Austrian Elections & Politics 5.0 (Burgenland state election - January 26)

[Pick Up the Phone]

And also, immigration is a huge problem and threat.

Well, that might be your opinion but it's hardly a universal truth. There are enough people (like me) who think that immigration is not only a demographic necessity but also a great chance for European societies. Regardless of whether you call such an opinion "naive" or not.

In Belgium i've talked with multiple people, and i'm sure 75% has a more right-wing opinion on immigration than me.

Anecdotal evidence is... well anecdotal evidence. Not more. I work in academia and there are quite a few social democrats I know (also in related fields: teachers, civil servants, social workers...). Basically all of them are in favor of much more liberal immigration policies and a handful even support open borders without any sort of restriction. Might be that there is just a huge difference between Belgium and Switzerland or, more likely, between different population segments. I only know what these people would say if the SP were to employ strict anti-immigration policies. "Unsolidaristic", "grotesque", and "shameful" would be the friendliest expressions.

You have a huge problem if only 2% of the 18-29 year olds support you, while almost all of your support is from life-long voters, immigrants and pensioners.

Do you now refer to Belgium or Austria? If Belgium, do you have any source for this number (which seems unrealistically low). If Austria, you're probably mistaken: 14% of the 18-29 age group voted for the SPÖ and 27% for the GRÜNEN in the last election. Which tells us a few things:

1. The SPÖ is on its way of becoming a party for the elderly (pensioners etc.). Not the worst thing in a rapidly aging society. Consequently, it should focus on satisfying this clientele (which will soon include many aging migrants).
2. Young voters (18-29) support the pro-immigration center-left parties (SPÖ + GRÜNE) to a higher degree (41% + 8% NEOS) than the two older voter segments (30-59: 34% + 9% NEOS; 60+: 36% + 6% NEOS). Especially the extremely high voting share of the GRÜNEN indicates that the youth in Austria is much more migration-friendly than you might be inclined to believe.
3. You also forget that many long-term voters of the SPÖ are immigrants and their descendants, often of Turkish or Balkan origin. In major cities like Vienna they constitute one of the most reliable and powerful voting blocs. And you think that the SPÖ should sacrifice them for no other reason than the mere assumption that a (largely imaginary - it's not the 1970s anymore) working class demands their heads? Sorry to disappoint you, but today's immigrants ARE the working class.

I'm just concerned about the left's demise, and no... i'm not a social democrat but they are a natural ally of us, and more importantly were freedom fighters a long time back, but their neoliberal and pro-immigration policies have hurt them a lot. I want a left that's on our side, that opposes the neoliberal establishment and evolves into a more outspoken opinion on immigration that isn't plain naive, because we have problems with immigration. It's as simple as it is.

"Freedom fighters" and "tough migration policies" in the same sentence - sounds like a contradiction. What you demand is not freedom but the protection of privileges. And this is something where many, if not most, left-wingers simply disagree with you. We want a left that cares more about actual human beings than about the struggle against whatever "the neoliberal establishment" means.

[Pick Up the Phone]

They have lost 15% or more to the FPÖ or AfD for good. That train has long left the station, their supporters are so die-hard and anti-Social(ist) and conspiracy theorist that nobody can win them back.

Indeed, it's a more or less pointless endeavor. Many of these people resemble members of a cult and once they have been infected by the dangerous virus that is right-wing populism, they buy into every conspiracy theory. Chemtails, Eurabia, George Soros, Great Replacement...

They will never voter for any Altpartei again. So the best thing is that they don't vote at all. This is also the lesson of the recent state elections in Eastern Germany.

[Pick Up the Phone]

Not 50% of the country are immigrants, immigrants will start their own party like they've done in the Netherlands and tried to do in Belgium (Democratic Socialist Appel, DENK, ISLAM (which is pro-sharia party which hold seats in some Brussels periphere city councils), Be.one, MRP (Multicultural Right's Party) and the right-wing VMC (Flemish Multicultural Collective)

And if 50% of immigrants were to win this country, than our culture & tradition is gone. Also the other leftist parties, you say yourselves Green / SPO is going to pick up the immigrants, and we don't need to go far-right on immigration, just center-right to right-wing with a tough immigration policy, but correctly done.

And yes i feel threatened by the immigrant parties, especially parties like VMC and ISLAM. A pro-sharia law party should be banned, period.

Belgium is Belgium, the Netherlands are the Netherlands, and Austria is Austria. Neither are these countries similar nor is there necessarily a similarity between the political behavior of their migrant populations. Apart from this, there are no generic "migrants" in the first place but rather dozens of different groups and communities. The old right-wing equation MIGRANTS = MUSLIMS = PRO-SHARIA is intellectually very dishonest.

In general, people start new parties if they don't feel adequately represented by the existing ones anymore. Nothing is wrong with that; it's one of the core principles of an open and pluralist democratic society. Previous parties were founded as institutional agents of a specific class (Social Democracy), religion (Christian Democracy), or political agenda (Greens) - migrants have every right to do the same based on some form of collective identity. If such a party happens to support sharia law, well, then it's the business of the courts to decide whether this must be tolerated or not. But a society in which racism, xenophobia, and islamophobia are common shouldn't expect a too narrow interpretation of free speech here.

[Pick Up the Phone]

Indeed, it's a more or less pointless endeavor. Many of these people resemble members of a cult and once they have been infected by the dangerous virus that is right-wing populism, they buy into every conspiracy theory. Chemtails, Eurabia, George Soros, Great Replacement...

They will never voter for any Altpartei again. So the best thing is that they don't vote at all. This is also the lesson of the recent state elections in Eastern Germany.

What the hell are you talking about?

People being concerned about 1000+ sexual assaults across Germany on a single night is not a conspiracy theory. These are undeniable, Police supplied facts.

Granted, Germany has NO normal right-wing party, so these people get painted as neo-Nazis if they vote AfD, because it's basically the only party against illegal immigration.

If you had a normal party standing up to illegal immigration, without the edgy Holocaust talk/xenophobia/cult of personality Björn does, a lot of people vote for that party instead.

As someone who describes himself as Right-Wing, I have no issue saying the AfD is a steaming pile of hot crap, which is only breeding more and more Björn type of people. The only way to keep them from growing is to form a real, normal right-wing Party, like the current ÖVP under Kurz.

Well, I talk about two points: (1) Voters of right-wing populist parties are less likely to switch to other parties than voters of center-right or center-left parties. They're much more consistent if you want to express it in a positive way. (2) In the state election in Eastern Germany, there was a direct correlation between an increased turnout rate and the strong results of the AfD. Their most important group were, in fact, not former CDU voters but former non-voters and the politically apathetic.

It seems to me that neither of these points is too controversial.

Now, when it comes to the alleged "1000+" sexual assaults, you're apparently wrong in three ways. First, you claim that the "1000+" relates to sexual assaults only. However, this was rather the total number of occurrences reported to the police. More than half of them involved no sexual component at all but cases of theft and petty crime. Secondly, there is no proof that all of these crimes were actually committed. Or do we suddenly live in a system in which one is presumed guilty until proven innocent? Thirdly, those actually convicted were not exclusively migrants but included quite a few Germans(!) as well. The entire event had far less to do with migration than with toxic masculinity.

By the way: the AfD is "not the only party against illegal immigration". All parties in the Bundestag are against illegal immigration (with the possible exception of the LINKE, at least if we make a judgement on the basis of party platforms). Also, refugees and asylum seekers are not illegal immigrants per se.