Thank you for your courage, Professor Snyder, in saying what needs to be said. Many Germans in late 1932-early '33 did not see coming what was plainly coming at that time. Just like now. There is a shocking lack of comprehension of what a second Trump term would mean for American democracy.
I vividly remember a conversation with my parents around 1972 about what was happening in Vietnam and what Nixon was up to. They could not allow themselves to admit that we were committing war crimes and that the President was in the process of subverting the election. In retrospect I attribute their attitude to a combination of hubris and lack of imagination. At the core is the myth of American Exceptualism, an idea still too popular here.
That is the ploy. Hubris to the max. It worked for G. W. and Cheny too. Cheney's "defense contractor" buddies raked in massive $$$ and we got their desired internal spy agency, Homeland in-Security, to keep an eye on all who would question and oppose them.
My whole legal battle with my draft board back then was to get them in court to face accessory to War Crimes charges when I would finally refused induction. War Crimes it was.
I am so mortified by the reactions of my friends and acquaintances who purport to see the evil of Trump but instead of telling me what they are doing about it just criticize the Democratic Party and what is has been doing wrong. I tell them I’m giving money, knocking doors and writing g letters and then tell me ‘But we can’t win the Senate because….’. I’m afraid I’m super angry with them but I hide it.
Why hide it? If it’s all a forgone conclusion, why even vote? Talk to them when they say such defeatist stuff. They can do better. And they might even take your anger to heart and really think of what damage they might cause.
Great analysis! The desperation grows with the Orange Idiot as the polls swing towards VP Harris, the economy is going well, inflation is at 2% and going down further. So, yesterday in Wisconsin, the Orange idiot stated that Harris had set up an app that allowed migrants into the nation? BATSHIT CRAZY and will get worse as the Orange Idiot realizes that prison awaits very shortly after November 5th!!!
The Simon Corollary to Godwin's Law: When Donald Trump spews stuff like this (this weekend in Wisconsin)...
Trump in Prairie du Chien on migrants: "They will walk into your kitchen, they'll cut your throat.”
Trump on migrants: "These people are animals."
Trump on migrants: "They're taking all of our Black population's jobs."
Trump: "I will liberate Wisconsin from this mass migrant invasion of murderers, rapists, hoodlums, drug dealers, thugs, and vicious gang members. We're going to liberate our country."
"Oh, there's a fly. I wonder where the fly came from" -- Trump suggests migrants are to blame for the fact a fly is bothering him during his speech. ...
...a near-verbatim English translation of an Adolf Hitler Nuremberg speech, IT'S OKAY TO MAKE A HITLER COMPARISON, EVEN IF IT'S IN THE FIRST SENTENCE!
Thank you, Tim, for not running away from the reality, at whatever personal risk.
I really appreciate this writing. In 2015 an old college friend of mine supposedly working in the Pentagon mocked me for my comparisons of Trump to Hitler. He called it something (I unfortunately can't remember what). It was especially confusing because he had a similar education to mine with a German major background plus more. The signs of Trump/Hitler/Putin similarities were obvious even in 2015. After I found, On Tyranny at a local small bookstore, I was SO relieved that I did indeed have firm ground to stand on. And this article brings the understanding of the lack of Hitler and Trump comparison made by professionals to a full circle of understanding.
The parallels between Trump and Hitler are unmistakable, undeniable and hair-raising. The more one learns about Hitler, and even worse, the Volk who enthusiastically supported him into power, the greater the recognition of what Trump and MAGA are becomes - the more obvious the need to defeat Trumpism becomes.
Staggering and compelling, in observation and analysis. What a great service to your readers and to those who choose to hear. Ascribing the corporate media's failure to cover/address djt's hitlerian September to a "fear of lawsuits" is, at a minimum, very generous.
Thank you for this most excellent article and pointing out something that was not apparent to me. I of course have heard his recent anti-Semitic statements and been surprised, given the power of the liberal secular Jewish vote here, but was unaware of the extent of them. The media continues to treat him more or less as a normal candidate and ignore his demented and incoherent speech. It seems strange that AIPAC has not been (to my knowledge) noisily protesting his anti-Semitic rants. It is truly alarming.
