Rereading this detailed and very real description of the facts of everyday life under a strongman, I am reminded of how some people, without experience of hurricanes, view the coming storm. With excitement they prepare for the party they will enjoy as they ride out the tempest with friends. Expecting exciting moments of chaos and uncertain outcomes. Always imagining the sunny days after the storm as , unscathed, they get back to normal life. It's like an unscheduled holiday to them. For us who've been through a few, we prepare for the storm with dread. We know what it's like to spend days without power, sweating and hoping mold doesn't destroy our damaged homes. Dealing with insurance companies and contractors to put things back together, if they aren't completely destroyed. Spending money we can't afford to spend on essential repairs. Searching for gasoline and an ATM with cash or an open grocery store. Outside, the only sound in the sweltering heat is the drone of generators. It's a true version of Hell. One major difference between the catastrophe of a hurricane and that Dr. Snyder describes here is that the hurricane is likely to bring people together to help one another recover. This one will even drive parents and children apart with distrust. The worst possible world.
Excellent metaphor! I'll try to remember to use this. It can be extended to the way Trump used disaster response resources to favor some regions & starve others.
There is another major difference. Hurricanes are not man-made. They may be exacerbated by man's actions or inactions but they are not man-made. A dictatorship IS man-made & man consented to if trump is elected.
So true. My wife and I talked to a young women in Prague when we visited a few years ago who was a child during the communist rule. She told us as a teenager how fearful her parents were that she would say something in school that would get them in trouble and how they begged her to be careful about what she said to anyone. This brings visions of the book Nineteen Eighty Four.
And do you know about the "Stasi" of Communist East Germany, when Putin lived there in the '80s? Also, we knew an old lady who lived in Prague during two dictatorships; she survived by becoming invisible - a "miracle"...
Thank you Tim. Last night I watched Fateless, 2005, free on TUBI. based on the book by Imre Kertersz, the deportation of Hungarian Jews to Auschwitz and Buchenwald. There is a scene early in the movie when the Jewish Community of Budepest is coralled to stables before transport out of the city and we see a mother who is not in the group shielding her sons eyes from, 'the event." Heart wrenching movie. Regarding your book, "On Tyranny", speaking of the heart it is heartening that I am hearing discussion on the news regarding, Obeyance in Advance. Is it finally sinking in as to what we are up against?
These days I am often reminded of Ray Bradbury’s remarkable novel of a dystopian state, Fahrenheit 451. The character of the protagonist Montag's wife, whose whole existence is ruled by her exposure to the single media outlet on the giant screen in their house seems to be descriptive of Trump’s MAGA constituency, solely focused on a bodyguard of lies promulgated by Sean Hannity, Tucker Carlson, and their ilk.
Montag’s job is as a fireman, burning books because they make people think, which makes them sad, is a stark picture of the world certain Republican governors and others on the right would like to create with their mandate that no child should be made to feel unhappy or uncomfortable by any aspect or their education.
Bradbury saw clearly the worst potential of the internet, long before there was an internet. We would do well to heed him.
Cuban dictators on both the right, Fulgencio Bautista, and left, Fidel Castro, fit your description perfectly. During both regimes, extortion and bribery replaced the rule of law. During Castro's rule, neighbor turned against neighbor through The Committee for the Defense of the Revolution. Today that diminished country has poor infrastructure, the electricity is gone and the lights don't come on. My wife and her family lived through the precise experiences you describe. The United States became their refuge from the terrors of totalitarianism but today the US seems to be lurching toward similar decay. We are but a few steps away from the fate of a banana republic.
Thanks for adding a description of life in Cuba to the mix. Reading your comment, and of course having read Tim's essay, I am deeply moved to think how citizens of other countries have suffered under strong man rule, whether that is under the banner of Fascism, Naziism, Communism or the false flag of "Freedom" that is not really free, just a license for the strong to attack their opponents and oppress the weak.
It is humbling to contemplate the sacrifices so many have made for the lives we live in freedom. I know it sounds trite to say this, but when people live within the "bubble" of democracy and civil order, to the extent that we enjoy those things in America, it is so easy to take one's own freedoms for granted as just part of the natural order of things. Breaking down the false assumptions contained in the Strongman Myth, we are reminded that freedom isn't actually free.
I thank you for your commentary. I agree that freedom isn't actually free. Or always free.
