Am I losing it or what . . . ???

[AverageOldGuy]

I had an experience today that is troubling me more and more. I hope I’m just too damn paranoid. But if I’m not . . .

Here’s the story.

We are in our 80’s, moved into a small apartment in Northern Virginia from a spacious home we built in rural Virginia 18 years ago. Wife does not get out much at all.

Today I returned from grocery shopping and doc’s appointment to find her watching the movie “Nuremberg” on Netflix. The movie was at the point where Goebbels was being questioned by the US prosecutor.

Remember – Hitler was preceded by the Weimar Republic, which was not unlike the US – three branches of government, functioning judiciary, elections, and the like. The Great Depression hit German especially hard and Hitler rose to power by, among other things, blaming the Weimar Republic for Germany’s deep, serious economic distress.

The Goebbels character said something like – and this is not a quote but it’s the best I can remember – “The Weimar Republic was weak and pathetic . , , , ,”

Damn if I didn’t flash back to last night’s Trump speech in which he described preceding administrations – specifically Biden – using the same words – “weak,” “pathetic.”

As I recall, Trump first wife – who is now resting peacefully in the rough at his Bedminster Golf Resort – is quoted as saying Trump kept a copy of Hitler’s speeches at his bedside.

Did I hear the words of Hitler and Goebbels come out of Trump’s mouth? Or am I losing it in my old age??

[MLAA]

1. It wouldn't surprise me one bit.

Edited to add: Hitler died in 1945 and TSF was born in 1946. Reincarnation anyone?

[mercuryblues]

2. Trump adores Hitler.

[Blue Full Moon]

19. Trump is emulating every thing Hitler did.

Building the ballroom over the bunker. Building a yonic portal. ICE=schutzstaffel. Building concentration camps. Trying to make Charlie Kirk into Horst Wessel. He kept a copy of My New Order given to him by Marie Brenner.

[mercuryblues]

27. I'm waiting for the

Famous Final Scene.

The Famous Final Scene
Song by

Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band
Think in terms of bridges burned
Think of seasons that must end
See the rivers rise and fall
They will rise and fall again
Everything must have an end
Like an ocean to a shore
Like a river to a stream
Like a river to a stream
It's the famous final scene
And how you tried to make it work
Did you really think it could?
How you tried to make it last
Did you really think it would?
Like a guest who stayed too long
Now it's finally time to leave
Yes, it's finally time to leave
Take it calmly and serene
It's the famous final scene
It's been coming on so long
You were just the last to know
It's been a long time since you've smiled
Seems like oh so long ago
Now the stage has all been set
And the nights are growing cold
Soon the winter will be here
And there's no one warm to hold
Now the lines have all been read
And you knew them all by heart
Now you move toward the door
Here it comes, the hardest part
Try the handle of the road
Feeling different, feeling strange
This can never be arranged
As the light fades from the screen
From the famous final scene

[Blue Full Moon]

30. I'm for skipping to the end.

[Spazito]

3. You're not losing it...

there are many similarities to Germany in the early thirties, imo.

[Deuxcents]

4. Too many to not be aware

[Spazito]

5. Yes, I believe so.

[Blue Full Moon]

20. During the Bush jr Administration

There was going to be a documentary on how America was mirroring 1930s Germany on the History Channel. They didn't run it.

[Spazito]

22. Interesting, I didn't know that...

certainly the comparison is much more glaring now than during the bush admin but the history channel has no relationship to history now, sadly, so there will be no coverage at all from it now.

[Blue Full Moon]

24. That's why it doesn't

[Spazito]

25. Yes, it used to be one of my favorite channels back when....

it's mandate was to actually cover history with integrity.

[Bread and Circuses]

6. 🚨🚨🚨🚨🚨 You're Right !

The past week and today signals PedoPrez surrounding himself with Yes Men who will arrange -

- ground troops in Iran sooner than later
- domestic terrorism / false flag
- a staged major attack on an Overseas US Military base with help from ( fill in the blank )
- hiring and promoting prosecutors/special FBI agents/ command military officers who will trample the constitution/ burn and kill thousands.

Watch the next two weeks.

PedoPrez is mad that his address to the nation exposed himself as unfit for office.

[sop]

7. I was reading a collection of Hitler's quotes recently, many of them could be from Trump:

“The victor will never be asked if he told the truth.” - Adolf Hitler, Hitler's Letters and Notes

"Humanitarianism is the expression of stupidity and cowardice.” - Adolf Hitler

“Obstacles do not exist to be surrendered to, but only to be broken.” - Adolf Hitler, Mein Kampf

“What good fortune for those in power that people do not think.” - Adolf Hitler

[malaise]

8. No you are not losing it

Rec

[rsdsharp]

9. Goebbels and his wife killed their children and themselves on May 1,1945.

Hermann Göring was a central character in Nuremberg.

[wolfie001]

23. Yes nt

[dgauss]

10. Here are other examples.

I will say up front that I posed this question to Gemini, an AI tool:

"what are quotes from donald trump that are similar to authoritarian quotes from Germany in the 1930's and 1940's?"

Here is the answer I got and I think an example of how this tool, at least at this moment, can be useful.

"Historians and political scientists have noted several instances where Donald Trump's rhetoric mirrors the language used by authoritarian leaders in 1930s and 1940s Germany. These parallels often center on the dehumanization of political opponents, the framing of immigrants as a biological threat, and the concept of an "internal enemy."


