a very important article. I live in Berlin where right now people on the left have a hard time seeing why newly-arrived Roma shouldn't be granted full access to the welfare state. It's a shame Goodhart's doesn't elaborate more on his Eureka: "embracing the idea of human equality does not mean we owe the same allegiance to everyone." It is precisely this point that so many who insist on paving the road to hell have yet to appreciate

To quote from Goodhart's piece: 'Recently, for example, a well-known liberal newspaper columnist told me how pleased he was that the boring lower-middle-class suburb he was raised in had been disrupted by big demographic change against the wishes of the existing population'. There, perfectly encapsulated, is the arrogance of our intellectual elite forever trying to distance themselves from the despised lower middle class observng with cynical amusement as these small minded people with their petty aspirations have their way of life destroyed by the "cultural enrichment" of mass immigration. A pity that Goodhart doesn't name the columnist. Goodhart's tone throughout the article is oddly self-regarding. Although he claims to be concerned about the effects of mass immigration on the community his main focus seems to be on displaying his open-minded attitude and his willingness to change his views (in contrast to lesser lefties). This is an attitude I have often encountered in left wingers. It manifests as a kind of moral exhibitionism - being seen as person holding a partular moral position is more important than any action that position may demand or result in.