We Are All German Jews Now
The introduction of so-called porno scanners at America’s airports and the egregious pat downs of airline travelers have turned every American into a German Jew. Instead of dehumanizing and demeaning one segment of the population in order to pave the way for the Holocaust, all airline travelers are being treated like German Jews by our government for our own good — to keep us safe from terrorists on airplanes.
The TSA now considers every American a potential “enemy of the state,” because any one of us may be carrying a bomb aboard an airplane, despite the fact that young men from the Middle East perpetrated the 9/11 attacks.
“Hold on,” say TSA officials and their lackeys in Congress and in the media, “Our federal government is not out to harm us let alone kill us like the Nazis did to the Jews; our government needs to conduct “aggressive measures” to “protect” us on all commercial flights from potential terrorists.” That is the party line.
I can understand objections to those who point to Nazi Germany and warn that this is what current day America is about. But I disagree with this objection.
The ultimate horrors in Nazi Germany were, indeed, much more terrible than anything close to what has occurred so far in America. But one should do more than only consider just the ultimate horrors of what went on in Nazi Germany. One must think about the road that was traveled by the Germans to get to that point.
I believe one of the most serious misunderstandings about totalitarianism is that it arrives as a full package that requires no assembly. That it is put on the people, like a winter coat. All at one time, and in full view for all to see.
This is a grave misunderstanding.
I often wondered why more Jews didn’t flee Nazi Germany. The answer did not come to me until I saw Roman Polanski’s important movie, The Pianist.
In the movie, Polanski demonstrates how many Jews were simply one step behind. When Nazi Germany limited how much money a Jew could have, instead of leaving the country, many Jews debated where they should hide their money. When Jews were required to move to certain parts of the city, many Jews simply focused on how to find the best place to live, instead of leaving the country. And then, of course, eventually it was too late to leave the country.
Would some Jews, perhaps a few, have listened and benefited from early warnings of ”fringe” voices about dangers? I think so. Would it have made sense to object to the Nazi limit on how much money a Jew could hold, and thus put at least a speed bump in the way of the Nazis? I think so.
No, they haven’t pulled up the trains in America, yet. But, when the trains do pull up, it is too late.
It’s clear what totalitarianism looks like and when I see it in America, I am going to object loud and clear. Whether it is groping TSA agents, or spying SEC agents. For it is those first steps where the battle needs to be won. Dehumanization in Germany, as Murray Sabrin points out, came step-by-step.
Dehumanization, whether it is groping or limiting how much money an ethnic group can hold, is still dehumanization. It’s the same road. We all know where that road led to in Nazi Germany. Maybe we can learn from history and stop the US from heading any further down that road.
Do my cries of warning put me on the fringe? Yes, they do. But it is a fringe group that I am proud to stand with.
Regards,
Robert Wenzel
Whiskey & Gunpowder
November 24, 2010
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