Coincidence, perhaps: I am currently reading both _On Freedom_ and Heather Cox Richardson's _How the South Won the Civil War_. They're having an ongoing conversation in my head. Hanging out with them are the two Georges: Orwell for his famous observation, in _1894_, about the connection between past, present, and future; and Santayana about what happens to those who fail to remember the past. I hope that "we the people" are better than this, but I've got my doubts.
Silencing relevant comparisons to Hitler/fascism means forgetting those who were killed, the murdered, the disappeared. That would be evil.
"Representatives of Jewish religious organizations recited a memorial prayer. Volodymyr Zelenskyy expressed his gratitude to all those present for honoring the memory of the deceased [at Babyn Yar].
"We cannot forget such heinous times – fascism, Nazism. We must remind everyone about this. Not only in Ukraine, but also to remind everyone abroad that such terrible times must never be repeated," he emphasized."
DJT 9/28/2014 tweet on his base, vets, anyone who won't bend down: "Every time I speak of the haters and losers I do so with great love and affection. They cannot help the fact that they were born fucked up!” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B6yhiLSKVJ0
They convict themselves with every speech. They intentionally poison the future of this country as well as the present, to demonstrate that only they - oddly, the chosen - can save both. Moral legerdemain.
One of the most important pieces of commentary on the consequences of avoiding the obvious about Trump. It is a marvelous counter to a recent Huffington Post article which weakly presented “both sides” of the “it can’t happen here” argument, leaving each side to retain its biased view.
Thank you for your courage, Professor Snyder, in saying what needs to be said. Many Germans in late 1932-early '33 did not see coming what was plainly coming at that time. Just like now. There is a shocking lack of comprehension of what a second Trump term would mean for American democracy.
I vividly remember a conversation with my parents around 1972 about what was happening in Vietnam and what Nixon was up to. They could not allow themselves to admit that we were committing war crimes and that the President was in the process of subverting the election. In retrospect I attribute their attitude to a combination of hubris and lack of imagination. At the core is the myth of American Exceptualism, an idea still too popular here.
That is the ploy. Hubris to the max. It worked for G. W. and Cheny too. Cheney's "defense contractor" buddies raked in massive $$$ and we got their desired internal spy agency, Homeland in-Security, to keep an eye on all who would question and oppose them.
My whole legal battle with my draft board back then was to get them in court to face accessory to War Crimes charges when I would finally refused induction. War Crimes it was.
I am so mortified by the reactions of my friends and acquaintances who purport to see the evil of Trump but instead of telling me what they are doing about it just criticize the Democratic Party and what is has been doing wrong. I tell them I’m giving money, knocking doors and writing g letters and then tell me ‘But we can’t win the Senate because….’. I’m afraid I’m super angry with them but I hide it.
Why hide it? If it’s all a forgone conclusion, why even vote? Talk to them when they say such defeatist stuff. They can do better. And they might even take your anger to heart and really think of what damage they might cause.
Barry - Your post reminded me of Cabaret and one of its many excellent songs: If You Could See Her: https://youtu.be/5zYm4CLeq_E?si=16tqnK5VYXLCZaLk
https://www.yadvashem.org/holocaust/resource-center/timeline/1914-1933.html - this page gives you history of what came before Holocaust
Kathy - Chilling! I think White Gilead will happen much faster if the Christofascists steal this election.
Great analysis! The desperation grows with the Orange Idiot as the polls swing towards VP Harris, the economy is going well, inflation is at 2% and going down further. So, yesterday in Wisconsin, the Orange idiot stated that Harris had set up an app that allowed migrants into the nation? BATSHIT CRAZY and will get worse as the Orange Idiot realizes that prison awaits very shortly after November 5th!!!
Wish this article had a broader audience. Excellent writing!
Spread the news -- share the article. Never forget!
The Simon Corollary to Godwin's Law: When Donald Trump spews stuff like this (this weekend in Wisconsin)...
Trump in Prairie du Chien on migrants: "They will walk into your kitchen, they'll cut your throat.”
Trump on migrants: "These people are animals."
Trump on migrants: "They're taking all of our Black population's jobs."
Trump: "I will liberate Wisconsin from this mass migrant invasion of murderers, rapists, hoodlums, drug dealers, thugs, and vicious gang members. We're going to liberate our country."
