Denmark colonized Greenland and subjugated the native people in 1721.
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Denmark colonized Greenland and subjugated the native people in 1721.
In our modern time most Danes feel this was wrong, and for decades there has been a strong political backing for initiatives helping the 57,000 Greenlanders, who receive $673 million per year from Denmark.
Should the people of Greenland choose full independence, the Danish parliament would support their decision.
What we will not support is Trump exploiting a proud native people whom we consider our friends.
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@randahl I dream of Greenland getting independence and then becoming part of EU
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@randahl As you are committed to impartial reporting, when calculating the cost of Greenland to the Danish budget, have you included cryolite mining, which over the lifetime of this mine is estimated to have generated the equivalent of 400 billion Danish kroner (nearly 54 billion euros) for the company responsible for its extraction and the Danish state?
This is not whataboutism on my part, it is a sincere question.@bellule @randahl Of course, DK should have invested much more in Greenland, but the 400 billion are based on a documentary which has been heavily criticized for skewing those numbers. They are turnover, not surplus numbers. The costs of maintaining mining operations were very high, and 20% of the surplus did go directly to the Greenland budget. Mining ended in 1962, coinciding with 2-3 following decades of massive investments in Greenland infrastructure, schools, factories, airports, etc.
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@randahl As you are committed to impartial reporting, when calculating the cost of Greenland to the Danish budget, have you included cryolite mining, which over the lifetime of this mine is estimated to have generated the equivalent of 400 billion Danish kroner (nearly 54 billion euros) for the company responsible for its extraction and the Danish state?
This is not whataboutism on my part, it is a sincere question.@bellule @randahl This is not to diminish the colonial exploitation of the cryolite mining, in terms of enviromental, social and economical consequences. Also, I believe most Greenlanders would prefer not to have "help" from Danes, as Randahl terms it, they want to be recognised as equals and stand on their own.
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@randahl Canada's head of state, who was born in the Arctic and speaks Inuktitut, will be visiting #Greenland next month along with the foreign minister to open the new consulate.
@rjohnston thank you for this info.
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@randahl I dream of Greenland getting independence and then becoming part of EU
@emmecola I do not think Greenland has any incentive to become a member of the EU. They left the EU in 1985, and to the best of my knowledge there is no active initiative to rejoin.
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@emmecola I do not think Greenland has any incentive to become a member of the EU. They left the EU in 1985, and to the best of my knowledge there is no active initiative to rejoin.
@randahl Fine with me! Greenlanders' will is the priority
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@randahl As you are committed to impartial reporting, when calculating the cost of Greenland to the Danish budget, have you included cryolite mining, which over the lifetime of this mine is estimated to have generated the equivalent of 400 billion Danish kroner (nearly 54 billion euros) for the company responsible for its extraction and the Danish state?
This is not whataboutism on my part, it is a sincere question.@bellule No, I have not included any profits the Danish state may have had, just like I have not included the vast military expenses paid by Denmark to keep Greenland safe.
The number I am mentioning is the so-called “bloktilskud” which is a sum of money that is transferred from Denmark to Greenland every year to support their public sector. This money is paid out of the Danish state budget, so in essence, Danish tax payers help lowering the taxes in Greenland.
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They should immediately embark on a public education program with multiple media types to teach how the US has treated its own indigenous population.
That alone would dissuade anyone from ever wanting to be colonized by the US, much less by white nationalist christo-fascist magats.
I believe the best case is how we treated the Alaska Natives.Gave them back 300m acres of their own land & about a billion $ with the stipulation that there be a Liquor Store on every corner & con-men every 20 meters any place where the natives received money, selling totally useless goods. Each telling them that to be equal in this society is in the amount of money they spent on totally useless items. Like flea collars for their dog teams. (Walmart display) No we don't.
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@bellule No, I have not included any profits the Danish state may have had, just like I have not included the vast military expenses paid by Denmark to keep Greenland safe.
The number I am mentioning is the so-called “bloktilskud” which is a sum of money that is transferred from Denmark to Greenland every year to support their public sector. This money is paid out of the Danish state budget, so in essence, Danish tax payers help lowering the taxes in Greenland.
@randahl
Okay, I understand, and no controversy. One of the ambiguities of the situation stems from the feeling of colonisation among the native Greenlanders. Denmark has not always treated them humanely, and this fuels resentment. These are situations we are familiar with in France with our ‘overseas territories’.It's an easy means of agitprop for US emissaries to use and drive a wedge between Greenland and Denmark.
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@randahl
Okay, I understand, and no controversy. One of the ambiguities of the situation stems from the feeling of colonisation among the native Greenlanders. Denmark has not always treated them humanely, and this fuels resentment. These are situations we are familiar with in France with our ‘overseas territories’.It's an easy means of agitprop for US emissaries to use and drive a wedge between Greenland and Denmark.
️@randahl
Another ambiguity concerns Denmark itself, which spends its time reminding everyone that it is a historic ally of the US, but is simply perceived across the Atlantic as a small, obsequious vassal. We have seen recently how attempts to curry favour with Uncle Sam have only resulted in less and less respect.Danish decision-makers have not yet changed their paradigm, and it is unclear whether they can imagine an ‘alternative’ here and now.
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@randahl
Another ambiguity concerns Denmark itself, which spends its time reminding everyone that it is a historic ally of the US, but is simply perceived across the Atlantic as a small, obsequious vassal. We have seen recently how attempts to curry favour with Uncle Sam have only resulted in less and less respect.Danish decision-makers have not yet changed their paradigm, and it is unclear whether they can imagine an ‘alternative’ here and now.
️@randahl
The situation for Danish politicians / people is not simple, and the overall picture does not inspire optimism. -
@randahl I dream of Greenland getting independence and then becoming part of EU
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@bellule @randahl Of course, DK should have invested much more in Greenland, but the 400 billion are based on a documentary which has been heavily criticized for skewing those numbers. They are turnover, not surplus numbers. The costs of maintaining mining operations were very high, and 20% of the surplus did go directly to the Greenland budget. Mining ended in 1962, coinciding with 2-3 following decades of massive investments in Greenland infrastructure, schools, factories, airports, etc.
@tokeriis @randahl
Okay, I'm not trying to stir up controversy, but once again France often takes this kind of more or less one-sided accounting approach with its ‘overseas territories’ (just for example: New Caledonia, because mining is also an issue there). If we put the positive and negative elements down on paper, the result perceived by the colonised is rarely positive (and we can understand why). -
@bellule @randahl This is not to diminish the colonial exploitation of the cryolite mining, in terms of enviromental, social and economical consequences. Also, I believe most Greenlanders would prefer not to have "help" from Danes, as Randahl terms it, they want to be recognised as equals and stand on their own.
-
Denmark colonized Greenland and subjugated the native people in 1721.
In our modern time most Danes feel this was wrong, and for decades there has been a strong political backing for initiatives helping the 57,000 Greenlanders, who receive $673 million per year from Denmark.
Should the people of Greenland choose full independence, the Danish parliament would support their decision.
What we will not support is Trump exploiting a proud native people whom we consider our friends.
️@randahl not sure Greenlanders consider Danes friends, given how much child abduction has been going on...