Below are specific examples of these quotes and their historical context:

1. Dehumanization of Opponents as "Vermin"
In a 2023 Veterans Day speech, Trump used a term specifically associated with the rhetoric of Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini to describe his domestic political rivals.


Trump Quote: "We pledge to you that we will root out the communists, Marxists, fascists and the radical left thugs that live like vermin within the confines of our country..."


Historical Parallel: In the 1930s, Nazi propaganda frequently referred to Jews, communists, and other "enemies of the state" as Ungeziefer (vermin) or rats. This language is designed to strip individuals of their human rights by framing them as a biological infestation that must be "cleansed" or "rooted out" for the health of the nation.


2. "Poisoning the Blood" of the Country
Trump has repeatedly used imagery suggesting that immigration is a form of biological contamination, a core tenet of 20th-century racial purity ideologies.


Trump Quote: "They're poisoning the blood of our country. That's what they've done... They're coming into our country, from Africa, from Asia, all over the world."


Historical Parallel: In Mein Kampf, Hitler wrote extensively about Blutvergiftung (blood poisoning), stating, "All great cultures of the past perished only because the originally creative race died out from blood poisoning." Both used this metaphor to frame immigration not as a policy issue, but as a permanent, biological threat to the national "body."


3. The "Enemy Within"
A common authoritarian trope is to claim that internal critics are more dangerous than foreign adversaries, justifying the use of state power against citizens.


Trump Quote: "I think the bigger problem is the enemy from within... we have some very bad people. We have some sick people, radical left lunatics... it should be very easily handled by, if necessary, by National Guard, or if really necessary, by the military."


Historical Parallel: The Nazi regime utilized the concept of the Volksfeind (enemy of the people) to justify the suspension of civil liberties. By labeling citizens as a "sinister" internal threat, leaders can frame the use of the military against their own population as a defensive necessity.

4. Dehumanizing Immigrants as "Animals"
The use of animalistic imagery is a well-documented step in the process of state-sponsored marginalization.

Trump Quote: "In some cases they’re not people, in my opinion. But I’m not allowed to say that because the radical left says that’s a terrible thing to say... these are animals."

Historical Parallel: Dehumanizing language was a staple of 1940s German rhetoric, where targeted groups were routinely described as sub-human (Untermenschen). By declaring that a group is "not people," a leader removes the moral and legal barriers that typically protect human beings from state violence.

[erronis]

12. Thank you for a good "use case" of AI (with caveats.) Could you do the same with Musk's Grok?

I would try but I don't want to get my hands dirty.

(The caveats apply everywhere in the wild west of AI.)

[dgauss]

14. Never gone anywhere near Grok but that would be interesting.

I'm not sure I want to do that. It seems like an interesting experiment but sort of like "what would happen if you drank some water from that scummy puddle of water in the basement?' Might be good to know but I'll pass on that one.

And yes, caveats everywhere and in places we don't even have an idea of yet.

[Jack Valentino]

15. THIS !!!!!!!

..... but TRUMP is the REAL 'Enemy Within' !!!!!!

[PatrickforB]

11. That movie was outstanding. But the star was Russell Crowe, who played Hermann Goering. n/t

[FakeNoose]

13. Don't forget that other people - Stephen Miller for one - write Chump's speeches

It's their job to write speeches in the manner and language that Chump wants to convey to his audience. So it's likely Miller and the other writers have studied the speeches and writings of Hitler, and then try to mimic his tone when they write for Chump. It would be a mistake to think that Chump himself has a good enough grasp of the English language to do this himself.

The same would be true for the staff writers who create his rants on Truth Social and Xwitter. The only time Chump himself writes anything on social media, you immediately know by his bad spelling, incorrect punctuation and non-standard grammar. Usually it's done by staff writers who try to mimic him..

[erronis]

16. It is important to remember that the chump isn't writing 95% of the slop

But as long as the propaganda pipeline will consume it and spew it, then that's all that matters.

Hell, the stuff could be written in Saint Petersburg, RU, for all anyone knows.

[dgauss]

18. I think Stephen Miller does a lot of it.

He seems ready, eager and capable of spewing just about anything. Stephen Cheung is another mysterious creep that also seems capable of spewing just about anything.

I'd guess there a lot of people who think they've cracked the Trump style gaslighting code and are constantly auditioning. Probably a lot more creeps to come.

[surfered]

17. I once heard Trump kept a copy of Mein Kampf nearby, but I doubt Trump reads anything.

His briefings have to be short bullet points.

[Joinfortmill]

21. Nope. You're right

[multigraincracker]

26. You are not losing it, just getting wiser.

I’m just waiting for him to be found in the basement of the ballroom, ice cold with a Luger in his hand.

[Be The Light]

28. trump reads!?

[ShazzieB]

29. He does like those 2 words.

If you pay attention to his insults, it becomes apparent that he has certain favorites that he goes back to again and again. Weak and pathetic are definitely on that list. It may or may not be a coincidence that Goebbels used those words in that manner, but Schlump definitely thinks like a Nazi, so it checks out either way!

This reminds me that I really need to watch that movie!

[at140]

31. Take a deep breath and relax your mind

Germany lost wars. USA wins wars. That is a huge difference. No comparison.