Guerilla, Trianon, and a Frenchman proud of the Hungarians

Laurent Obertone is your pseudonym. Why would someone in France have to hide their identity? In Hungarian schools we learn that France is the model for democracy, the home of liberal freedom and brotherhood, where there is no need to be afraid, everyone can express their thoughts and opinions.

This is how it looks, but the reality is entirely different. Many of us have learned that when dealing with sensitive and dangerous topics in this liberal world, it is best to be cautious. We have to keep in mind the protection of our families and personal lives. And I did just this. But the pseudonym doesn’t ensure total anonymity, all my appearances are in person.

Have you ever been threatened due to your books?

Yes, and in fact, many times. I was especially threatened when I wrote my book on the public safety conditions in France. In this, I revealed immigration’s contribution to the development of our catastrophic situation. I substantiated my claims and supported it with sources. I then became the target of hysterical attacks without evidence in the mainstream liberal media. This habit has now become tradition.

They try to mute anyone they don’t like, and they simply ignore the facts that they can’t counter.

In the first volume of Guerilla, a police officer shoots a drug criminal; the video makes its rounds on the internet and riots, lynchings, murders occur within hours, days—French society collapses. Is this just eternal fiction or do you think the day may come when your stories will become reality? Would one shooting be enough? Is French society really in such a state of crisis?

It’s not widely known because the media keeps it quiet, but you must know that almost every week there’s an incident which brings us to the brink of the kind of consequences I write about. The day will come when a police officer is compelled to use their weapon for self-defense. It’s highly likely that law and order will slip out of our hands.

There are riots in the French suburbs every night, but the media doesn’t cover this. It’s the kind of suburban action that has not yet been coordinated.

If a police incident were picked up by the media, it would blow this powder keg in a minute.

Until now, you’ve written reports and essays—and now you’ve produced Guerilla, a novel. What inspired you to start writing this book? Was it everyday French life, were you trying to paint the direction and possible consequences of current politics and society? Are you a prophet or just curious?

It was merely curiosity. I’ve been seeing what’s bad for a while, and that it’s just getting worse day by day. A terrifying process has commenced that will only lead to chaos. Certain readers consider me a “prophet”, but all I do is observe and document reality. While the mainstream French media tries to hide what’s happening, I seem to be endowed with some extraordinary visionary ability by telling the obvious truth…

Anyone who read your book at the time of George Floyd’s death in America and the events he triggered—Black Lives Matter, toppling statues, erasing history—one word came to mind: Guerilla. You were writing about France, but this seems to be a global phenomenon.

Absolutely. Every multicultural country has to deal with these particularly explosive situations. These are only exacerbated by conflicts involving the turbulent coexistence of different communities, which also entails a loss of trust between people. Such heterogenous societies can no longer be labeled a society.

The liberal media totally dominates in France. What’s the situation with right-wing media? Can your thoughts and writing—and those of like-minded intellectuals—reach audiences? I am thinking mainly of young people.

Not really. Conservative media has been ousted and exiled by large, “official” media companies. Some of us are still trying to hold the front though—such is the right-wing Valeurs Actuelles. Éric Zemmour is also a very popular journalist who ignores the vocabulary of political correctness. However, these are the exceptions.

Generally, whoever doesn’t get in line and write according to liberal expectations will be stigmatized, maligned and their family members and employers will be extorted—and then, they will disappear from the media landscape.

In 2010, accompanied by Michel Houellebecq, you attended a private dinner with then president, Nicolas Sarkozy. Houellebecq is a well-known author who has also visited Hungary. He is known as a difficult person. How did he come to invite you?

Houellebecq had just received the most prestigious French literary award, the Goncourt Prize. He chose me because he valued my work at the time. He introduced me to Sarkozy as the “great debater of tomorrow”. I would be happier if I didn’t have to constantly “debate”, but the age we live in leaves no other options…

What do you think is the bigger problem: the presence of Islam, the rapid growth of their population, or the mentality of a liberal, self-sacrificing society?

We are the biggest problem! We accept everything and entrust our fate to a dishonest state, watching idly by at the destruction of our justice system, the monopoly position of their liberal media, the same as Islam and immigration. The French people should do everything they can to force their will on this foundation less society that governs on their behalf.

