- Don’t think you are anything. [*] (Du skal ikke tro du er noget.)
- Don’t think you are as good as us. (Du skal ikke tro du er lige sÃ¥ meget som os.)
- Don’t think you are smarter than us. (Du skal ikke tro du er klogere end os.)
- Don’t fancy yourself better than us. (Du skal ikke bilde dig ind du er bedre end os.)
- Don’t think you know more than us. (Du skal ikke tro du ved mere end os.)
- Don’t think you are greater than us. (Du skal ikke tro du er mere end os.)
- Don’t think you can do better than us. (Du skal ikke tro du dur til noget.)
- Don’t laugh at us. (Du skal ikke le ad os.)
- Don’t think that anyone cares about you. (Du skal ikke tro nogen bryder sig om dig.)
- Don’t think you can teach us anything. (Du skal ikke tro, at du kan lære os noget.)
This is from a 1933 book by Danish author Aksel Sandemose entitled En flyktning krysser sitt spor. Commonly referred to as the Law of Jante (or, Janteloven), it’s in some ways a model for the Scandinavian (and upper Midwestern American) idea of conformity.
Inherent in the idea is the notion of despising one’s self, that individuality is shameful. (See also: “Tall Poppy Syndrome“) I’ve always detested it, but then again, I loved Ayn Rand as a kid, so go figure.
Still, it’s stuck with me from an early age, and when Joseph Biden gave his acceptance speech tonight, this snippet stuck out:
My mother’s creed is the American creed: No one is better than you. Everyone is your equal, and everyone is equal to you.
If this is to be the New American Creed, I’m very worried. The Janteloven is a morality of exclusion and clannishness, and it’s been the uniting cry of dictators worldwide over the last two centuries, whether or not they’ve been explicitly aware of it or not.
Essentially, the message echoed by Mr. Biden and inherent in the Janteloven is that we should all be happy in our stations, and that we should know our place. Success, innovation and creativity merit ridicule at best, and punishment at worst. I wonder what Thomas Jefferson or Rosa Parks would have thought of that.
This falls right in line with concepts like punishing the rich through higher taxes, and instituting ideas and programs that could only be facilitated through a thinly-veiled centrally-planned economy.
Honestly, the whole charade kept reminding me of the Manchurian Candidate for some reason.
(*) I copied and pasted this from the Wikipedia entry, but the translation (and transcription) is incorrect. The correct meaning of “jer skal ikke tro” is, “you shall not believe.” “Don’t think” would be, “lave ikke mene.” Therefore, “du skal ikke tro du er lige sÃ¥ meget som os” would translate as, “you shall not believe (trust) that you are as good (high) as us.”