{"id":84172,"date":"2017-02-01T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2017-02-01T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newcriterion.com\/article\/political-polarization-private-pleasures\/"},"modified":"2024-03-22T08:57:34","modified_gmt":"2024-03-22T12:57:34","slug":"political-polarization-private-pleasures","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/newcriterion.com\/article\/political-polarization-private-pleasures\/","title":{"rendered":"Political polarization & private pleasures"},"content":{"rendered":"

I h<\/span>ave been visiting Hungary (where I was born and grew up) almost every year since 1989 (when the communist system dissolved) as well as during the 1970s and \u201980s under the Kadar regime. I wrote of one such visit in these pages ten years ago (December 2006). Ten years ago the right-of-center party (Fidesz) was in the opposition, but since 2010 it has been in power, as a result of receiving 54 percent of the popular vote. At the same time, the Hungarian Socialist Party (MS<\/span>zP<\/span>) shrank dramatically, getting 28 percent of the votes in the same election. During the same period the liberal party (S<\/span>zDS<\/span>z) virtually disappeared, getting less than 3 percent of the popular vote. Far more ominous has been the rise of \u201cJobbik,\u201d which received 20 percent of the popular vote in 2014\u2014an extreme or \u201cradical right\u201d party, highly nationalistic and openly anti-Semitic. To the best of my knowledge, it is the largest of such parties in the former Soviet Bloc countries of Eastern Europe.<\/p>\n

Ten years ago there was little concern in Hungary about immigrants from Muslim countries, whereas in the last two years Hungary has emerged as the most determined opponent of such migration. It has been the first country to build a barbed wire fence (over 100 miles long) along its southern border to deny entry to such migrants. It has also been the first and only European country that had a referendum (in last October) about the European Union plan to have its members take a specified numbers of the refugees. While less than half of the eligible voters turned out, 98 percent of those who did rejected the E.U.<\/span> plan. In any event, the referendum was largely symbolic without any legal force, its apparent purpose to demonstrate popular support for the government.<\/p>\n

\n

Hungary has emerged as the most determined opponent of Muslim immigration.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

My recent visit to Hungary was preceded by a short vacation in Switzerland that inspired (as did similar occasions in the past) reflections about the stunning differences between ways of life in different parts of the world. How did Switzerland manage to become, and remain, peaceful, stable, prosperous, tolerant, and non-violent, and, with a population of three distinct ethnic groups speaking three languages, no less? I never ceased to marvel at the contrast between countries such as Switzerland (and a few others in Western Europe) and much of the rest of the world (and especially the Third), wallowing in misery, repression, and deprivations of every kind. Being small helps, but there are numerous small countries in the Third World which have nothing in common with Switzerland or Norway.<\/p>\n

While conditions in Hungary are far superior to those in the Third World, it too had its large share of historical misfortunes. Still, the historical tragedies of Hungary don\u2019t quite measure up to the durable suffering, violence, and chaos we find at the present time in places like Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Somalia, or Haiti.<\/p>\n

Hungary has made remarkable progress since 1989, when the communist system melted away without any violence. There have been a series of free elections establishing and maintaining a multi-party system, there has been a growing cultural, economic, and political Westernization, and the free movements of people and ideas across the borders have been institutionalized. The Iron Curtain, not a figure of speech, disappeared, with its vast system of fortifications, observation posts, and mine fields. In its place, new forms of unsupervised border crossings proliferate, undertaken by various Hungarian professionals, especially medical doctors and nurses who migrate to Western Europe where they are far better paid.<\/p>\n

The<\/span> postcommunist process of democratization and Westernization came to a halt a few years ago under Fidesz and its leader, Mr. Orban. Nevertheless, for the time being, Hungary remains quite unlike Russia under Putin or Turkey under Erdog<\/span>an: there are no political prisoners or political assassinations; people can, and do, demonstrate against the government; publications critical of the government still exist (although their numbers and circulation have diminished); and people don\u2019t seem to be intimidated. There is also little criminal violence\u2014barely over two hundred homicides per year. Sporadic raids on Gypsies have occurred in rural areas, more political than criminal in inspiration. The latter raises the question of the connections between political and criminal violence that is close in some countries (for example Russia, Venezuela, and Zimbabwe) but not in others (such as the United States, which has a great deal of criminal violence but little political).<\/p>\n