"Oh, there's a fly. I wonder where the fly came from" -- Trump suggests migrants are to blame for the fact a fly is bothering him during his speech. ...
...a near-verbatim English translation of an Adolf Hitler Nuremberg speech, IT'S OKAY TO MAKE A HITLER COMPARISON, EVEN IF IT'S IN THE FIRST SENTENCE!
Thank you, Tim, for not running away from the reality, at whatever personal risk.
Terrific as usual. And your sentence "... This was so obviously troubling that the American press, in fairness, did draw attention to it." says a lot.
I really appreciate this writing. In 2015 an old college friend of mine supposedly working in the Pentagon mocked me for my comparisons of Trump to Hitler. He called it something (I unfortunately can't remember what). It was especially confusing because he had a similar education to mine with a German major background plus more. The signs of Trump/Hitler/Putin similarities were obvious even in 2015. After I found, On Tyranny at a local small bookstore, I was SO relieved that I did indeed have firm ground to stand on. And this article brings the understanding of the lack of Hitler and Trump comparison made by professionals to a full circle of understanding.
The parallels between Trump and Hitler are unmistakable, undeniable and hair-raising. The more one learns about Hitler, and even worse, the Volk who enthusiastically supported him into power, the greater the recognition of what Trump and MAGA are becomes - the more obvious the need to defeat Trumpism becomes.
And the more you know about U.S. history, the scarier it gets.
Excellent analysis as always. Never give up Dr Snyder.
Hans G Wesslau, Sweden
Staggering and compelling, in observation and analysis. What a great service to your readers and to those who choose to hear. Ascribing the corporate media's failure to cover/address djt's hitlerian September to a "fear of lawsuits" is, at a minimum, very generous.
Thank you for this most excellent article and pointing out something that was not apparent to me. I of course have heard his recent anti-Semitic statements and been surprised, given the power of the liberal secular Jewish vote here, but was unaware of the extent of them. The media continues to treat him more or less as a normal candidate and ignore his demented and incoherent speech. It seems strange that AIPAC has not been (to my knowledge) noisily protesting his anti-Semitic rants. It is truly alarming.
AIPAC supports Israel, not Jews.
Coincidence, perhaps: I am currently reading both _On Freedom_ and Heather Cox Richardson's _How the South Won the Civil War_. They're having an ongoing conversation in my head. Hanging out with them are the two Georges: Orwell for his famous observation, in _1894_, about the connection between past, present, and future; and Santayana about what happens to those who fail to remember the past. I hope that "we the people" are better than this, but I've got my doubts.
Silencing relevant comparisons to Hitler/fascism means forgetting those who were killed, the murdered, the disappeared. That would be evil.
"Representatives of Jewish religious organizations recited a memorial prayer. Volodymyr Zelenskyy expressed his gratitude to all those present for honoring the memory of the deceased [at Babyn Yar].
"We cannot forget such heinous times – fascism, Nazism. We must remind everyone about this. Not only in Ukraine, but also to remind everyone abroad that such terrible times must never be repeated," he emphasized."
https://www.president.gov.ua/en/news/prezident-ushanuvav-pamyat-zhertv-babinogo-yaru-93577
DJT 9/28/2014 tweet on his base, vets, anyone who won't bend down: "Every time I speak of the haters and losers I do so with great love and affection. They cannot help the fact that they were born fucked up!” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B6yhiLSKVJ0
Disinformation, destabilization & fraud is the point for Trump and his MAGA followers. It’s a disaster for the rest of us. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TY1FMvhFDog https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nyWpJuJ9ClU https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kr2dNcjrzRk
I posted that tweet of his last night. So far, Facebook has let it ride.
We are fighting a Hitler. If he gets the chance he will do it.
They convict themselves with every speech. They intentionally poison the future of this country as well as the present, to demonstrate that only they - oddly, the chosen - can save both. Moral legerdemain.
One of the most important pieces of commentary on the consequences of avoiding the obvious about Trump. It is a marvelous counter to a recent Huffington Post article which weakly presented “both sides” of the “it can’t happen here” argument, leaving each side to retain its biased view.