The rise of Autocracy / Dictatorship in Central Europe

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More specifically, Hungary, my home country.

Read this Washington Post article:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/ ... story.html

What do you think?

New Belarus? (within the European Union)

I believe Hungary would be kicked out of the EU if it were to actually become a dictatorship.

I'm not sure 'new Belarus' will be a widely understood reference, I'm afraid.

Maybe it'll turn out to be one of those fun dictatorships.

It should, though things are messy in Europe even without considering Hungary (Greece, Italy, Spain).

Mr Orban deviously pushes the limits in every field on the expense of the democratic political establishment.

lol, the funny thing is that a whole county will suck from what one idiot did/does, including the ones who actually can use their brains.

I wouldn't be too sure. The EU isn't exactly the very beacon of liberal democracy itself, you know. Lisbon/Lisbon II et al?

Hopefully it'll be an emulation of Turkmenbashi. Who doesn't want to rename bread and other things after themselves, have a giant, epically posed golden statue that rotates to always face the sun, and when you quit smoking tobacco, decree that all government employees must thus follow suit and simultaneously ban it in all public places, amongst other fun things?

Well, as long as new judges can't be arbitrarily *removed*, the problem might not be as bad in the long run (10+ years) as you'd otherwise imagine. The young judges will evolve and drift ideologically over time, and the older judges will get forced out to be replaced by new judges by the current political regime by the same laws that enabled them to be swept in to begin with. The issue of "stacking courts" has been dealt with by nearly every country on earth, has always been controversial, and usually ends up being relatively moot over the long run as long as the judiciary remains independent.

Likewise, the media laws sound bad... but let's be honest. Hungary's media is probably as beholden to its corporate overlords as the media in the US, Britain, and everywhere else. If one party just won 2/3 the seats in Hungary's parliament in a fair election, it's likely that most Hungarian TV, radio, and print media are going to go along with the same view anyway, just because that's the view likely to be the least controversial among their audience and advertisers. Even in the US, fringe talk radio barely survives on AM radio, and most smaller newspapers are gasping their last breaths and turning into local editions of nearby big-city papers (most of whom are barely hanging on themselves).

First, thank you for your post, it's interesting. Here in Hungary it is unheard of after the political changes that the government tries to rule the whole media market by his own will via establishing a media authority (board) under it's exclusive control and give frequencies only to those who are "balanced" in their opinion. They have decided to mute a popular talk radio station by means hardly veiled to look "democratic" and "fair", just because it belongs to the opposition. They wanted a music frequency instead of a talk radio. It's as simply as that. However, the winner for its frequency is a more than dubious capital-weak never-heard-of-before cheap company by one point on a highly subjective evaluation. In this air, as the leader of a (commercial) TV/radio station, you have no other choice but to slant your opinion to the side of the government.

The high court "itself is being packed with new appointees and stripped of much of its authority, so it’s unclear whether the rulings will have any effect". In practice it means that any tax law or arbitrary modification / amendment to the pension system is out of consideration for them. They got rid of the private pillar of the pension system just like communists would have done.

The independence of the central bank is not good for the government, since there's a huge hole in the budget of the county (made by them), and only funds like the taken-away pension funds could help the budget out of extreme deficit. Now that it's been spent, they are after the reserves. Nice. At the same time Mr Orban (and his government) tries to make the people believe all the financial world against Hungarians (i.e. him)...

Hungary, Budapest, 01/02/2012 - People demonstrated they believe in Democracy.

(A first-person impression)

Edit: See also New York Times:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/03/world ... &ref=world



DEMOCRACY!



KLUBRÁDIÓ - One of the last bastions of oppositional media is now doomed

HUNGARIAN REPUBLIC 1989 - 2011 - "Republic" has been removed from the country's name by the new antidemocratic Constitution



The main stage of the demonstration



Nearly 100,000 people were there (Budapest's population is 2 million)



HAPPY NEW YEAR! 1984 / 2011 - A reference to Orwell

Below: One of the prime minister’s closest friends, the one who has been appointed as head of the newly created judicial body

Left: GO BACK TO THE BALLET-STAGE AND RESUME JUMPING! - Reference to the government that is celebrating the new antidemocratic Constitution becoming operative, held at the same time in the nearby Opera by extreme security measures

I'm proud of those people at the demonstration!

BBC NEWS EUROPE - Hungarians protest against new Fidesz constitution

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-16387117

This sums up everything well.

OK, I know I'm only talking to myself, no one cares. (please don't be offended)

But, I really wish you would never experience such things as now happening to this little and unknown country. Too much brainwashed people and wicked politicians... Terrible.

If I could flee form this crap my nation put us into... 4 million people in poverty... And most still supports the traitor's bolshevik regime... All because of extreme demagogy... NTs??? OH, crap...

With ASD, how could I leave?

The Independent (UK) / Leading article: Hungary retreats from democracy

R.I.P., democracy (and sanity)

They actually did show this on the news a few days ago here. Didn't really mention much besides pro-democracy protests.