After Joe Biden withdrew from the race and before Vice President secured the nomination there was an interview of older black women in Georgia who opined that "She can't win. We aren't happy about that but it's the truth. They (the Democrats) should nominate a white man". At this point in the election cycle it is apparent that these ladies had a prescience or ability to gaze into the future that the rest of us, including the media, do not possess. Next time, let's ignore the polls and instead interview these women. They have wisdom.
After the election I said that we have to have a white man from now on for our candidate, at least in my lifetime and I am 73. I really think we would have a had a chance of winning if Biden had stepped down sooner and we had a white male on the ticket. It is so sad but true, and I am a complete feminist so it's not that I don't want a woman president. I did all I could to support Harris's campaign.
Being only a partial feminist or an incomplete one reflects my understanding of the complexities of the world. We probably would disagree on a number of issues but I share your intimation that Trump is not suited for the position he now holds. Biden could not have held onto the job nor did Harris ascend to role. However, I could easily make an argument that in today's political environment being a "Winner" requires descending to the role. Cynicism reigns supreme in the tiny vault above my ears.
I’ve been thinking today about the supporters of Trump. Not the wealthy elite but the working people who feel disenfranchised, perhaps thinking this is their chance. If Trump’s past history of loyalty is a measure, as soon as he is elected they will be abandoned to fend for themselves. No ACA, Social Security, or other entitlements. If they think that the their current existence is bleak, think about trying to exist without a social safety net, few prospects, and diminishing life expectancy. To me, this is the ultimate tragedy.
The Ukrainians have fought valiantly for how many years now just over 3 with Russia's invasion? Would we find the strength, determination, common cause should that be us? Are our communities so fractured and are we so consumer oriented that all we can do is await our next package that we buy online and recieve the same day. We have chosen convenience and instant gratification and created oligarchs.
People (like my MAGAt father and mother) who think he's THEIR strongman. This phenomenon inspired me to purchase the URL nottheonesontheark.com because these people are not the ones for whom the Ark to Mars (or the breathable portion of the hellscape on earth) is being built.
A couple of things occur to me now that didn't on first reading. (You and Ruth Ben-Ghiat have enhanced my understanding of these matters!) One is how much of this is already happening in certain Republican-run states. Even in the blue or purple areas of these states, my friends and colleagues are often reluctant to speak up, and they certainly don't put Democratic stickers on their car or signs on their lawn. It's obeying in advance but it's also "go along to get along" or "picking your battles." The line between them is indistinct and shifty.
The other thing is "In a democracy, elected representatives listen to constituents. We take this for granted . . ." But in many places we can't take this for granted because it doesn't happen. Our elected representatives listen more closely to big donors and special interests than they do to us, if they listen to us at all. Where this is the case, the fantasy that a strongman will listen to us, or already knows what we want, could be even more compelling.
Susanna: You correctly observe that "the line between (obeying in advance and 'picking one's battles' ) is indistinct and shifty." Like you, I wonder where is the tipping point beyond which democratic norms cannot hold back an inevitable slide into full-blown autocracy?
I am not an Eastern Europe specialist like Tim Snyder, but I think we have seen a fine example of this slow slide in Hungary, as Orban used democratic institutions, along with a traditionalist, ill-informed bloc of the rural electorate to allow his party power to dismantle democratic and free-market institutions (media, courts, and opposition parties) and reform government in conformity with his authoritarian rule. Lessons to be learned.
I'm learning so much from Snyder, and I'm also putting these lessons alongside what I know about the U.S., particularly the part that once made up the Confederate States of America. Eastern Europe, including Russia, didn't have much of a democratic tradition to build on after the Soviet Union collapsed. The U.S., OTOH, has (so I'm told) the longest continuous democratic tradition in the world -- but look at what's been going on politically in the former Confederate states (and elsewhere), and look at the wide-and-deep appeal of certain forms of Christianity. It's not as blatantly authoritarian as Orbán's regime but the similarities are striking, including the ethnonationalism aspects.
…"the wide-and-deep appeal of certain forms of Christianity"…
Except they're not Christianity at all. To refer to them accurately, you need to say "self-styled Christianity". Or "so-called Christianity". Or call them out as cults, since that is what they are.
By calling them Christian you are adapting yourself to their misrepresentations, you are "obeying in advance"; but worse, by accepting their muddying language, you are throwing the priceless baby of Christ Love out with the bath water of literalistic fundamentalism.
By not acknowledging that they're Christian, you're denying history. Or maybe Paul and all the sexist thinkers and theologians that followed weren't Christian either? Maybe the Crusaders and all the warring heads of Europe weren't Christian? Maybe the white slaveholders in the U.S. weren't Christian? (They did a pretty good job using the Bible to justify what they were up to.)
