Becoming Swiss

Well, knock me over with a feather! Michele Bachmann, erstwhile (and crazy-eyed) GOP Presidential hopeful, has become a Swiss citizen, without ever having resided in Switzerland. I hope that Ms Bachmann realizes that the Socialist party is very strong here. Judging by her rhetoric while campaigning, her political philosophy is very much at odds with that prevailing here. I, for one, hope that the Swiss political philosophy never goes the Tea Party route. This country is in many ways as close to Paradise on earth as it gets.

Luckily for Michele, since she is adamantly anti-mandate for health insurance - a key point of US health care reform - the Swiss insurance mandate will not apply to her. Interestingly, it applies to me even though I am not a Swiss citizen. But Michele must be resident in Switzerland for the Swiss mandate to apply. Of course, her health insurance is already paid for by US taxpayers, so she has little understanding of the difficulties many of her fellow US citizens face. IMO, her inability to connect with reality is her main problem. I will grant that she seems to realize that she would be WAY out of her depth if she tried to campaign against candidates here - you know, people who have more than the barest facsimile of an intellect, believe in facts and make fact-based decisions.

Ms Bachmann gained her Swiss citizenship with little to no merit or effort on her own. Her husband's parents were both Swiss, having immigrated to Wisconsin where he was born. Because the three youngest Bachmann children wanted the privileges that dual-citizenship might confer, their father exercised his option to become a Swiss citizen earlier this year. As his wife, Michele received the option through him and so did the children. Presto, zippo! And Now They Are Swiss! They make it look easy.

In fact, for those of us who were not born to Swiss parents or grandparents, it is not easy to become a Swiss citizen. Had Michele married Marcus more recently (their marriage dates to 1978), she herself would not automatically have had the option. I have resided here legally for nearly 18 years and have a permis C, which grants me most of the benefits of Swiss citizenship, less the right to vote in cantonal and federal elections. And yes, I am also eligible for Swiss citizenship. For the moment, it is an option I choose not to exercise for a variety of reasons. Perhaps someday I will.

Now, I wonder. Will Michele's fellow TPers go crazy? If such a True Believer can be seduced by a Socialist state, will she be shunned? Given how TPers evidently love to hate Europe, one might think so.

But I won't hold my breath.