Ep. 2621 Is Europe Awakening or Still Asleep?

Summary

The Tom Woods Show – Ep. 2621: Is Europe Awakening or Still Asleep?
Date: March 21, 2025
Host: Tom Woods
Guest: Claudia Noonez (aka Claudia Shandy)

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Overview

In this episode, Tom Woods welcomes Lisbon-based commentator Claudia Noonez (X handle: Claudia Shandy) to explore whether Europe is experiencing an awakening or remains “asleep” to issues of liberty, authoritarianism, and shifting political trends. The discussion centers on European attitudes toward the EU, public opinion on current challenges including Russia, climate policy, immigration, and censorship, and the rise of new right-wing parties challenging establishment orthodoxy.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. European Attitudes Toward the European Union

• Tom's Observation (01:15): Americans historically value local self-government and are wary of distant, unaccountable authority. Tom expresses confusion that Europeans often cheer for the EU despite similar centralization.
• Claudia's Insight (02:13):
  • Many Europeans accept EU oversight because they find comfort and stability in being “taken care of.”
  • Countries like Portugal, which are net beneficiaries, feel somewhat “kidnapped” by EU dependency.
  • Skepticism toward the EU is growing but was nearly unthinkable 5-7 years ago. Claudia notes, “Everyone tells me, ‘Claudia, you are against the European Union, but we need them. Without them we would be the Venezuela of Europe.’ And I tend to disagree with that.” (03:11)
  • The influx of EU money stifles local innovation and allows Brussels to micromanage things like agriculture and fishing quotas.

Notable Quote:

“Europe pretty much sold their soul because it’s so comfort…we are forever their good students and it’s nothing that I like.” – Claudia (02:28)

2. Where Is Opposition To The EU Growing? (05:28)

• Tom asks which countries are seeing the biggest pushback against EU centralization.
• Claudia identifies Eastern European countries like Hungary and Poland, shaped by their Soviet past, as especially wary of EU overreach.
• Hostility and even “cancellation” await countries and leaders that dare challenge the EU, with Hungary and Romania being notable current examples.

Notable Quote:

“…the eastern countries of Europe, they are more awake in recognizing the red flags.” – Claudia (06:28)

3. The Russia-Ukraine Question and Public Perception

• Tom points out that many in Europe exhibit a reflexive hostility against Russia, sometimes more than seems warranted by the actual strategic context, “Russia is not interested in a frozen rock in the middle of nowhere.” (08:07)
• Claudia agrees with the concern over Russia’s regime but thinks widespread fear of “Russian expansion” is irrational:

  “I don’t think as a big part of people say that Russia wants to expand to all Europe and invade all Europe. I think that’s delusional.” (10:06)

• The war in Ukraine could and should have been prevented by de-escalation, she suggests, questioning why peace is not more strongly pursued by European leaders.

Notable Quote:

“It seems that Europe is not very interested to stop this war. They are more interested in, I don’t know, to profit with this war at some extent.” – Claudia (11:29)

4. Climate Policy and the “Green Deal” (15:37)

• Tom contrasts US and European attitudes, observing that Europeans not only tolerate but seem to ask for lifestyle sacrifices and rising energy costs.
• Claudia critiques the ‘climate hysteria’ as a cover for new forms of collectivism:

  “Of course it’s a form of communism in the disguise. It’s a friendly way on [how] the communist ideas can grow into young minds.” (15:41)

• The EU's Green Deal imposes strict quotas and fines (e.g., for inadequate recycling), pressuring national governments to enforce unpopular measures.
• Recent energy crises are partly linked to anti-nuclear policies driven by the green agenda.

Notable Quote:

“We want to live like the Amish…We are against progress, we are against the planes, we are against the fuel. … The teenagers, as I told you, I think it’s a very friendly way to communism to present their ideas to the teenagers.” – Claudia (15:56)

5. Censorship and “Democracy”

• Tom and Claudia discuss new waves of censorship enabled by the EU's Digital Services Act, with dissent increasingly labeled as Russian puppetry.
• Romania's example (20:25): A presidential candidate unfavorable to the EU was barred from running due to alleged “Russian interference” via TikTok, reminiscent of tactics used in more overtly authoritarian regimes.
• Claudia connects censorship in Europe to state controls historically wielded during dictatorship.

