Well, it was bound to happen. Eventually I was going to have to take a short pause from my story-spinning and picture-posting of this idyllic place I am lucky enough to call home and momentarily address the elephant in the corner...literally. No doubt you all have your own opinions of what and who Donald Trump is and isn't, but you may be wondering what some of the international reaction is to this toupeed tyrant's run for the White House. I will briefly describe my opinion on the matter, and then I will share some of the general opinions I have heard here across the pond.
There's not too much for me to say, myself, as this whole situation has left me largely speechless. There are a few thoughts I think, however. I think that this is the most embarrassing U.S. presidential election yet. I think this was bound to happen eventually. I think, like Brexit, this is a wake-up call to a nation whose 'majority' assume they are their opinions are indeed the majority, and we are close to seeing the falsity of this idea proven. I think that fear and anger are huge talking points at the moment. I think we see the importance of cooperating and the result of mere emotionally-charged and unfounded divisions. I think that Donald Trump is the definition of populist, and unfortunately the U.S. has become a land where ignorance, ego, and un-educating entertainment has become popular, as can be seen in the vast majority of pop culture. I think that we can now see a few blaring issues with a two-party political system. I think that America will make history either way in this election, and hopefully it's for the better and not worse.
I largely have access to Czechs and Czech opinions when it comes to current issues, but being in Europe does result in overhearing some of the opinions held by the greater international crowd, whether it be a couple Brits on Charles Bridge, two Germans in the pub, catching an article in a foreign publication, or reading the Facebook statuses of international friends. Here are some of the most common themes and reactions:
There's not too much for me to say, myself, as this whole situation has left me largely speechless. There are a few thoughts I think, however. I think that this is the most embarrassing U.S. presidential election yet. I think this was bound to happen eventually. I think, like Brexit, this is a wake-up call to a nation whose 'majority' assume they are their opinions are indeed the majority, and we are close to seeing the falsity of this idea proven. I think that fear and anger are huge talking points at the moment. I think we see the importance of cooperating and the result of mere emotionally-charged and unfounded divisions. I think that Donald Trump is the definition of populist, and unfortunately the U.S. has become a land where ignorance, ego, and un-educating entertainment has become popular, as can be seen in the vast majority of pop culture. I think that we can now see a few blaring issues with a two-party political system. I think that America will make history either way in this election, and hopefully it's for the better and not worse.
I largely have access to Czechs and Czech opinions when it comes to current issues, but being in Europe does result in overhearing some of the opinions held by the greater international crowd, whether it be a couple Brits on Charles Bridge, two Germans in the pub, catching an article in a foreign publication, or reading the Facebook statuses of international friends. Here are some of the most common themes and reactions:
- Amazement that the U.S. has allowed itself to get into this position and that Trump has made it this far (remember, I was also here speaking with many of these same students at the beginning of this whole campaign when it was still a 'joke')
- Fear of what the implications of a Trump election might mean for Europe, especially his recent comments about NATO and no longer honoring the mutual defense clause. (an article from The Atlantic can be found here) It is important to remember that the idea of Russia and Russian occupation is still very fresh in the minds of many Europeans. Any threat from Russia is taken much more seriously here than stateside, especially after Brexit.
- Amusement at the whole idea of the election. Many people consider it a lesser-of-two-evils situation with one 'evil' very clearly the lesser. They think it's quite comical and that Trump still has no chance
- Sympathizing with Trump when it comes to issues like immigration (even if they might not advocate the construction a wall, but simply stricter borders). Many Europeans, even ones that were previously so open to refugees and open immigration, are now beginning to have their doubts and second-guess the policy after increasing numbers of violent incidents and terrorist attacks
- Pleasant awareness of the fact that Trump's ex-wife was Czech and current wife is Slovenian (both Slavic nations) "We're famous."
- Joking about how if Trump is elected president he and President Zeman (known for being a man with a fairly backward political agenda many times) would be best friends and the U.S.-Czech Republic relations would surely improve
I am currently teaching the phrases "pick your poison," and "you've made your bed, now you must sleep in it," in many of my classes.
 |
| Photo taken from malialitman.com |
