0910.22
12:21:34
The Economist does it again
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So I kind of hit on this idea sometime last year when talking to Simon Hix’s wife about this NGO or consultancy group that she works at or whatever. Basically, it tries to do on a non-governmental basis what the Feds in America do by force: encourage or require some private and public contracts to go to companies operated by minority groups. This makes sense in some ways, especially in the US, as it’s a way try to fund economic redevelopment in impoverished and (usually minority-filled) inner cities, but I didn’t think it made any sense in Europe!
My example was, say, I’m a little Portuguese graphic design start-up in the Netherlands (I picked some ethnicities with minimal bad-blood for this example specifically). So I’m an ethnic minority. I probably don’t even look Dutch, but my parents came to Holland in the 1960s for similar reasons to other Souther Europeans and Turks went to Germany at the same time. So, as an ethnic minority Dutch citizen, wouldn’t it be just if I got favored to get a contract, especially if it was for doing business in a Portuguese neighborhood? You know, I know the people better plus social justice blah blah. But! This is the EU silly pants. That Dutch firm could just as easily set up a contract with a small Portuguese graphic design start-up in Portugal, where my cousin Adão is also a graphic designer, but as a Portuguese citizen, isn’t an ethnic minority. I mean, we’re all going to be doing the b2b communication in English anyway, so what’s the difference? I think it’s just nonsense.
Well so does Il Economist:
My example was, say, I’m a little Portuguese graphic design start-up in the Netherlands (I picked some ethnicities with minimal bad-blood for this example specifically). So I’m an ethnic minority. I probably don’t even look Dutch, but my parents came to Holland in the 1960s for similar reasons to other Souther Europeans and Turks went to Germany at the same time. So, as an ethnic minority Dutch citizen, wouldn’t it be just if I got favored to get a contract, especially if it was for doing business in a Portuguese neighborhood? You know, I know the people better plus social justice blah blah. But! This is the EU silly pants. That Dutch firm could just as easily set up a contract with a small Portuguese graphic design start-up in Portugal, where my cousin Adão is also a graphic designer, but as a Portuguese citizen, isn’t an ethnic minority. I mean, we’re all going to be doing the b2b communication in English anyway, so what’s the difference? I think it’s just nonsense.
Well so does Il Economist:
The biggest complaints from many ethnic minorities are really about something else: bad behaviour by the authorities. Much better, therefore, to concentrate on solving that with a clean and responsive government, good laws and a good justice system. That kind of public administration makes special treatment for anyone much less necessary and encourages the social mobility that defuses all kinds of collective grievances, real or imagined.Yeah so basically give me a job, The Economist Group Ltd. In addition to thinking up your articles a year before you write them I am also an expaaaairrrt in both EU Economic Policy and navigating in Brussels. Unlike some people.
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