Notable Quote:

“What is very sad, it’s that resembles the totalitarian regimes in Venezuela, for example, or Brazil…” – Claudia (21:22)

6. The Immigration Question (23:01)

• EU’s centralized immigration policy (prompted by demographic concerns) has led to mandatory quotas for member nations, with refusal penalized by daily fines.
• Hungary, Claudia notes, chooses to pay fines rather than submit to forced demographic changes:

  “Prime Minister Orban…said that the price to pay for not having his people changed and his social coercion affected, the fine was a very low price to pay.” (24:12)

7. The Rise of New Right-Wing Parties (28:04)

• Comparison to the US: Tom draws an analogy between the old US bipartisan consensus and Europe’s traditional left/right parties, noting the new right-wing parties are protest movements rather than “far right” in the classical sense.
• Claudia observes: These parties originate from disillusioned center-right members fed up with establishment compliance with leftist/socialist policy, especially regarding immigration and EU mandates.
• New parties like AfD (Germany), Vox (Spain), and Chega (Portugal) challenge the establishment’s consensus on EU integration and mass immigration, attracting voters through anti-system rhetoric.

Notable Quote:

“These parties are nothing more, in my view, than the protests against the way the traditional right wing has been doing some things.” (30:58)

• ‘Remigration’ debate: Claudia notes that proposals now extend beyond deporting illegal migrants to encouraging even legal migrants to leave—driven by escalating security problems.

8. Free Speech and Online Censorship (34:56, 38:16)

• Discussing censorship and the “blue pencil": Claudia likens today’s social media content moderation to dictatorship-era pre-publication reviews.
• Digital Services Act imposes stricter rules on speech and platform governance, threatening criticism of the EU with content takedowns—even for mainstream opinions posted online.
• She notes Musk’s “Community Notes” on X as a partial workaround, enabling users to contest misinformation claims.

Notable Quote:

“We are on a regime that has a lot of characteristics of the dictatorship. So we are in a very, very dangerous spot, in my opinion.” – Claudia (37:55)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On growing Euroscepticism:

  “Step by step, people are starting to open their eyes…Something big is going on, I think.” (04:50, Claudia)

• On censorship and dissident suppression:

  “When you don’t agree with them…you are, for some reason, a supporter of Russia in their minds.” (06:51, Claudia)

• On UK as a bellwether for liberty:

  “If the freedom falls in the United Kingdom, in Europe, I don’t know where we can be free.” (41:14, Claudia)

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• [02:13] – Claudia on why Europeans support the EU
• [05:34] – Where the most EU skepticism is rising
• [08:07] – Tom discusses the Russia question and European fears
• [10:06] – Claudia on misconceptions about Russian intentions
• [15:37] – Tom and Claudia discuss climate change policy and enforcement
• [18:31] – The EU’s Green Deal and its fines/regulations
• [20:25] – Story of Romanian candidate excluded for “Russian interference”
• [23:14] – EU’s centralized immigration and member state resistance
• [28:04] – Rise of anti-establishment right-wing parties
• [34:56] – Reflections on US Vice President J.D. Vance’s Munich speech
• [37:55] – Claudia warns of the return of dictatorship-style censorship
• [41:14] – The unique danger of losing freedom in the UK

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Tone and Language

• The episode is direct, combative toward establishment narratives, and laced with irony and skepticism. Tom Woods’ typical libertarian “no sacred cows” attitude prevails, and Claudia’s responses are passionate, candid, and at times darkly humorous.

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Follow Claudia Noonez

• X Handle: @ClaudiaShandi (primarily in Portuguese, but with commentary on UK, Spain, and EU-wide affairs)
• Claudia emphasizes her activism is “as someone who advocates for freedom and classical liberalism” (40:21).

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Summary

This episode provides an unvarnished, liberty-focused critique of the current state of Europe, examining the EU’s influence, the evolving political landscape, the stifling of dissent, and the clash between populist and technocratic visions. Claudia offers on-the-ground insights into a continent where, beneath the surface, skepticism of the status quo is steadily growing but met with fierce institutional resistance.

