I lived in the Canary Islands in my youth. I remember vividly one particular event that happened when I was once walking with a classmate (not really a friend per se, more like an acquaintance).
We were walking in front of a small apartment building where a foreigner was living at the moment (I think he was German, or something like that), and had been living for some years. This classmate of mine said that the guy often gives free candy (and no, it wasn't as creepy as it sounds when said like this) and suggested we go ask him. We went to his door, but he was not home. This classmate got angry and kicked the door as hard as he could. Nothing happened to the door, but it was still quite disconcerting, startling and puzzling to me.
He was expecting to get free stuff, even though he didn't deserve any, and he threw a temper tantrum when he didn't get what he wanted. And mind you, it's not like we were 7 years old or something. We were something like 14, if I remember correctly.
This kind of mentality wasn't actually all that unique there. Not everybody, of course, but there was a somewhat general attitude of opportunism, laziness, taking advantage of the kindness of others, and becoming upset if you don't get what you want. (Again, not everybody. I had many friends who were really good people and never showed any such attitude. However, I also knew quite many people who were a bit like that, to a larger or smaller extent. It was perhaps kind of fifty-fifty.)
There are many parts of the world where people have, in general, this kind of attitude. They are opportunistic, and they take advantage of others if they can get away with it. An attitude of the kind "why work for it if you can get it for free?" and a general lack of empathy for altruistic people. And, in many cases, opportunity makes the thief. If they can take it and not get caught, they'll take it. To hell with the actual owner. It's ingrained into these people because they have grown up in a culture like this. (Of course this kind of people exist everywhere, in every country and every culture. However, in some cultures this is significantly more prevalent than in others, due to the sociocultural environment where people grow up. After all, children learn to imitate others, and do what others do.)
Many African and Middle-Eastern immigrants come to Europe purely because they want free money, free housing, and the commodities of a modern western rich society, without having to do anything to earn it. Many of them aren't even ashamed of admitting it outright (as has been shown time and again). Most probably the vast majority of immigrants that have come to Europe in the last three years have had that sole motive. (In some cases somebody might have come with a more open mind, with at least a modicum of intent of settling in, seeking a job and earning his own living, but then quickly changed his mind once the free money started pouring in, without him having to do anything about it. Also in some cases possibly because other fellow immigrants talked them out of such silly ideas. "You don't have to work. They give you money and housing for free.")
Then, when there are too many immigrants for a city to handle, and they are put into refugee camps, living in tents in poor conditions, given only basic sustenance, no money and no housing, they get angry and start rioting and roaming the streets harassing, robbing and raping people. (Country after country, city after city, is having more and more of this kind of problem. For example the lately Spain has got into the news for many of its cities becoming more and more unsafe for tourists, due to gang violence by immigrants.)
Contrast this with most cultures in East Asia. It's essentially the polar opposite. It's a culture of honor and duty. Most people there grow up in a culture where diligence, studiousness and hard work are a question of honor. When you are given a task, you should always try to perform it to the best of your abilities, as efficiently as possible. It's dishonorable to cause shame, inconvenience or discomfort to others. It's dishonorable to live at the expense of other people and take advantage of them. (Again, not all people are like this, of course (assholes and criminals exist in all cultures), but most are. It's a question of averages.)
When was the last time you heard of a group of East Asians coming to a western country and living at the expense of society and going into a crime spree? On the contrary, in many countries where there's a significant Asian population, they tend to be the demographic with the highest earnings and living standards, school grades, and so on, usually surpassing the native population in all these categories. Studiousness, hard work, diligence and honor pays off.
Many people in the United States argue that the country already consists of immigrants, and therefore (by some twisted logic) all immigrants should be welcome. (This is like saying that because you bought a house and moved into it, rather than having been born in it, that means that you should take in every hobo that just wants into your house. But that's another topic.)
There is, however, one huge difference between the people who emigrated to the United States in the 1800's, compared to the current ones.
When people emigrated to the United States in the 1800's, they didn't do so in order to get free money and free stuff. In fact, in many cases, the country where these people were emigrating from (often an European country) was richer than the United States was at the time. Effectively, they were moving to a poorer country. They were not moving there to get free stuff. They were moving there to get a job and earn a living. In many, probably most cases they were moving into poverty. (In many cases they were probably already living in poverty in their country of origin, but it's not like their living standards became better in America.) The United States of the period was a big wild unknown, and people moving there were taking a huge risk. Most of them ended up working 14-hour shifts in factories and construction sites. Some of them moved more towards the west and became farmers, working their asses off in order to earn a living.
Today, especially in Europe, but also in countries like Canada and to some extent the United States, the hosting country actually advertises itself as being a social welfare paradise, where you get everything for free. "Come here. We'll give you everything you need. Money, food, housing, health services... everything for free! Maybe some day you might get a job, but don't stress over it. It's not that big of a deal." Some countries (most prominently Sweden) even prides itself for being the social welfare state of the world. They are proud of the fact that they are giving free money and free services to anybody who just wants to come in. They also tend to be the countries with the biggest immigrant crime problems. For some reason it appears that free money does not equal to a peaceful society.