There are strong feelings and highly polarized attitudes about the political direction Hungary has taken since Fidesz has been in power. These feelings are captured by a recent letter a group of members of the Academy of Sciences addressed to its President as reported by the website Hungarian Spectrum. They expressed grave concern over the rise of \u201canti-democratic processes\u201d including government policies seeking to curtail free expression (\u201cnationalization of the public media,\u201d along with the liquidation of \u201cthe existing independent press\u201d), as well as attempts to amend the constitution \u201cto diminish the role of checks and balances.\u201d They urged \u201cscholarly investigations\u201d as well as debates by the Academy about these issues.<\/p>\n

Unlike the current political-cultural polarization in the United States, in Hungary the supporters of the Orban government are not limited to the less or least educated strata of the population. It is even more striking that Jobbik, the party of the extreme right, reportedly has some support among university students and some faculty.<\/p>\n

\n

Hungary\u2019s move rightward could be blamed on a multitude of circumstances.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Hungary\u2019s move toward the political right could be blamed on a multitude of circumstances: history, political culture, disappointed expectations simulated by the collapse of the communist system, the dynamics of the pursuit of (and hunger for) power, and the personality of Mr. Orban. One of my Hungarian informants, a professor of history, brought to my attention the unusual fact that not only is Orban\u2019s first name \u201cVictor,\u201d but both his father and younger brother were given the first name \u201cGyo<\/span>zo<\/span>\u201d\u2014the Hungarian word for \u201cVictor.\u201d While this coincidence is no proof of an irrepressible and deeply rooted familial hunger for power, it does suggest the possibility of an uncommon familial interest in power and winning.<\/p>\n

Prevailing political-social conditions in Hungary raise the venerable question about the connection between forms of government and the attitudes and beliefs of the governed. The Orban government cannot be held solely responsible for xenophobia, anti-Semitism, and a longstanding sentimental nationalism that is part of a sense of identity, shaped and colored by feelings of collective victimhood. The latter is enshrined in the words of the Hungarian national anthem that refers to the Hungarian nation as one that had been \u201cpunished by history\u201d for its past and future alike. According to Paul Lendvai in his book The Hungarians<\/span>, the Hungarian national character has been characterized by a \u201cdeep-seated and historically determined feeling of being endangered\u201d and a similarly \u201cdeep-rooted pessimism.\u201d Hungarians often see themselves as \u201ceternal loser[s].\u201d I rediscover these attitudes on every visit in conversations with both taxi drivers and academic intellectuals.<\/p>\n

A recent national survey of anti-Semitism commissioned by the Hungarian Jewish Action and Defense Foundation, as reported by Hungarian Spectrum, documents and sheds new light on some of these attitudes and their occasionally counterintuitive manifestations. Thirty-two percent of those surveyed held strong or moderate antisemitic attitudes; 31 percent believed in a Jewish conspiracy and 20 percent thought that Hungarian Jews ought to emigrate or that their number should be restricted in certain professions. More remarkably it also emerged that Hungarians disliked, to various degrees, not only Jews and Gypsies, but also numerous other ethnic groups, as reflected in answers to the question \u201cwould you agree to having [a member of a certain group] move next door?\u201d Seventy-six percent rejected \u201cskinheads\u201d\u2014an aversion obviously based not on ethnicity but behavior and attitudes. Gypsies were the second most unpopular group: 73 percent did not wish them to be neighbors. Gays were rejected by 61 percent\u2014again a prejudice based not on ethnicity but behavior or sexuality. Arabs and Chinese were considered undesirable neighbors by 59 percent. Somewhat surprisingly Jews had a lower rejection rate, by only 44 percent of those surveyed.<\/p>\n