Transcript

[A]

Get ready to take a flamethrower to the official narrative and learn what the elites don't want you to know. You're listening to the Tom Woods Show. Hey everybody, Tom Woods. Here it is, episode 2621 of the Tom woods show. And I'm very happy to be joined by Claudia Noonish from Lisbon, Portugal. And we want to talk about. Because I, as an American, I am very detached from what's going on in Europe and I want to talk about some European issues, particularly involving the eu, and also about public opinion over there, because I really like to think that some people are starting to see the light on certain issues. But maybe that's wishful thinking on my part, I don't know. And Claudia keeps very close watch on issues like this. She has a popular account on so called X and is published all over the place. Claudia, first of all, what's the deal with, if somebody were to find you online, the name they would find my

[B]

handle on X. Yeah. Yes, it's Claudia Shandy. Shandy, like the old Key song, you know, the band, the American Band.

[A]

Yes, yes, Claudia Shandy. Altogether not our finest moment, but I'm just kidding. Now I'm going to get a lot of hate mail. Okay. S H A N D I Anyway, we'll have all that on the show notes page. So I have some things I want to ask you, but I want to start off with this question. As an American, I come from a tradition that fought a war over the principle of local self government, of not being ruled by distant unaccountable authorities, but being ruled by more local, unaccountable authorities. That was our principle. And what surprises me is how few Europeans appear to have those same concerns. They seem to cheer something like the European Union, even though it does involve bureaucratic decision making about their lives and that they have relatively little control over. And that doesn't seem to bother them. What bothers them is when you criticize the European Union. I don't understand this mentality at all.

[B]

Yes, I join in your lack of perception of why Europeans accept that. But I think Europe pretty much sold their soul because it's so comfort, it's so good when someone pays your bills, when someone gives you orders, when you don't have to think about anything. And I can speak for my own country, Portugal, that is a country that receives more, that actually gives to European Union. So we are kind of kidnapped by them. We are the eternal receivers. So therefore we are forever. They're good students and it's nothing that I like. I Tried to speak about it for so many times. I'm happy that lately this Eurosceptic idea has grown, because I don't know, I think maybe five, six, seven years ago, if you said that you are some kind of Eurosceptic, or if you said something like, I don't think this is working, everyone looked at you like, are you crazy? We need them. And a lot of people tell me this. Everyone tells me, claudia, you are against European Union, but we need them. Without them we would be the Venezuela of Europe. And I tend to disagree with that. I have a friend, he's a teacher in Manchester, and he wrote a book called the Causes of the Portuguese Delay, where he made this amazing theory in which he claimed that the problem for Portugal in old days was the gold from Brazil, because we relied on the gold and therefore we didn't develop anything like industries. I'm so sorry for my accent. Sometimes it's not easy, but these days our problem, it's not the gold from Brazil anymore. What is stopping us from developing is the European money. As we are so comfortable with them, we don't really create anything and they don't let us do so. When European Union tried to put the crit how many fishes we can fish, how many potatoes we can grow, how we should manage our own agriculture. So everything is a mess. But I think slowly, step by step, people are starting to open their eyes. Probably this revolt and these open eyes doesn't come from the poorest countries. Maybe it is something that will start by the richer ones, the ones who are contributing to the poorest ones. But I think step by step, as you can see, for the new tendencies in elections, where the new right wing parties, because I don't like to call them far right parties, I think it's not accurate and not honest. But these new right wing parties, they are a little bit eroseptic. Not in my country, but in the other countries they are. So something big is going on, I think.

[A]

What are the countries where you think the most favorable developments are taking place?

