The squeamishness of our mainstream political right tells us everything we need to know about Britain’s failure to conserve itself.
Admiration for Hungary’s “success” tells us more about the audiences and commentators than it does about the country itself – it is Budapest as a Barthesian myth.
I share the sentiment that President Trump may ultimately need to go further than simply bringing in tough new sanctions against Russia – less carrot, more stick from now on.
Evolving into this necessary party of radical Conservatism requires Conservatives first to be duly chastened by their own immense past failures. When in power, they balked at surgically removing the very problems others are now slashing at with machetes.
It’s certainly a case for the nations of Europe to take full responsibility for the defence of their own continent, but the very last thing we need is for the EU to lead the process. In fact, it’s hard to think of an organisation less suited to the task.
When the moment came to show he had international support, Trump cited Viktor Orbán. That’s not much of a surprise, since Orbán has been positioning himself for some time as the only European leader who could talk to Trump.
The attempt to shut down the National Conservatism conference in Belgium is a clear-cut case of abuse of power that has exposed a disturbing attitude towards freedom of expression and assembly.
Four, deep-rooted currents in are carving out space for movements which seek to prioritise the interests, the culture, the values, and the ways of life of the majority group against what they see as self-interested, corrupt, narcissistic, and incompetent elites.
Estonia’s government has, in a White Paper that rightly calls for Russia’s defeat, estimated it could be done at a cost merely of 0.25 per cent of Western GDP over four years.
Now, through Orbán and Trump, the Kremlin is cashing in its chips. Unable to defeat Western-supported Ukraine on the battlefield, it’s playing Western politics to cut off its supply of money and weapons.
This European “nationalism” could well produce a considerably more populist EU. Whether that would be good for the UK is another matter.
His life and works appears to have little influence at the top of the current Conservative Party, and among the wider membership and the British public. But it seems that in those countries where Scruton went behind the Iron Curtain, his work and life is not just remembered, he is still actively saving minds.
Or does Brussels propose to put up with Orban’s provocations and allow him to assume next year the presidency of the EU?
Of all the advanced industrial democracies, in the great majority of countries moderate conservatives either lead the government or the opposition.
There is a cliché about politicians getting their hands on the levers of power and finding them not connected to anything. But the true power of a politician is language. It’s about using words to change the perception of what is important.