04/09/2009 11:41:04 AM EST
Please Read- Could America turn into Nazi Germany
posted by ericalexander77
It can't happen here..... or could it?
Do you remember hearing about the people of Germany prior to the 1930's? They belonged to the most civilized, cultured, and best educated people on Earth. After all, Bach, Beethoven, and Brahms were Germans. So were Goethe and Schiller. American doctors learned to speak German and flocked to Berlin to learn the newest advances in medicine. German scientists achieved work renown.
Then came the Great Depression. Millions of Germans were unemployed as were people worldwide. Hunger, poverty, and disruption of life became the norm as huge waves of resentment, anger, and fear swept Germany. Inflation there was so rampant that it took a wheelbarrow full of money to buy a loaf of bread.
Nationalism started to fester and Germans were desparate to find a leader who could return them to their days of prominence. The people sought answers to their problems and they searched for groups to blame for their misery. The Brownshirts began to organize and they gained popularity when they promised to act in support of the German people
Historians firmly believe that the environment was ripe for a revolution. Meanwhile, in America, scholars stated that such an upheaval would never be likely here.
In America today, we see unemployment and a retraction of our economy to a scale we've never seen before in our lifetime. In some ways we are frightened, searching for answers and looking for those to blame as the Germans did in the '30's.
Enter Glen Beck and Republican Congresswoman, Michele Bachmann. Fox News states that Glen Beck has over 2.5 million viewers each night. So what's the big deal? He appears before the cameras, squezzes his eyes shut, and you see real tears rolling down his cheeks. Most of us roll our eyes, tap our foreheads, and think this guy is nuts. But wait. Listen to his words- words have consequences and 2.5 million people want to see and hear him every night. He appeals to his listeners with phrases such as 'you are not alone' and 'they surround us today but we're going to surround them tomorrow'. The 911 widows, he says, should shut up because they won't show any gratitude for 'all we have done for them'. He asks us to think back to 9/12- the day we came together before 'it' all came apart.
Michelle Bachmann drops the code words and openly asks the people of Minnesota directly to 'arm themselves' to 'take back this nation'.
Glen Beck and Ms Bachmann liken themselves to Real Americans in contrast to the 'other' Americans who are 'out to destroy our country'. Joe 'The Plumber', Chuck Norris, and others also make the claim that they are the Real Americans. This unsubtle form of demagoguery is called rabble rousing and the more you hear these people on national television the more frightening it becomes. Be careful not to dismiss these wingers as 'just crazy'. They are using the same words and the same tactics heard and seen by my grandparents who lived in Berlin in the 1930's before they were deported. Even then, teh Nazis struck a nerve throughout their country when they were heralded as the Real Germans.
Reflect for a moment and try to imagine that it was John McCain who had won the election. He often stated that he did not know much about the economy, and that the pillars of our economy were strong. His chief economic advisor was a prime architect in the deregulation of our banking and mortage lending institutions. Where would we be today? Would we be living in total catastrophe? Would our country resemble pre-war Germany? No one knows.
Today, we have safeguards such as unemployment insurance, health insurance, and bank protections that were not established in the 1930's. And, of course, we have the luxury of knowing that we have an extremely competent leader in the White House. But, are we really so positively sure that a German-style revolution couldn't happen here?