[B]

I think in certain countries, ones who used to belong to Soviet Union, because they know how it feels to not have a decision to belong to a system that was very similar to what European Union is today. And when I look at Hungary, for example, I admit that such a small country with financial problems, not so different as the financial problems that my country is facing. But I can see in Hungary and in Poland a sense of, we've seen this before, we don't want this again. And Hungary is being severely penalized by this stance against European Union, or at least because sometimes you have this kind of position where we are not against some kind of alliance, friendship, we are against the way the things are organized at this moment, because at this moment it is some imposition on Europeans of a federation that no one asked for, no one agreed on. And I think the eastern countries of Europe, they are more awake in recognizing the red flags. But these days, when you are against what European Union is doing, you suffer from a big hostility, cancellation in where Hungary and Romania are being the biggest protagonists these days. And at the same time, when you don't agree with them, when you say this is not right, you are for some reason a supporter of Russia in their minds. And they try to control the narrative based on that.

[A]

The Russia question seems hard to overcome the obsession with Russia. Now, I understand if I were a European, I understand that I would have reasons from history to be concerned about Russia, but Russia wouldn't be my only concern. I would have other ones. And also, you know, in the United States during the period of the Soviet Union, we had intellectuals and some political officials who would make excuses for crimes of the Soviet Union or would cover them up in some cases. And some of these very same people are hysterical about Russia today. But when Russia was the globe spanning empire of the Soviet Union, yeah, they would yawn. It didn't. You know, it's a very, very strange thing. When I was taking a trip to Iceland, we went on a guided tour and we happened to see some U.S. troops there. Now, if I were an Icelandic patriot, I would say, what are these occupying forces doing in my country? But not our lackey of a tour guide. Instead, the tour guide said, those men are keeping us safe from the Russians. And I thought, your brain doesn't work. I mean, Russia is not interested in a frozen rock in the middle of nowhere that, you know, that doesn't even have half a million people. They're just not. And yet so many allies of mine over in Europe are hysterically anti Russia. Now they'll say it's not anti Russia, it's anti the present regime, whatever, they're anti Russia. Is that pretty much true? I mean, are you, would you describe yourself that way? Does everybody look at Russia and Ukraine, for example, the same way? Even the dissidents?

[B]

I think in Europe, it's true, what you described. I think people, it's very scared of Russia. And sometimes, of course, I don't support that kind of regime because it's pretty much an authoritarian regime. And I was very shocked to what Putin did with Alexei Navalny, for example. And when I talk about it, everyone says, oh, look, but Navalny was also a far right, okay. It's not okay to put in jail everyone that disagrees with you. Someone who manifests a different opinion. So for me, it's obviously a totalitarian regime. But I think we need to put our expectations real. I don't think as a big part of people say that Russia wants to expand to all Europe and invades all Europe. I think that's delusional. I think they have a specific concern about Ukraine. They are very scared that Ukraine joins NATO and then they try some kind of attack against the sovereignty. And I think that kind of confusion should be solved early. Three, four years ago when before the war started. And I think there was some escalation and I think Europe didn't try to stop the war. And these days when we hear President Trump trying to be kind of a peacemaker or intermediate between the both nations, I don't understand why European leaders talk more and more and more about escalation or about things that will lead to escalation of the conflict. I don't understand if because to me seems that peace is around the corner more than ever in the last years. So it's very difficult for me when I hear Keir Starmer saying that he will send troops to Ukraine or when I see some people in my country saying that we should have the military service as mandatory again because some kind of threat is coming. Because what I see is the opposite, the opposition of that. So sometimes it seems that Europe is not very interested in top this war. They are more interested in, I don't know, profit with this war at some extent. And of course, on the other hand, you have people that are really, really scared and they think that Russia, if not stopped by war, it will invite all Europe. But as I said to you, doesn't seem so rational to me because at this moment they are facing troubles with only Ukraine. So imagine with all Europe. Doesn't make sense. I don't think Vladimir Putin wants that, to be honest.