Your novel’s characters seem like stereotypes: at first, they seem exaggerated, but when you look around in the media, you sense that every other opinion is written by your Zoe Guerilla character, and the like. Did you intend your characters to be symbols or are they drawn from real life?

They absolutely are real given that French political life is simply teeming with stereotypes. The politicians, journalists, college students and political activists all say exactly what is to be expected. This is called the community of cowards. All I had to do was observe them to paint a picture of today’s reality.

The second volume of Guerilla: The Time of Barbarians (Le Temps des Barbares) in Hungarian, was just released on October 29—when a terrorist attack occurred in the Basilica of Notre-Dame in Nice where Islamists beheaded a Christian woman. What do you think of the recent wave of terror in Europe?

I have to say that the media passed over this attack even faster than the previous ones. In France, there was more talk concerning the police officer who tripped a migrant in Paris than of the three Frenchmen slaughtered at the Nice church. When high school teacher Samuel Paty was beheaded, they attributed it to our cartoons or colonial past. It didn’t matter that the same thing happened in Austria and Switzerland a few days later. The denial continues. A few years ago, the French liberal media assured us that terrorists could not get mixed in among the migrants. Now it turns out that each of the last three attacks on French soil were committed by those very migrants.

The secret service officially considers over four thousand migrants dangerous potential terrorists. Moreover, hundreds of them are here illegally! In general, almost all terrorists have a migrant background. Statistically, immigration is the main cause of terror, and migration is the primary reason for deteriorating public security.

In Guerilla II, we read the story of a society struggling to survive. During the downfall, cities become a living hell with no water, electricity, no ambulance or police. In the countryside, gangs take over. While reading, it occurred to me that Guerilla could be a survival guide. Was this your intention?

Yes, I want to draw attention to the extent of our dependence. We have grown too accustomed to handing over responsibilities. Society provides everything for us, but in reality, this system is fragile—especially in the event of a cataclysm. When the downfall begins, citizens will have to be self-reliant in the midst of horrific conditions. And no one is prepared for that.

How well do you know Hungary? What do you think of our country? Have you heard that more and more Westerners– French, Dutch, Germans– are moving here?

I’m not surprised!

Hungary is a wonderful country—one that didn’t commit the West’s error. It seems it has maintained its sanity in persevering against the European Union’s extortion. There is a high diplomatic price to be paid for this, but independence and sovereignty come at a cost.

A country like this strongly attracts my compatriots, who fully feel that their own leaders aren’t taking care of them.

This year, we Hungarians commemorated the Trianon dictate of 1920, one hundred years ago, that ended World War I; through cooperation with the French, Trianon took two-thirds of our country’s territory away and one-third of our Hungarian-speaking compatriots were separated from us. When we think of the French, it always comes to mind. Have you heard of this? What do you think of this?

This was a terrible episode and we French can do nothing but understand the legitimate bitterness of the Hungarians.

I believe the Hungarians are not resentful of the French people, they would have never done that. The decisions of our political leadership are a different story…

The European Union is morally divided: Poland and Hungary (and in a broader sense, the V4, Central and Eastern Europe) have become the new “enemy” because they don’t want to accept liberal social doctrines like LGBTQ rights, gay marriage, migration, open society etc. Where do you think this will end up? Is there still a chance for things in the West to turn around?

The “progressive” camp has an arsenal which includes the liberal media along with the international financial system, multinational corporations, cultural life, and most state and tech companies. However, the citizens have begun to open their eyes, so it will be close match. I am sure that all is not lost—public opinion could easily tip in our favor.

We are our biggest enemy. Conformism, indulgence, piety…

If we accept that all is lost and we don’t do anything about it, then defeat is inevitable. But nowadays, more and more French have had enough; they are realizing their problems and dedicating themselves to change this path we’re on.

Both volumes of Guerilla are very popular in Hungary. Why do you think Hungarians are so receptive to what you have to say?

Hungarians are interested in what’s going on in the West, and rightly so. At the moment, I think we French are the best example of any and all mistakes that could be made.

Personally, I’m very proud to have so many readers from a country like Hungary, with both feet firmly on the ground.

---