I think therefore I am. I write therefore I think.
Author: Eric
INTJ personality. Jack of many trades, master of some. Former banker, consultant, technical writer, marketing manager, infopreneur and communications manager, now retired. Eclectic and sometimes eccentric. Cynical and often critical.
What struck and scared me as I read this book was how similar the political situations in Germany in the early 1930s were to the United States currently. Each country was and is going through a burgerkrieg (civil war) where there exists intense, political differences that often resulted in violence. Hindenburg stayed in office as he feared Hitler gaining political power. Hindenburg was accused of dementia and suffering from the ravages of old age. Today, Joe Biden fears a Trump presidency and the end of democracy in the United States. Biden too, is accused of suffering from dementia and being too old to serve another four year term.
In both the cases of Hitler and Trump, there were events that could have and should have ended their political pursuits. Hitler persevered through many defeats, political, personal and strategic.
I was not familiar with the appropriate knowledge of German history from 1918 till 1933 when Hitler seized power. Ryback provides the necessary background, history, and important men during this period. This book may provide a greater service in understanding what is happening in the United States today by looking back at what happened in Germany in the 1930s.
Shown below are my notes from this book..
“It has been said that the Weimar Republic died twice. It was murdered, and it committed suicide. There is little mystery to the murder. Hitler vowed to destroy democracy through the democratic process and he did.”
Trump and Hitler similarities Neither were drinkers Both felons Both thin skinned Both very poor liars (If you tell a lie long enough and keep repeating it…Goebbels) Both suffered election defeats that they refused to accept Both overestimated crowd sizes at various rallies and events Both were counted out after electoral and political defeats and came back Both sought to annul election results and lost Both seeking to establish dictatorships embraced by the populace Both opposed by older men (Hindenburg and Biden) who feared their rise to power Both promising “revenge” on their political opponents when they gain power Both used immigration issues (Hitler-Polish, Trump-Mexicans and South Americans) to stir up enthusiasm from their political base
Oswald Spengler knew both men. (referring to Hitler and Strasser). The author of the two volume landmark treatise Decline of the West was considered one of the leading conservative thinkers of today. Spengler found Hitler to be “clueless, indecisive, in a word, dumb. “
Adolf Hitler gave thousands of young Germans a chance from escape from reality Time wrote in December 1931. Hitlerites had uniforms, brass bands, roaring mass meetings, plenty of free beer. (Trump MAGA rallies 2020-2024)
The next day, Vorwarts (German newspaper) splashed the news in a banner headline, “Hitler wants to rule!” The editors were frantic at the thought. “The appointment of Hitler is out of the question because he lacks even the most basic qualifications”, they wrote. “You cannot trust a government to the leader of a party in recent days has been responsible for perpetuating countless horrific acts of violence without discrediting the authority of the state before the eyes of the entire world, not to mention the majority of its own people. “There was also the fact that Hitler served prison time for treason against the very state he was now seeking to rule.”
I ran across an article from GQ magazine in 1996, where they created a list of overrated people, things, trends and media. In that vein, I decided to try to update their list based on similar criteria. The list is shown below for your entertainment.
Memoir…history…love story… Prior to reading this book, I was vaguely aware of the name, Richard Goodwin, and his involvement in politics and in the Kennedy and Johnson administrations. I was not aware of his specific roles. as it turns out, he was a man of certain influence working for both John F, Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson. Turns out he was a great speechwriter, wordsmith and political strategist. He was described as a “generalist”, a man who could fill a lot of roles and responsibilities.
Growing up in the 60s, I, of course, was interested in the nostalgic trip during that decade. Goodwin was a huge fan of the Kennedys. This created significant issues when he worked for Lyndon Johnson. Goodwin was involved to a certain degree in the discussions around civil rights, Vietnam, the Great Society etc.
Based on the book, it seems that Goodwin did not receive the credit he should’ve gotten for his effective communication of both JFK’s and LBJ’s’s policies and goals. Goodwin seem to find himself in hot water, often inadvertently, with people he worked for. In 1968 Goodwin worked for Eugene McCarthy, prior to RFK’s entry into the presidential race. Goodwin had quite a balancing act and at the same time, he did not wish to undermine the policies of Lyndon Johnson.
Doris Kearns Goodwin is an excellent writer. I have seen her on new shows on television where she is a thoughtful and effective communicator. This is an excellent book. If a reader has an interest in 1960’s history, politics or wishes to know more about the Kennedy and Johnson administrations, this book is an excellent resource.
Dick Goodwin had an interesting career and he seems motivated to achieve as much good as he could in the various roles he had in government. This is definitely a five star book!
Half of me thought that the Trump trial would result in a hung jury. The other half of me thought that Trump might be filed guilty of 10 or less of the 34 charges he faced.
I’m very surprised that Trump was found guilty of all the charges against him. How good were Trump’s lawyers? They couldn’t get him clear of at least one charge! Based on some of the things that I read about the trial, Trump’s lawyers may have been lacking in, presenting the best case for him.
What angers me the most are the people who are still supporting Trump. Don’t you people have any shame? There is an argument that this verdict will only help Trump get reelected. It’s possible, but given the actions of Trump’s jury today, I feel a little bit more hopeful that Trump will not be successful.
Politics in this country is such a huge mess. I blame the political parties, the press (or at least most of them), and just too many disinterested and ignorant voters.
RFK Jr.’s path to the June debate. RFK Jr is closing in on joining Joe Biden and Donald Trump in a debate scheduled late next month. None of these men should be running for President. Joe Biden is a good man but he is too old. Donald Trump is a bad man, too old and should be in jail. RFK Jr. has no credentials to run. According to a New York Times article, his running mate has drug and gold digging issues. RFK Jr., though a younger man, is more incoherent than both Trump and Biden.
Here is a small list of more qualified men and women who should be running for President:
Democracy may be dead. 50/50 that this November’s elections results will not be accepted by the losing party.
Donald Trump, MAGA, Fox News and the Republican Party are holding the bloody knives in democracy’s demise or in Kristi Noem’s case, the smoking gun. There is also huge crowds cheering this on.
My sense is that our current political culture and craziness could not have taken place 50 or 60 years ago. Back then, anyone who had a whiff of scandal would not be electable and would not have a political future.
To have a viable and working democracy, there needs to be a majority of smart people, large enough to suppress dumb people. That does not exist today. Not even a majority of reasonable, intelligent voters can offset the rising number of dumb ones.
The end of democracy actually started after the election of Barack Obama when the Republican party decided to strictly become a party of obstruction. They were determined and largely successful in stonewalling Obama’s agenda for eighth years. Remember when the Republican party blocked the nomination of Merrick Garland as a Supreme Court Justice in 2016?
The Democratic Party shows absolutely no spine. There are times you have to fight as dirty as your opponent and the Dems have failed to do that.
Most of my intellectual life, I have been a student of Nazi Germany. I have been fascinated by the rise of Hitler and how the German people largely supported him. Maybe soon I will get to experience a similar government and dictatorship here in the U.S. that existed back in 1934 Germany.
There is too much influence of religion in politics. Religious people tend to believe almost anything, especially those claims not grounded in fact, truth, or science. Easily manipulable, religious people are the least tolerant and the least likely to be persuaded by evidence or reason.
Esot-eric 