[A]

Well, I think the key point is that there is no path to victory here. Exactly. And no, it's considered rude to point that out, but we all realize that. So the only thing that comes from perpetuating this is perpetuating the deaths because there is no way to, to get out of this. But for some reason we feel righteous if we continue on a path that doesn't lead to anything but more death. So that's the way a lot of us in the US look at it that therefore we have to be adults and come up with some kind of a resolution, even if it may be one that leaves us unhappy. The alternative is much more unhappy and we have to be a mature enough to understand that. In this world, very often you are faced not with an excellent choice and a terrible choice, but with a bad choice and a worse choice. You know, that's the situation we face. Folks, you hear me say this a lot, but today is the day you take it to heart. Part of being an adult and a provider involves caring for your loved ones, even, or perhaps especially after you yourself are gone. And Policy Genius makes finding and buying life insurance simple and ensures your loved ones have a financial safety net they can use to cover debts and routine expenses. With Policy Genius, you can find life insurance policies that start at just $292 per year for $1 million of coverage. Some options are 100% online and let you avoid unnecessary medical exams. I myself enjoy tremendous peace of mind, knowing that my loved ones will be cared for should anything happen to me, and that they won't find themselves struggling with regular expenses. And policygenius gives you the best of both worlds. Great digital tools and real licensed agents. In no time you'll be comparing quotes side by side and making your best decision. Life insurance is a form of financial planning and policygenius is the country's leading online insurance marketplace. Join thousands of happy Policy Genius customers who left five star reviews on Google and trustpilot. Secure your families tomorrow so you have peace of mind today. Head to policygenius.com or click the link in the Description or on the Show Notes page to get your free life insurance quotes and see how much you could save. That's policygenius.com let's talk about something a little bit different. The climate change thing over in Europe seems to have gained much more, we might say, purchase over the European mind than it has in the U.S. now, here in the U.S. there are a lot of people who are hysterically concerned or profess to be concerned about climate change. I think they have, I think they have other intentions. But in Europe it seems much worse. It seems that there has been more progress made in the direction of moving economies away from, let's say, fossil fuels or some of the, I don't know, just ordinary ways of life that we become accustomed to. But that is not simply a matter of governments imposing that on people. It does seem as if public opinion wants this. Public opinion is asking. People are asking for their lives to be made more Difficult their energy prices to be made more expensive. This is what the public wants. Am I wrong?

[B]

I think of course there is a lot of hidden or not so hidden interests about that climate change hysteria. Of course it's a form of communism in the disguise. I think it's a friendly way on the communist ideas can grow into some young minds. Because when you look at it, the environment question is something that one can sympathize with. Of course I don't want to live in a dirty polluted village city. Of course I think individuals should be in an environment where they can be healthy, where they are not exposed in some kind of diseases. And I think for that to happen it's normal that we want to live in a clean environment. But the thing is this is one thing and the other thing is when you pick that and you transform it in some kind of. We want to live like the Amish without offense. We are against the progress, we are against the planes, we are against the fuel. I think again there is a part of people who actually doesn't understand what is over the table and are obviously brainwashed by these agendas. And again, the teenagers, as I told you, I think it's a very friendly way to communism to present their ideas to the teenagers. Because look, you are fighting against the rich because the rich, they have a plane and the plane will pollute our environment. So you need to fight against it, you need to fight the rich because the rich will break your environment, your health, etc, etc. But on the other hand there is the people who are taking advantage of that to bring us back to the medieval ages and they are not sorry for that. And my country received a fine for not accomplished the objectives of recycling, you know, so people didn't recycle as European Union expected and then you have a fine for that. That's the little things. When we see the interferences of European Union and you can see why they want it to happen, because if everyone pays a fine for not recycling or whatever, it's so convenient, isn't it?

[A]

I was going to ask you that. What is the connection between the European Union and the climate change agenda? Is it this kind of enforcement by requiring the payment of fines for non compliance?

[B]

Yes. European Union is structure so complex that sometimes is difficult for me to even know all the regulations and plans that they have. But they have the European Green deal when you are supposed to get net zero by the year, I don't know, 20, 30, something like that. And if you don't reach the goals until that data, they will obviously punish you with fines. Therefore it will reflect on the local national policies. Suddenly you see a government imposing or having in their program things that generally no one cares about. I think in my country that climate exterior is not really a thing. It's a small group teenager thing. And then they go, they get arrested and no one thinks about it anymore. But yes, they have the European Green deal. It's a huge list with goals and every government they should pursue them. And we are facing a huge energetic crisis that I can also connect with that because they tried the European countries to close their nuclear centrals and a lot of alternative energies, and now we don't have a real alternative. And it was all because of these green weird wolves.