Thank you Dr. Snyder, for this honest and detailed information. Although I never experienced this first hand I remember hearing similar stories from immigrants following WW2 in Canada, This was the real life experiences for Europeans emigrating to Canada.
Besides amassing as much money as possible and dying “in bed a billionaire”, the strongman’s most significant goal is to remain in power, the nation he has decimated be damned. The history lessons of centuries of autocratic regimes have been sorely overlooked or forgotten by today’s authoritarian fanboys. If they get their wish, they’d better watch out. Strongmen don’t like wanna strongmen anymore than they like dissidents.
We’d be a much more united nation if this essay, or “On Tyranny” were required reading, no books were banned, and both were civilly talked about. The Return on Investment (ROI) would shatter records!
While Trumps threatens ("enemy within”?) Liz Cheney with a firing squad, the convicted fraudster/rapist & proud predator then says "whether the women like it or not, I'm going to protect them”... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5IVjc-p4jt4
Trump's Base of Gullible Fools, Misogynists, Racists, Xenophobes, and White Christian Nationalists hasn't a clue. The greedy business leaders who want free market neoliberalism and an end to regulation and taxes along with the power-hungry republican politicians think they can control Trump. I fervently hope there are enough sane people left who love this country who get out and vote for Kamala Harris. If Trump wins, we are ALL COMPLETELY SCREWED.
But they are not Christian at all. By accepting their self-description, which is a part of the Big Lie, you are unwittingly playing into their game.
These people run cults; they do not form part of true religion. Their preachers are self-appointed and their teachings proceed from defective revelation.
Don't confuse Christ Love with literalistic fundamentalism.
Rereading this detailed and very real description of the facts of everyday life under a strongman, I am reminded of how some people, without experience of hurricanes, view the coming storm. With excitement they prepare for the party they will enjoy as they ride out the tempest with friends. Expecting exciting moments of chaos and uncertain outcomes. Always imagining the sunny days after the storm as , unscathed, they get back to normal life. It's like an unscheduled holiday to them. For us who've been through a few, we prepare for the storm with dread. We know what it's like to spend days without power, sweating and hoping mold doesn't destroy our damaged homes. Dealing with insurance companies and contractors to put things back together, if they aren't completely destroyed. Spending money we can't afford to spend on essential repairs. Searching for gasoline and an ATM with cash or an open grocery store. Outside, the only sound in the sweltering heat is the drone of generators. It's a true version of Hell. One major difference between the catastrophe of a hurricane and that Dr. Snyder describes here is that the hurricane is likely to bring people together to help one another recover. This one will even drive parents and children apart with distrust. The worst possible world.
Excellent metaphor! I'll try to remember to use this. It can be extended to the way Trump used disaster response resources to favor some regions & starve others.
Absolutely. Hurricanes will be exponentially harder to recover from with a strongman in control.
There is another major difference. Hurricanes are not man-made. They may be exacerbated by man's actions or inactions but they are not man-made. A dictatorship IS man-made & man consented to if trump is elected.
Just so.
Thank you for sharing your thoughtful response and experience. Much to mull over and I cannot find anything I disagree with.
You are too kind. Thank you, Meggie.
So true. My wife and I talked to a young women in Prague when we visited a few years ago who was a child during the communist rule. She told us as a teenager how fearful her parents were that she would say something in school that would get them in trouble and how they begged her to be careful about what she said to anyone. This brings visions of the book Nineteen Eighty Four.
Also reminds me of Ann Frank.
And do you know about the "Stasi" of Communist East Germany, when Putin lived there in the '80s? Also, we knew an old lady who lived in Prague during two dictatorships; she survived by becoming invisible - a "miracle"...
Thank you Tim. Last night I watched Fateless, 2005, free on TUBI. based on the book by Imre Kertersz, the deportation of Hungarian Jews to Auschwitz and Buchenwald. There is a scene early in the movie when the Jewish Community of Budepest is coralled to stables before transport out of the city and we see a mother who is not in the group shielding her sons eyes from, 'the event." Heart wrenching movie. Regarding your book, "On Tyranny", speaking of the heart it is heartening that I am hearing discussion on the news regarding, Obeyance in Advance. Is it finally sinking in as to what we are up against?
Fatelessness
These days I am often reminded of Ray Bradbury’s remarkable novel of a dystopian state, Fahrenheit 451. The character of the protagonist Montag's wife, whose whole existence is ruled by her exposure to the single media outlet on the giant screen in their house seems to be descriptive of Trump’s MAGA constituency, solely focused on a bodyguard of lies promulgated by Sean Hannity, Tucker Carlson, and their ilk.
