Paris, anyone?

[Richard Barrett]

Among the leaders standing shoulder to shoulder at the front of the free speech march in Paris on Sunday was Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry. How about he return home and release from prison journalists such as the Australian Peter Greste? Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu marched too. Perahps he should admit that marching for free speech doesn't sit well with Turkey holding a 2 year record - ahead of even Iran and China - for jailing the most journalists.

I've already mentioned these cases and many more.

Multiculturalism and globalisation are not the same thing. Multiculturalism is the result of the movement of people while globalisation is the result of unrestricted movement of capital. The former tends to increase the diversity of a society while the latter (among many other more destructive effects) tends to decrease it (putting a McDonalds on every street corner).

[MrGongGong]

Oh please do lay off these poor politicians, ahinton ... they're only human!

I haven't yet met a man or woman who''s not a hypocrite to some degree. Only the pet dog has an immaculate record regarding complete and transparent honesty and consistency, sense of duty to those he serves and total all-round reliability.

Be fair!

Aaah yes the Cardinals stock excuse.

and

Among the leaders standing shoulder to shoulder at the front of the free speech march in Paris on Sunday

Of course they weren't standing 'at the front' of anything, just in a cordoned off side street participating in a window dressing publicity stunt.

[MrGongGong]

What's wrong with "monocultural" places?

I think you miss the point.
In the UK we DO live in a multicultural society even though some think it's possible or even desirable to try and make it less so.
The problem with folks who go on about how bad this is don't seem to have any grasp at all of what our culture actually is.

The composer, Frank Denyer, used to talk with some agitation about how it was impossible to understand about Orchestral music without understanding what happened in Mongolia in the 7th and 8th centuries (they invented bowing).

[P. G. Tipps]

... putting a McDonalds on every street corner.....

You certainly have been away a long time. Not many McDonalds on street corners around here any longer, these disappeared some time ago.

Starbucks, Cafe Nero, Costa Coffee are the latest kids on the block, plus quite a number of independent tearooms, hairdressers, cleaners, computer shops etc, owned by Turks, Greeks, Italians, Chinese, etc etc.

One thing about this multicultural/global capitalism, it's ever-changing and never boring.

However, we digress ...

[Richard Barrett]

around here

That's very nice for you, but unfortunately it doesn't apply to the rest of the world, where there are 35 000 branches in 119 countries. Plus they still have over a thousand branches in the UK.

[Beef Oven!]

Precisely. The prospect of a monocultural society (and who decides on the particular culture in these, one might wonder? - who decides these things? as has been asked here repeatedly about multicultural ones) in UK would be more than enough to make me want to leave although, if I didn't, I might be forced to ****** off back to Scotland in any case (yes, I know that it's still part of the so-called United Kingdom, but we are speaking of Little Englanders here).

You are talking about Little Englanders here, not us.

You don't live in a multicultural community, like many of us do, so do you mean that if our community becomes monocultural, you'd leave your monocultural community? And why do you think that anyone would seek you out and force you to ****** off back to Scotland? Are you not attaching a little too much importance to yourself? I bet no-one would even notice you.

If Little Englanders are identified by sharing the Beef view as presented here, why did some of their forebears do so much colonising? Asking for trouble, that, surely?

Why do you keep talking about Little Englanders? RB instructed us about Englanders, not little ones. And I did not present any view, why do you attribute something to me which I didn't say? If you want to decide what an Englander (or little Englander) view is, go ahead, but don't attribute it to me.

Is a monocultural society one, for example, in which Muslims must all inhabit and not step outside certain countries designated for them (by whom?) and Christians, Buddhists, Hindus, Sikhs et al likewise?

Think of Jamaica and Turkey, they aren't like that. Stop being a silly-billy.

And would it seek to presume total racial segregation along the lines of "England for the English only" (which sounds almost like an EDF slogan

Your imagination is running riot! I don't think these ideas have been put forward, but you seem to have the hang of them!

Apart from the sheer horror of such a notion, who on earth are the English anyway? And why would Little Englanders concern themselves with what's been going on in France?

Little Englanders again? You are very naughty!

[Beef Oven!]

I think you miss the point.
In the UK we DO live in a multicultural society even though some think it's possible or even desirable to try and make it less so.
The problem with folks who go on about how bad this is don't seem to have any grasp at all of what our culture actually is.

What is multicultural society?

The composer, Frank Denyer, used to talk with some agitation about how it was impossible to understand about Orchestral music without understanding what happened in Mongolia in the 7th and 8th centuries (they invented bowing).

I now have an explanation as to why I don't understand orchestral music. Is it ok to like it, without understanding it? Please say yes

[Beef Oven!]

Why, for example, should countries such as Jamaica or Turkey be 'multicultural'? This suggests that the questioner thinks Jamaica and Turkey are monocultural countries.

Like Jamaica and Turkey? They reflect the the particular mix of cultures prevalent in their countries at the moment, don't they? This suggests that the (same) questioner thinks Jamaica and Turkey are multicultural countries.

Jamaica and Turkey are not multicultural societies. There are many other nations that are not multicultural societies, I have just given two examples of countries that most British people know.

[MrGongGong]

I now have an explanation as to why I don't understand orchestral music. Is it ok to like it, without understanding it? Please say yes

Of course, you can like whatever you want.
I do think (and I was taught composition by an ethnomusicologist so i'm probably bound to in some way) that the history of the musics of the world has a lot to teach us about how societies and cultures operate and interact.

What is multicultural society?

It's an evil socialist plot to make us all the same and guilty about our colonial past. (is the answer you might want)

[Beef Oven!]

Of course, you can like whatever you want.

[mercia]

What is multicultural society?

is it not the "mix of cultures" that you told us, at #307, exists in Turkey and Jamaica ?

[Richard Barrett]

What is multicultural society?

Jamaica and Turkey are not multicultural societies.

?

[Beef Oven!]

is it not the "mix of cultures" that you told us, at #307, exists in Turkey and Jamaica ?

No, it must be more than that. The mix of cultures prevalent in Jamaica and Turkey today doesn't even come close to warranting the title 'multi-cultural'. I think that's my point in post #307,. You've confused yourself about what I meant. Record straight now.

[mercia]

Jamaica and Turkey are not multicultural societies.

I think that if you are able to categorically say that Jamaica and Turkey are not multicultural societies you must have a particular definition of "multicultural society" in your mind and yet still need to ask what "multicultural society" means.

[Beef Oven!]

I think that if you are able to categorically say that Jamaica and Turkey are not multicultural societies you must have a particular definition of "multicultural society" in your mind and yet still need to ask what "multicultural society" means.

Not really. I've just gone with the flow and not thought about a particular definition. I thought that others would be able pop one right out for me. Why are they being coy?