Dorothy Thompson's 1941 essay is always worth revisiting.
I referred to it a few more times, some with good comments. I don't think much of it will make sense without having read the 6-page essay though. I think I did better with this one than I could do now, and so will add nothing.
In looking at 'Who Goes Nazi', it might be worthwhile to look at some actual Nazi propaganda material and think about who it might appeal to. This piece is from 1932:
ReplyDeletehttps://research.calvin.edu/german-propaganda-archive/haken32.htm
What might the claims of our present-day totalitarian movements be, if they were written out in actual words and paragraphs as is this leaflet?
One point of difference is that though both would be strongly racist, the newer would be less tightly focussed than the old. It would still concentrate on the "racial enemy," but wouldn't be quite so precise about who the favored race is, since they'd have to aim at a coalition. Intersectionality seems to encourage competition, not cooperation: ("It really sucks to be me!" "Well, it really really really sucks to be me!")
ReplyDeleteI suppose they could compensate by doubling down on the villainy of the "racial enemy."