Madeira Consorcio

131 Madeira Consorcio Meeting 26.112022

Nov 27, 2022 at 4:04 pm | Posted in Posts | Leave a comment

We met in the Gallery again. The Topic was “Where on Earth will people live in the future?”

The TED Talk is here.

The Speaker Parag Khanna presents three world maps on the actual population distribution and two projections for the future, based on the effects of global warming, wars and all the other catastrophic developments we face at this time.

First, we discovered that our whole group consists of immigrants; only one of us is half Portuguese, half British 😊

Recently, the immigration process (becoming a full citizen) has been simplified in Germany. Holland is “very racist” when it comes to immigrants.  In Sweden, there is a backlash against refugees and immigrants, this is why a more right-wing party has now a governing majority (in a coalition). Cl. said that only 3-4% of refugees/immigrants cause crime problems but Sweden has a big problem with such groups, they commit the most murders. Most countries are not cherry-picking their immigrants/refugees – they are simply coming in droves – but the countries which do so, like Canada, are better in integration and have lower crime rates from these groups. Australia also has a very selective immigration policy.

But people are leaving their poor countries for safety and economic reasons, they will continue to move into the First World countries.

There is a limit to how many newcomers a country can take. Sweden is good in gun restriction but immigrant populations tend to create their own communities; in Sweden the Muslims are even trying to impose Sharia and enforce it.

Cl. said that the Golden Visa scheme is bad for Europe. Money can buy these people into the Schengen area, and they import their own rules.

U. said that it always was a mistake to bar refugees/asylum seekers from working, this is how they have too much time on their hands and some of them begin to turn to crime. In Germany, refugees are often blamed for crime but this claim is overblown.

Some parents do not want to send their children to certain schools because their kid would not be able to speak German there.

If immigrants are not willing to integrate, they are going to create a state in the state, and the host country might be losing its national integrity.

Germany integrated the East of the country but in a way, these are still two countries. 

Our feeling is that a country cannot be turned completely away from it roots.

In Madeira, there is now growing ressentiment against foreigners, especially with all the luxury building going on. Only foreigners can afford expensive apartments and houses, and the simple folk get envious. They cannot afford what is being built in the best places on the island. Praia Formosa will get one hotel (Ronaldo) and around 400 apartments (Walsh) but we guess that this will not be social housing, it will be luxury apartments again. This is a mistake.

This may not be due (only) to money & corruption but the simple people feel suppressed, they do not have the same chances as the rich or the foreigners. Social apartheid is going to be the result.

Iran: the population is not keen on a revolution but they have no choice but to revolt, due to shortages, hunger, missing jobs and miserable income. It will be interesting to see of the new revolution can now topple not only the government, but also the Mullahs and the Revolutionary Guards. We are hopeful but sceptic. But successful revolutions happened in Portugal, in Spain and in Romania. We are in solidarity with the Iranian people.