[A]

Can you tell us just the basics of the story in Romania? Because we've heard something about either an election being canceled or a candidate not being allowed to participate. What's that all about?

[B]

Yes, basically these days when you don't agree with the European Union, as I told you in the beginning of our conversation, that you're basically an agent from Russia for some reason. And what happened was the president that was actually elected and then they considered that it was not valid because there was some Russian interference. That man was someone who appeared on the polls in the first place with a low voting tension. And what Romania claims was that there was some campaign on TikTok that was very friendly with this candidate. And this candidate happens to be against European Union as it is. And I'm not very informed about it, but I think it was said that he was a very Russian friendly and with that in mind, for some reason he won the elections and they didn't accept it. They say it was Russian interference because of the TikTok campaigns. And at this moment this candidate was disqualified and they already elected a substitute for him. But what is very sad, it's that resembles the totalitarian regimes in Venezuela, for example, or Brazil, where the one defying the establishment for some reason, and it's always a very strong reason, is not allowed to run against the other candidate, which is usually very aligned with socialist ideas or with the establishment. So it's nothing new. So Bolsonaro can't run in Brazil the same way Corina Machad couldn't run in Venezuela and needs to put someone else. And now the same thing is up is happening in Romania. And I already saw the the new polls with this new guy, I think he's called Simeon Simon, something like that. And according to the polls he is slightly behind the candidate which is preferred by the European Union.

[A]

I guess the other huge issue is that of immigration.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

And I was wondering if that was ever going to become an issue among Europeans because it seemed like it was getting more and more challenging and yet very few people were talking about it. That seems to be changing.

[B]

Yes. Basically there was another centralized decision where Europeans didn't have words or saying on that. Where the European Union understood that generally Europe is becoming old, so people are struggling to have children. Therefore there's a lot of problems that come from that related. For example, with Social Security, they needed to find a solution. And so the easiest solution was pretty much open the doors to what they want, the aim to be new Europeans. And what shocks me the most is the fact that we can't really say no to that. And we can't say no because they put you a fine, a big fine for each day you refuse to receive these people. Again, Hungary was against it. And so Hungary, they preferred to pay the fine than to have significant changes in their population. Prime Minister Orban, he spoke about it, he said that the price to pay for not having his people changed and his social coercion affected the fine was a very low price to, to pay. And that's why they don't like him and want to take their rights of voting in the European Union.

[A]

Everybody. Some time ago, my family and I made a decision. 3,000 plus dollars a month for health insurance. We're not doing that anymore. Not doing it. And now we're with crowd health. And it's awesome. And I know you right now are where I once was. Your premiums keep going up. You're not even sure what you're getting. I don't know anyone who says I love my health insurance policy and the premiums I'm paying for it. The next person I meet who says that will be the first. Well, I am glad to proclaim to you, my dear friends, that emancipation is at hand with crowd health. It's not health insurance, and that's a good thing. It's a better way to pay for health care through crowdfunding. And it's very simple. For $175 for an individual, or $575 for a family of four or more, you'll get access to a community of people who are willing to help out in the event of an emergency. You'll also get access to telemedicine, visits, discounted prescriptions, and so much more. And you don't have to worry about doctor's networks. And of course, you'll join the crowd, a group of members just like you who help each other pay for each other's unexpected medical events. What Crowd Health has built giving you this fantastic option separate from the existing health insurance establishment is truly extraordinary. And not only does it help my family, but we're also proud to be part of it. Well, let Crowd Health help with your healthcare needs, too. Get started today for just $99 per month for your first three months by using code [e-mail] Crowd health is not insurance. Learn more at joincrowdhealth.com that's joincrowdhealth.com Code Woods I'm going to try to draw an analogy to the United States. In the United States, until Trump came along, who sometimes he's more bluster than real action. Other times he really does take action, but he's very different from the way the rest of his party used to conduct itself. So George W. Bush belonged to his party and George W. Bush would yield to everything the left asked for. Domestically. He gave them everything they wanted, just about. At least the center left got practically everything they wanted. And even on foreign policy, they were happy to be dragged along into the war with Iraq. So there was a sense for all the nasty words that were exchanged between Democrats and Republicans in those days, in practice they favored the same budget, the same monetary policy, mostly the same foreign policy with maybe a 15% difference. Affirmative action. They've more or less favored the same basic things with some trivial differences. That's not the case anymore. It definitely is the case that although yeah, on the budget the Republicans are still terrible, there is definitely a difference between the types of judges that a Republican would appoint as opposed to a Democrat. And I could go down quite a few differences, that things have changed just in my lifetime. But these right wing parties, and I agree with you that there are no far right parties worth speaking of in Europe. But these right wing parties you're speaking of, are they closer to George W. Bush or are they closer to Donald Trump?