Montag’s job is as a fireman, burning books because they make people think, which makes them sad, is a stark picture of the world certain Republican governors and others on the right would like to create with their mandate that no child should be made to feel unhappy or uncomfortable by any aspect or their education.
Bradbury saw clearly the worst potential of the internet, long before there was an internet. We would do well to heed him.
Cuban dictators on both the right, Fulgencio Bautista, and left, Fidel Castro, fit your description perfectly. During both regimes, extortion and bribery replaced the rule of law. During Castro's rule, neighbor turned against neighbor through The Committee for the Defense of the Revolution. Today that diminished country has poor infrastructure, the electricity is gone and the lights don't come on. My wife and her family lived through the precise experiences you describe. The United States became their refuge from the terrors of totalitarianism but today the US seems to be lurching toward similar decay. We are but a few steps away from the fate of a banana republic.
Thanks for adding a description of life in Cuba to the mix. Reading your comment, and of course having read Tim's essay, I am deeply moved to think how citizens of other countries have suffered under strong man rule, whether that is under the banner of Fascism, Naziism, Communism or the false flag of "Freedom" that is not really free, just a license for the strong to attack their opponents and oppress the weak.
It is humbling to contemplate the sacrifices so many have made for the lives we live in freedom. I know it sounds trite to say this, but when people live within the "bubble" of democracy and civil order, to the extent that we enjoy those things in America, it is so easy to take one's own freedoms for granted as just part of the natural order of things. Breaking down the false assumptions contained in the Strongman Myth, we are reminded that freedom isn't actually free.
I thank you for your commentary. I agree that freedom isn't actually free. Or always free.
After Joe Biden withdrew from the race and before Vice President secured the nomination there was an interview of older black women in Georgia who opined that "She can't win. We aren't happy about that but it's the truth. They (the Democrats) should nominate a white man". At this point in the election cycle it is apparent that these ladies had a prescience or ability to gaze into the future that the rest of us, including the media, do not possess. Next time, let's ignore the polls and instead interview these women. They have wisdom.
After the election I said that we have to have a white man from now on for our candidate, at least in my lifetime and I am 73. I really think we would have a had a chance of winning if Biden had stepped down sooner and we had a white male on the ticket. It is so sad but true, and I am a complete feminist so it's not that I don't want a woman president. I did all I could to support Harris's campaign.
Being only a partial feminist or an incomplete one reflects my understanding of the complexities of the world. We probably would disagree on a number of issues but I share your intimation that Trump is not suited for the position he now holds. Biden could not have held onto the job nor did Harris ascend to role. However, I could easily make an argument that in today's political environment being a "Winner" requires descending to the role. Cynicism reigns supreme in the tiny vault above my ears.
I’ve been thinking today about the supporters of Trump. Not the wealthy elite but the working people who feel disenfranchised, perhaps thinking this is their chance. If Trump’s past history of loyalty is a measure, as soon as he is elected they will be abandoned to fend for themselves. No ACA, Social Security, or other entitlements. If they think that the their current existence is bleak, think about trying to exist without a social safety net, few prospects, and diminishing life expectancy. To me, this is the ultimate tragedy.
The Ukrainians have fought valiantly for how many years now just over 3 with Russia's invasion? Would we find the strength, determination, common cause should that be us? Are our communities so fractured and are we so consumer oriented that all we can do is await our next package that we buy online and recieve the same day. We have chosen convenience and instant gratification and created oligarchs.
People (like my MAGAt father and mother) who think he's THEIR strongman. This phenomenon inspired me to purchase the URL nottheonesontheark.com because these people are not the ones for whom the Ark to Mars (or the breathable portion of the hellscape on earth) is being built.
A couple of things occur to me now that didn't on first reading. (You and Ruth Ben-Ghiat have enhanced my understanding of these matters!) One is how much of this is already happening in certain Republican-run states. Even in the blue or purple areas of these states, my friends and colleagues are often reluctant to speak up, and they certainly don't put Democratic stickers on their car or signs on their lawn. It's obeying in advance but it's also "go along to get along" or "picking your battles." The line between them is indistinct and shifty.
The other thing is "In a democracy, elected representatives listen to constituents. We take this for granted . . ." But in many places we can't take this for granted because it doesn't happen. Our elected representatives listen more closely to big donors and special interests than they do to us, if they listen to us at all. Where this is the case, the fantasy that a strongman will listen to us, or already knows what we want, could be even more compelling.