Even more counterintuitive is the finding (of the same survey) that when it \u201cdistinguished between groups according to income level, the financially best-off group had the greatest number of anti-Semites.\u201d The survey also found that \u201cthere are relatively more anti-Semites in Budapest and other larger cities\u201d then among \u201cinhabitants of villages and small towns.\u201d Less surprisingly the same study found that 54 percent of Jobbik party members were strongly anti-Semitic.<\/p>\n

I s<\/span>hould make clear that my visit was not dominated by information gathering about Hungarian politics or social problems, or discussions of the decline of civic morality, the authoritarian proclivities of Mr. Orban, or the corruption engulfing public life (of which I heard a lot). The main purpose of my visits to Hungary has always been to see my remaining relatives and friends. I also enjoy Hungarian food, and know and like Budapest, a very attractive city endowed with an excellent system of public transportation. Buses, streetcars, and subway trains go everywhere and often; many are new, clean, and comfortable. Public transportation is free of charge for people over sixty-five. An honor system prevails; inspectors are rarely seen, and when they make an appearance they do not ask older passengers for their identification.<\/p>\n

Reliance on public transportation also allowed me to observe the good manners of young people: on four occasions my wife and I were offered seats by young men or women. I am not sure how to account for such politeness, or how to compare it with attitudes of young people in this country since I hardly ever use public transportation in the United States. The most tempting explanation may be that Hungary remains in some ways a more traditional society in which old people command some respect and the young are supposed to be helpful toward them. If this is correct, it would be a striking contrast to American society where old age rarely inspires respect or sympathy and is seen as the ultimate affliction: something to be denied and concealed as long as possible.<\/p>\n

In addition to the courtesy of young people noted above, I found the natives generally polite and friendly whenever I needed information or guidance\u2014in shops, restaurants, or the street, or when trying to find certain hiking trails. This might be explained by their sensing that I was a foreigner, yet spoke fluent and unaccented Hungarian. When I revealed that I left in 1956, people invariably congratulated me on my good Hungarian and sometimes remarked that leaving the country was the smart thing to do. I should also note here that the Hungarian language is full of polite locutions and expressions that reflect and reinforce civility and good manners.<\/p>\n

On this visit, as on others, I mulled over the difficulty of learning about matters of importance in the lives of the inhabitants of a foreign country and especially of the connections between private lives and the political environment. Even a visitor like myself, who knows the language and many natives, can remain ignorant of such matters. Thus I was greatly impressed by the multitudes of families and young couples picnicking and strolling on well-tended paths in the hills of Buda enjoying their weekend. It was hard to imagine what experiences or feelings they might have had about the authoritarian currents in their country. In such moments it was tempting to believe that simple personal pleasures and preoccupations may trump the afflictions and difficulties originating in the political realm.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

On Hungary\u2019s struggle with national identity.<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1383,"featured_media":131517,"template":"","tags":[923,738,1024],"department_id":[626],"issue":[2934],"section":[],"acf":{"participants":{"simple_value_formatted":"","value_formatted":null,"value":null,"field":{"ID":0,"key":"field_65fd9fbaa0408","label":"Authors","name":"participants","aria-label":"","prefix":"acf","type":"user","value":null,"menu_order":0,"instructions":"","required":0,"id":"","class":"","conditional_logic":0,"parent":"group_647e2b3c6941d","wrapper":{"width":"","class":"","id":""},"role":"","return_format":"array","multiple":1,"allow_null":0,"bidirectional":0,"bidirectional_target":[],"_name":"participants","_valid":1}},"page_number":{"simple_value_formatted":35,"value_formatted":35,"value":"35","field":{"ID":0,"key":"field_647e2bc0c860c","label":"Page Number","name":"page_number","aria-label":"","prefix":"acf","type":"number","value":null,"menu_order":1,"instructions":"","required":0,"id":"","class":"","conditional_logic":0,"parent":"group_647e2b3c6941d","wrapper":{"width":"","class":"","id":""},"default_value":"","min":"","max":"","placeholder":"","step":"","prepend":"","append":"","_name":"page_number","_valid":1}},"featured_image_credits":{"simple_value_formatted":"Members of the Hungarian Guard at a Jobbik rally. 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