[B]

I think they are closer to Donald Trump. I think it's incorrect to call them far right because they definitely aren't far right. I think on these new parties like IFD in Germany or VOX in Spain, in my country we have Chege Party. I think these parties, they are composed by people who usually came from the center right parties, at least in Europe. I think it's a very common structure. You have a big center left party and in the opposition or on the other side you have a big center right wing party. So it's the normal structure and I think as the center right wing parties become closer to the socialists, or at least they commit the huge mistake of letting the socialists dictating their agendas and policies. It was a huge mistake. When the center right wing started to just react to what left is doing. For example, in environment, environmental issues, ecologic issues, the right wing, instead of creating their own left wing policies and views, they react. So it's like, no, you are against the environment. No, you are against the environment. I'm more environment friendly than you. That's how. That's a silly example of how a center right wing parties conduct themselves in the last years. And the immigration issue was one of these teams. So the central left parties, they said that the center right parties, they were racist if they want to control immigration in any level. And therefore the center right parties decide to show that they are not racist. In fact, they are so friendly as the center left parties. And I think the people who ended up creating and being a part of this new right wing parties were the people who was in these central right wing parties and said, okay, this is not working anymore, I don't agree with that and therefore I need to create my own movement and join people who thinks like me. And that's why they are also called and call themselves anti system parties. And these parties are nothing more, in my view, than the protests against the way the traditional right wing has been doing some things. And we also have to consider that both center left and center right parties, they are very obedient to European Union. And the European Union is imposing these agendas. And these parties, these new parties, they want to break with European Union in general. I don't think the one in my country wants it because they know that in Portugal there's a majority of people who is scared of existing without European Union. But in other countries, people understand the complexity of the issue. They understand that European Union are imposing these agendas and people need to break free from them. And so these parties, they usually advocate against mass immigration. At this moment, they are also talking about the remigration concept. So for them, some of them, it's not only deportations, but it's remigrations, which is for what I understood, a difference in where you deport also illegals and legals. And of course, since we are having so many security problems in Europe, these forces tend to grow. It's very comprehensible. If you look to Germany, I don't say every day, but I say at least every month we are seeing some kind of problem. Either a car, because it's how the mainstream media give us the news. Look, some months ago, before our conversation, I saw a new in which a car hit some group in London. These kind of things are happening every month in Germany, in France. So it's pretty normal that when you look to these countries, you see these new parties growing at this moment in United Kingdom, which of course is not part of European Union anymore, at least not officially, since Keith Starmer wants so bad to rejoin you. But you see in United Kingdom, the party who is breaking this duality between Conservatives and the Labor Party is Reform uk. And this is something without any precedence. Before United Kingdom was always a Tory reign, always. So suddenly a party as Reform UK is growing so much and they advocate against mass immigration, against the huge taxation, against the idea of, of rejoining eu. And then you go and you see France, the same thing is happening. You see Marine Le Pen and their party advocating for the same things. So immigration, you go and you see ifd the same thing. These parties are generally very mono monatic and there is the reason their center right parties from where these people came from, they are trying to appear more tough on these immigration issues, as you can see with Frederick Merz, which was elected as the new German Chancellor. But in my point of view, this is not genuine. They don't really want that. They understood that they need to claim that in order to continue to be elected.

[A]

You of course remember the Munich speech that the U.S. vice President J.D. vance delivered maybe a month ago. Did you think the comments he made were fair?

