(Blogger’s note: this entry was written in 2018.)

Last evening, I watched Rick Steves’ 2018 one hour special documenting the rise of fascism in Europe after WWI. It accurately but simply laid out the what, where, when, and how leaders played on the fears and hatred in people in a population that felt left out, behind, taken advantage of, or ignored—and got them to ultimately do unspeakable atrocities which culminated in the need for WWII to resolve.

The methods leaders use to incite populations over time include, but are not limited to: constantly demeaning the free press, excessively repeating exaggerations and outright lies, promoting populism and patriotism, constantly reinforcing how much greater their country and race are than any other, always blaming and having a scapegoat, constantly discrediting the judicial system when they don’t agree, somehow getting their supporters to forgive their transgressions, whipping their supporters into a frenzy with their outlandish speeches and oversized egos, and finally, moving toward dictatorship.

Does any of this ring a bell in our politics today?

I don’t think the environment today in the United States is close to a dictatorship but I do believe our president wants to be one, or as close as he can get. For certain he exhibits many of the traits Hitler and Mussolini used to rise to power. You only have to watch footage of these latter two giving speeches full of hate and theatrics and the crowd’s reactions. Then watch President Trump’s Republican political rallies today. Do they look familiar?

I think Rick Steves’ documentary, and Oregon Public Broadcasting making the documentary possible, were not done to simply fill another hour of TV time. The message was not overt but very pertinent and pointed toward our present political climate. I applaud them for doing this, and I hope a lot of people will watch and think about the consequences of the message.

So what can the rest of us do to counter what is happening in the United States today?
We need to get off our asses, get involved, protest when needed, and exercise our major right…the right to vote! Unfortunately far too many don’t bother.

There are probably many reasons for this complacency but I believe it starts with our education system not teaching history with an emphases on civics and the value of liberal arts. Second, when young people see their parents, relatives, and friends not participating in the electoral process, or even being interested in political reporting, they themselves become complacent. Third, many citizens of all ages simply don’t think their participation matters or will do any good. This leads to those that do participate deciding the outcome.

If citizens don’t participate, they have no right to complain about the outcome! But sadly many complain anyway.

Ken Kaiyala
10-2-2018