"One is reminded of the beautiful summer days of 1944, when tens of thousands of Jews were forcibly marched to their deaths through the streets of Budapest." Hungarian, Romanian, Serbian and Czech.
The fact that Syriza was crucified more often and with more intensity than Viktor Orbán speaks volumes in itself. It is just that most people do not want to listen.
The Hungarian reaction to the refugee crisis has caused a media storm. But before we join in the castigation, let's try and understand the reasons behind Hungary's actions.
The chloropicrin agent used as a popular pesticide belongs historically to the same family of toxic irritants used in tear gas attacks against refugees.This is not an innocent coincidence.
The generic space of "Central and Eastern Europe" is castigated for its lack of compassion. But can we get under the skin of particular perspectives to explain - even understand - the attitude?
As the humanitarian crisis in Calais grows, the media is increasingly dominated with tales of savagery and menace in the refugee camps. But the reality couldn’t be further from the truth.
Fear pushes us to know the social and political determinations of refugees from a right-wing perspective ('are they potential ISIS militants?'). But compassion works by blinding us to it.