[B]

Yes, I think Judy Vance was extremely well in what he said. What is happening in Europe in general is. It's a rebellion. It's a rebellion. Really. We don't have any freedom culture at this moment. People think it's okay to. I will use the expression put a blue pencil because in dictatorship days in my country there was some people that were paid to review the context, the contents of the journals, of the books. And when you can say a certain thing, these people use a blue pen and they put the sentences. And I think these days we are accepting this blue pencil. I don't think it's normal if I write an article to Ms. Brazil that I did and I posted on my Insta story for my friends to see and I received in a couple of hours a warning that my content is against the rules of Instagram and so they, they need to take it down. And I look at my article and my article was an open criticism against European Union. The same way I don't find very normal the fact that we even have a Digital Services act, which is another regulation from European Union in which all these goals of censorship, when is very specified what you can say or what you can do or not, I don't think there should be a Digital Services act at all. I think that the platforms X, Instagram, Facebook, they need to be free to decide how to conduct themselves in the market and let the people decide if they want to continue on that platform or not. As we see on X is very popular at this moment, not only because it's a social media, but because we can see things as they are in real time, almost real time, before the mainstream media give us the news. And Elon Musk, he finds he found a way of escaping these mechanisms of censorship when he created the Community notes, because since European Union demands, there is the need for someone with the blue pencil to verify what you are saying. Elon Musk gave this privilege to the end users of the platform. So if someone don't agree with what was said, someone can simply go there and correct and give the their vision of the happenings. But yes, we are on a regime that has a lot of characteristics of the dictatorship. So we are in a very, very dangerous spot, in my opinion. And the more we are realizing it, the more they feel the need of controlling our. Our speech.

[A]

Do you do most of your social media posting in Portuguese?

[B]

I do, I do.

[A]

Okay, but I. A little bit of English creeps through here and there. So tell people how they would follow you. And plus, I know I have some Portuguese speakers listening to us right now. How would they find you online?

[B]

Okay, so they can find me on X with the handle Claudia Shendi without any space. And even though I write mostly in Portuguese, I can say that lately I speak more about what's going on out there. I speak a lot of United Kingdom. I'm very worried about the situation in United Kingdom. I think it's one of the most serious ones. So since I don't see a lot being new in my country about it or when there is news about United Kingdom, it's always news that make Prime Minister Keir Starmer look like a Nero. When he's not a hero, he's someone with an action that is very worrying. He's putting people in jail because of what they say on social media. That is true with very serious consequences. There was a man at the age of 61 that was arrested because he did some comment on Facebook and he took his own life in prison. This is very serious. And I think Portuguese people need to see things as they are and not as CNN or the mainstream media show them. I used to talk also a lot about what's happening in Spain, which is the most ironical thing because Spain, they are our neighbors, our languages are very similar and we don't hear words of some very serious things that are happening in Spain even today. I saw that Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez made a pact with Jute for Catalonia, which is an independentist party for receiving children from migrants. So he's giving them a money compensation for that. And we don't hear none of it in Portugal. So I try to move myself online bringing this ugly but truthful news. And I'm not a journalist, let me say, but as someone who advocates for for freedom and for classical liberalism, I think it's my duty. But sometimes in a very specific context. I also write in English and I'm very interactive with especially British pages, as I told you, is a cause and situation that is very worrying to me because if the freedom falls in the United Kingdom, in Europe, I don't know where we can be free. I think it's the end.

[A]

Well, Claudia, thank you very much for your time. I'm glad I've had a chance to get to know you. I'll link to your ex@tom woods.com. what episode did I say this was? 2621 and also in the video description. So very important work you're doing and I appreciate your time today.

[B]

Oh, thank you. I appreciate you for having me. It was very nice to meet you.

[A]

Likewise and thank you very much, ladies and gentlemen. Make yourself and those you love less vulnerable to the regime, both mentally and physically. Get more forbidden [e-mail] and be sure to subscribe to the show wherever you listen. See you next time. Like the sound of the Tom Wood show, my audio production is provided by Podsworth Media. Check them [e-mail].