0.3 C
Ljubljana
Monday, February 17, 2025

Make Slovenia Great Again

By: Gašper Blažič

Some may raise their eyebrows at this title, which could verge on the bizarre. How can small Slovenia ever be “great”? The inferiority complex of a small nation has always plagued us, but at one point, our country was considered a shining example within the EU. Unfortunately, only for a short time, as it was always followed by a return to the bitter reality of socialist (sub)mediocrity. And so, it was again after April 2022.

But can the idea of a Slovenian national revival be connected to Trump’s already traditional slogan of “Make America Great Again”? The Slovenian son-in-law has recently been sworn in as President of the United States for the second time. Just two years ago, his political career seemed buried, but a year ago, after the internal Republican primaries in Iowa, the first major turnaround occurred. Other Republican candidates began withdrawing from the race and endorsing Trump. At the time, I still could not believe that the notoriously “brash” businessman could return to the White House, despite the serious missteps of the incumbent President Biden, who eventually withdrew from the race and put forward the “woke queen” Kamala Harris, backed by practically the entire pop culture world, especially the state of California, which recently suffered devastating wildfires in celebrity-filled Los Angeles. For clarification: California, a traditional Democratic stronghold and the most electorally powerful state (with 54 electors), did not “disappoint” this time either, giving Harris overwhelming support.

Trump’s rhetoric is, admittedly, quite populist and, for some, even unsettling – both before and after the elections. However, during his first term, there was no Third World War, and he did not become the “new Hitler”, as many had predicted. Instead, he consistently spoke to the average American and highlighted real issues affecting people. Of course, that alone is not enough to win, but it is a reliable path to victory – and perhaps a point of reflection on how to apply this in Slovenia.

It is clear that Slovenia is not America. We are not a vast melting pot but rather a small national state, ideologically divided and marked by strong propaganda from the successors of a regime that never underwent lustration. This does not mean that such a deep-state structure cannot be overcome. One must also recognise the weakening influence of traditional media: national TV viewership is declining, and print media circulation is also shrinking. Especially after Trump’s victory in the U.S. elections, the global role of online platforms – particularly X – has been growing, while censorship is increasingly retreating. This is good news for Slovenia, as most of the Slovenian public has so far received strictly filtered information about political events, forming public opinion according to the wishes of the (Slovenian) deep state and various transitional moguls.

The first lesson that the current opposition must learn is to form a unified alternative front against the current ruling clique. In 1990, we already took such a lesson – relatively successfully – but only once. Later, “small-mindedness” prevailed. Perhaps the communist writer Tone Seliškar was right when, through his youth novel The Brotherhood of the Blue Seagull, he promoted the idea that we are stronger together: a single twig can be broken, but a bundle cannot. There is much truth in this, as past political experiences show that the so-called “spring”, conditionally right-wing side, was only relatively successful when it was willing to set aside personal grievances and stand together. The logic of “we will go our own way” has never paid off.

The second lesson is short: identify where the average Slovene’s shoe pinches and start not just treating the blisters but eliminating the causes of those blisters. And offer people a path to solutions.

Share

Latest news

Related news