' and 'PictureJournal', sometimes as an editor for these programs that were built on his ideas. Pontus Kyander has been curator for a number of exhibitions, both in Scandinavia and other parts of the world. Before he came to Kristiansand, he was Public Art Manager for Auckland City Council in New Zealand and before that a professor at the EWHA University in Seoul, Korea.

Anonymous said...

Even the most powerful computer is useless if it is programmed with buggy software. The case with "intelligent" elites is the same. They have good "hardware", but they are programmed for self destruction, and that's exactly what are they using this hardware for.