We were walking in front of a small apartment building where a foreigner was living at the moment (I think he was German, or something like that), and had been living for some years. This classmate of mine said that the guy often gives free candy (and no, it wasn't as creepy as it sounds when said like this) and suggested we go ask him. We went to his door, but he was not home. This classmate got angry and kicked the door as hard as he could. Nothing happened to the door, but it was still quite disconcerting, startling and puzzling to me.
He was expecting to get free stuff, even though he didn't deserve any, and he threw a temper tantrum when he didn't get what he wanted. And mind you, it's not like we were 7 years old or something. We were something like 14, if I remember correctly.
This kind of mentality wasn't actually all that unique there. Not everybody, of course, but there was a somewhat general attitude of opportunism, laziness, taking advantage of the kindness of others, and becoming upset if you don't get what you want. (Again, not everybody. I had many friends who were really good people and never showed any such attitude. However, I also knew quite many people who were a bit like that, to a larger or smaller extent. It was perhaps kind of fifty-fifty.)
There are many parts of the world where people have, in general, this kind of attitude. They are opportunistic, and they take advantage of others if they can get away with it. An attitude of the kind "why work for it if you can get it for free?" and a general lack of empathy for altruistic people. And, in many cases, opportunity makes the thief. If they can take it and not get caught, they'll take it. To hell with the actual owner. It's ingrained into these people because they have grown up in a culture like this. (Of course this kind of people exist everywhere, in every country and every culture. However, in some cultures this is significantly more prevalent than in others, due to the sociocultural environment where people grow up. After all, children learn to imitate others, and do what others do.)
Many African and Middle-Eastern immigrants come to Europe purely because they want free money, free housing, and the commodities of a modern western rich society, without having to do anything to earn it. Many of them aren't even ashamed of admitting it outright (as has been shown time and again). Most probably the vast majority of immigrants that have come to Europe in the last three years have had that sole motive. (In some cases somebody might have come with a more open mind, with at least a modicum of intent of settling in, seeking a job and earning his own living, but then quickly changed his mind once the free money started pouring in, without him having to do anything about it. Also in some cases possibly because other fellow immigrants talked them out of such silly ideas. "You don't have to work. They give you money and housing for free.")
Then, when there are too many immigrants for a city to handle, and they are put into refugee camps, living in tents in poor conditions, given only basic sustenance, no money and no housing, they get angry and start rioting and roaming the streets harassing, robbing and raping people. (Country after country, city after city, is having more and more of this kind of problem. For example the lately Spain has got into the news for many of its cities becoming more and more unsafe for tourists, due to gang violence by immigrants.)
Contrast this with most cultures in East Asia. It's essentially the polar opposite. It's a culture of honor and duty. Most people there grow up in a culture where diligence, studiousness and hard work are a question of honor. When you are given a task, you should always try to perform it to the best of your abilities, as efficiently as possible. It's dishonorable to cause shame, inconvenience or discomfort to others. It's dishonorable to live at the expense of other people and take advantage of them. (Again, not all people are like this, of course (assholes and criminals exist in all cultures), but most are. It's a question of averages.)
When was the last time you heard of a group of East Asians coming to a western country and living at the expense of society and going into a crime spree? On the contrary, in many countries where there's a significant Asian population, they tend to be the demographic with the highest earnings and living standards, school grades, and so on, usually surpassing the native population in all these categories. Studiousness, hard work, diligence and honor pays off.
Many people in the United States argue that the country already consists of immigrants, and therefore (by some twisted logic) all immigrants should be welcome. (This is like saying that because you bought a house and moved into it, rather than having been born in it, that means that you should take in every hobo that just wants into your house. But that's another topic.)
There is, however, one huge difference between the people who emigrated to the United States in the 1800's, compared to the current ones.
When people emigrated to the United States in the 1800's, they didn't do so in order to get free money and free stuff. In fact, in many cases, the country where these people were emigrating from (often an European country) was richer than the United States was at the time. Effectively, they were moving to a poorer country. They were not moving there to get free stuff. They were moving there to get a job and earn a living. In many, probably most cases they were moving into poverty. (In many cases they were probably already living in poverty in their country of origin, but it's not like their living standards became better in America.) The United States of the period was a big wild unknown, and people moving there were taking a huge risk. Most of them ended up working 14-hour shifts in factories and construction sites. Some of them moved more towards the west and became farmers, working their asses off in order to earn a living.
Today, especially in Europe, but also in countries like Canada and to some extent the United States, the hosting country actually advertises itself as being a social welfare paradise, where you get everything for free. "Come here. We'll give you everything you need. Money, food, housing, health services... everything for free! Maybe some day you might get a job, but don't stress over it. It's not that big of a deal." Some countries (most prominently Sweden) even prides itself for being the social welfare state of the world. They are proud of the fact that they are giving free money and free services to anybody who just wants to come in. They also tend to be the countries with the biggest immigrant crime problems. For some reason it appears that free money does not equal to a peaceful society.
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