The following are the remarks delivered by our editor-in-chief, Gergely Dobozi at the Transatlantic Patriot Summit held on 27 April 2024 in Budapest, hosted by the Danube Institute.
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Good morning, everyone.
I warmly welcome all the young conservatives gathered here from around the globe—from Warsaw to Washington D.C., from Belgrade to Paris. It’s a pleasure to have you at the Danube Institute headquarters.
We’ve endured exhausting yet profoundly fulfilling days. Looking around, I can see that fatigue is common among us. Thanks to the excellent organization, the impactful speeches, and the engaging interactions with CPAC Hungary 2024’s distinguished guests, there has been little opportunity for rest over the past couple of days.
During breaks, there were moments to process all that we had absorbed. One such moment remains vivid in my memory: as I sat on a bench outside, I found myself examining the banners of CPAC Hungary.
‘United we stand!’ declared one banner. While this sentiment seems apt for the political climate in Hungary, one wonders if it genuinely extends globally.
Is it accurate to say that conservatives worldwide are uniting?
The threat from the global Left is a common theme at many international conferences I’ve attended. Whether I’m watching Netflix, Disney+, or HBO Max, or sitting in a movie theatre trying to enjoy a Star Wars or Harry Potter movie, I can see with my own eyes and hear with my own ears that the global Left is a real thing.
But what about a global Right or global conservatism? Even as conservatives rightly criticize certain aspects of globalism, it’s an issue worth considering.
We in the pandemic-struck West are facing challenging times. Among the pressing issues are the climate crisis, conflicts in Israel and Ukraine, potential conflict in Taiwan, demographic challenges, rampant irregular migration, human trafficking, and the erosion of the sanctity of life.
The global Left offers overly simplistic yet perplexing responses to these issues, portraying war as a clear-cut battle between good and evil, with the attacked nation justified in its defence and retaliation—but only in the case of Ukraine. They champion net zero emissions yet criticize China’s dominance, the global champion in battery production. With slogans like ‘my body, my choice,’ I question whether the global Left even sees demographic decline as a problem. However, they appear to favour uncontrolled migration as a solution, regardless of the inherent risks.
The global Left’s narratives are easy to summarize because they are ever-present in English-language media outlets and online streaming platforms.
This represents a significant advantage for the global progressive Left. Do conservatives have a comparable presence?
Regrettably, not today. As intellectuals, we do our part by disseminating conservative ideas from the English-speaking world. But is a French conservative quick to engage with the challenges his Polish counterpart is facing in real-time? Does an Italian conservative understand the solutions proposed by the Czechs?
My young friends, our responsibility is immense. We are the last generation that could rely solely on our parents to differentiate between right and wrong. Yet, we are also fully immersed in the technological advancements of the 21st century.
We have an opportunity to globalize conservatism.
The good news is that there’s no better place for this endeavour than here. Budapest isn’t Brussels, and CPAC Hungary isn’t NatCon.
As a senior researcher at the Danube Institute, I assure you our doors are always open to those around the globe who seek to understand why Budapest could become a hub for realistic, conservative thought.
As the online editor-in-chief of Hungarian Conservative, I guarantee a platform for those who wish to discuss these topics in English, contributing to the evolution of our collective thinking.
Friends, in the hours ahead, convince me that my earlier sentiments are merely the result of fatigue-induced pessimism. Let’s persuade each other that we possess the insights to influence today’s conservative leaders and as future leaders ourselves. We must unite and collaborate to ensure that we stick together and work together to ensure that conservatism is global—after all, so is normality.
It would be so populistic to conclude by saying, ‘the stakes have never been this high’—it is the Left that has been proclaiming the ‘final struggle’ for nearly a century after all.
In reality, the stakes have always been high, and conservatives understand this. Our strength is acknowledging history’s harsh truths, learning from past errors, and progressing responsibly.
In closing, I echo but complete the motto of CPAC Hungary, which more accurately reflects reality: United we stand, divided we fall.
Thank you very much!