Susanna: You correctly observe that "the line between (obeying in advance and 'picking one's battles' ) is indistinct and shifty." Like you, I wonder where is the tipping point beyond which democratic norms cannot hold back an inevitable slide into full-blown autocracy?
I am not an Eastern Europe specialist like Tim Snyder, but I think we have seen a fine example of this slow slide in Hungary, as Orban used democratic institutions, along with a traditionalist, ill-informed bloc of the rural electorate to allow his party power to dismantle democratic and free-market institutions (media, courts, and opposition parties) and reform government in conformity with his authoritarian rule. Lessons to be learned.
I'm learning so much from Snyder, and I'm also putting these lessons alongside what I know about the U.S., particularly the part that once made up the Confederate States of America. Eastern Europe, including Russia, didn't have much of a democratic tradition to build on after the Soviet Union collapsed. The U.S., OTOH, has (so I'm told) the longest continuous democratic tradition in the world -- but look at what's been going on politically in the former Confederate states (and elsewhere), and look at the wide-and-deep appeal of certain forms of Christianity. It's not as blatantly authoritarian as Orbán's regime but the similarities are striking, including the ethnonationalism aspects.
…"the wide-and-deep appeal of certain forms of Christianity"…
Except they're not Christianity at all. To refer to them accurately, you need to say "self-styled Christianity". Or "so-called Christianity". Or call them out as cults, since that is what they are.
By calling them Christian you are adapting yourself to their misrepresentations, you are "obeying in advance"; but worse, by accepting their muddying language, you are throwing the priceless baby of Christ Love out with the bath water of literalistic fundamentalism.
By not acknowledging that they're Christian, you're denying history. Or maybe Paul and all the sexist thinkers and theologians that followed weren't Christian either? Maybe the Crusaders and all the warring heads of Europe weren't Christian? Maybe the white slaveholders in the U.S. weren't Christian? (They did a pretty good job using the Bible to justify what they were up to.)
Thank you Professor Snyder.
This should be front page on
MSM! Should be on every
social media network
including TwitterX.
Thank you, Tim. I have forwarded this powerful writing to a number of friends. How to send it to those who need to read it, is my dilemma.
Thank you Dr. Snyder, for this honest and detailed information. Although I never experienced this first hand I remember hearing similar stories from immigrants following WW2 in Canada, This was the real life experiences for Europeans emigrating to Canada.
Besides amassing as much money as possible and dying “in bed a billionaire”, the strongman’s most significant goal is to remain in power, the nation he has decimated be damned. The history lessons of centuries of autocratic regimes have been sorely overlooked or forgotten by today’s authoritarian fanboys. If they get their wish, they’d better watch out. Strongmen don’t like wanna strongmen anymore than they like dissidents.
‘The strongman is really the weak man: his secret is that he makes everyone else weaker.’
Time to let the old, lying weakling out to golf pasture as he’s not even capable of climbing onto a truck 🤠 #Loser
We’d be a much more united nation if this essay, or “On Tyranny” were required reading, no books were banned, and both were civilly talked about. The Return on Investment (ROI) would shatter records!
Thank you Tim Snyder, and all other”likers.” We are not only talking to each other.
And D. Trump is now wearing the colors of The Proud Boys, rather than those of MAGA. Boy, is that sending a signal!
WSJ 10/3//24: "The Next President Inherits a Remarkable Economy" then envy of the world. #VoteBlue https://www.wsj.com/economy/the-next-president-inherits-a-remarkable-economy-7be2d059
While Trumps threatens ("enemy within”?) Liz Cheney with a firing squad, the convicted fraudster/rapist & proud predator then says "whether the women like it or not, I'm going to protect them”... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5IVjc-p4jt4
Trump's Base of Gullible Fools, Misogynists, Racists, Xenophobes, and White Christian Nationalists hasn't a clue. The greedy business leaders who want free market neoliberalism and an end to regulation and taxes along with the power-hungry republican politicians think they can control Trump. I fervently hope there are enough sane people left who love this country who get out and vote for Kamala Harris. If Trump wins, we are ALL COMPLETELY SCREWED.
…"White Christian Nationalists"…
But they are not Christian at all. By accepting their self-description, which is a part of the Big Lie, you are unwittingly playing into their game.
These people run cults; they do not form part of true religion. Their preachers are self-appointed and their teachings proceed from defective revelation.
Don't confuse Christ Love with literalistic fundamentalism.