Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Is History Repeating?
I have read that in the 1930's, when Germany was suffering the depression (along with the burden of paying reparations for World War I) and when the Nazis were gaining political power, the upper classes in Germany chose to use Hitler and his fascistic movement rather than oppose it on the ground that they believed they could control him. Let him scapegoat the Jews for Germany's problems and he would distract the workers, many of them unemployed, from being angry at the system that had failed them and would instead vent their anger at the Jews.
Historical analogies are never perfect. However, I see an analogy between the decision of the wealthy class in Germany in the 1930's and the decision of the wealthy class in our country to embrace the Tea Party Movement. The Tea Partiers have the enthusiasm and the energy of the Nazis. They also have a fixed idea of who or what the culprit is, the group responsible for the present depression. Just as the Nazis blamed the Jews for being "un-German," so do the Tea Partiers blame liberals who want to raise taxes and provide free health care for everyone, free old age pensions for everyone, etc., etc., etc. The wealthy ones, e.g., the Koch Brothers, are perfectly happy to let the Tea Partiers take over the government and impose their program of disabling all forms of welfare for the poor and undeserving loafers and enhancing the privileges and wealth of the rich.
The German elite classes found out too late that the Nazis would not be controlled. How soon will our own elite classes realize that the Tea Party movement is going to take them down with the poorer classes?
Tea Party lore teaches that high taxes cause unemployment; social welfare causes laziness; free medical care causes unhealthy behavior; etc., etc., etc. Let our Congress be made up of a majority with such beliefs and see what they will do with our country.
If I write any more I will simply be preaching to the choir.
Historical analogies are never perfect. However, I see an analogy between the decision of the wealthy class in Germany in the 1930's and the decision of the wealthy class in our country to embrace the Tea Party Movement. The Tea Partiers have the enthusiasm and the energy of the Nazis. They also have a fixed idea of who or what the culprit is, the group responsible for the present depression. Just as the Nazis blamed the Jews for being "un-German," so do the Tea Partiers blame liberals who want to raise taxes and provide free health care for everyone, free old age pensions for everyone, etc., etc., etc. The wealthy ones, e.g., the Koch Brothers, are perfectly happy to let the Tea Partiers take over the government and impose their program of disabling all forms of welfare for the poor and undeserving loafers and enhancing the privileges and wealth of the rich.
The German elite classes found out too late that the Nazis would not be controlled. How soon will our own elite classes realize that the Tea Party movement is going to take them down with the poorer classes?
Tea Party lore teaches that high taxes cause unemployment; social welfare causes laziness; free medical care causes unhealthy behavior; etc., etc., etc. Let our Congress be made up of a majority with such beliefs and see what they will do with our country.
If I write any more I will simply be preaching to the choir.
Labels: Tea Party movement; Hitler; stupidity of the elite
