The Nazi comparisons continue
I'm not a big conspiracy guy, but <a href="http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/nation/ny-uscia1114,0,4055608,print.story?coll=ny-top-headlines">this isn't one.</a> No Dems in Bush's staff and now no "disloyal" officers in the CIA.
If Bush doesn't like the comparison's to the Hitler, then stop acting like him! Oh yeah, can we check to make sure the sprinkers are on in the Capitol?
Not that Rummy will stand trial, but I believe this does mean he can't go to Germany ever again...
http://www.rideside.net/drupal/?q=node/1035
He calls out Powell and Rice.
Here's an even better question: Would anyone care?
In the beginning, most Germans really were just complacent. They followed the rules. They followed party lines. They tried to not get in trouble. They compromised. They let their government legally take more and more power and become more and more fascist, more and more a dictatorship until it was too late. They had made themselves powerless.
Do I see a corrolation here? Yes. The safeguard against fascism-- American checks and balances-- are not working. The executive branch has too much power, and is grabbing at more (examples: Allito, USA Patriot, domestic spying, International secret prison camps, for a start.)
Germans are scared, and rightly so. Many places in Germany we saw bumperstickers with an image of Hitler, a recycle logo, and then an image of Bush.
I agree, and wonder if I will decide that 'enough is enough', before something scary, world-altering mistake happens and I'm powerless to change it. And I'm worried and scared because things are pretty good for most people in the US, so people aren't all that interested in the goverment. I worry that the disinterested American voting block will allow too much power-grabbing to happen, and then it will be too late, just like in Germany.
And what ethnic group will it target? Any dummy could figure that out.
In Europe, people remember very clearly the effect of Hitler, dictatorships and fascism on their universe, people are outraged every time some domestic spying, torture, secret prison camp, international 'big stick' Bush policy is revealed.
But where is the American outrage? Does it appear to you that anyone here really cares?
A: Bush wasn't elected by popular opinion.
I would also imagine the GOP would care. Bush can't shake his neo-nazi image, and that's not something that helps parties win elections.
As long as fear
<i>Sept. 11th</i>
drives the electorate (which
<i>Sept. 11th</i>
is also a fascist tool)
<i>Sept. 11th</i>
then the neo-nazi image
<i>Sept. 11th</i>
won't hurt too much.
<i>Sept. 11th</i>
Should this be under "The Impending Impeachment" thread? "Worst President Ever" thread?
The executive branch can listen to your phone calls, detain you indefinitely, torture you, deny you due process, snoop through your library records, ignore legislation they find unappealing and retroactively declassify information to besmirch your wife's career just so long as they keep saying "Sept. 11th" every third sentence.
Welcome to Neu America.
Is anyone else contacting their Congressman?
When will I stop asking questions?
Senators Kennedy and Kerry and my Rep. John Tierney are supposedly the most liberal in the Congress, they seem to be representing my interests, if not as forcefully as I'd like. Here's my email:
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To: Sen. Kennedy, Sen. Kerry, rep. Tierney
Subject: more oversight
I am, once again, appalled by the actions of our President. His most recent outrage is contained in the "signing statement" issued _two_weeks_ after siging the USA PATRIOT Act into law. Why the chief executive must marshall resources to enforce the laws in a prudent manner, choosing not to enfoce laws solely because the executive does not agree with them is ludicruous.
I urge you to cut funding for the NSA signal intelligence programs. That money is better spent analyzing the information we are already overwhelmed with rather than this fishing expedition.
Thank you.
<i><b>New Rule... George Bush isn't Hitler. In the 2004 election, MoveOn.org compared Bush to Hitler, ignoring the first rule of being taken seriously by grown-ups, which is: Don't call everyone you don't like "Hitler". Bush is not Hitler.</i></b>.
To be fair, Maher goes on to congratulate Hitler for actually serving in the military, which is pretty funny, but still, the Hitler exaggerations are so annoying..
What other leaders used a horrible national event to gain powers, invade other countries for no reason, and flat out deny that they are bound by laws? The list doesn't seem that long. The comparisons are useful when trying to show the American people that government is our biggest fear now.
Bill Maher is easily my favorite Republican. Commited to lower taxes, civil rights, against government waste, and tells it like it is. Too bad the Right doesn't know what to do with him.
Honest comparisons to Nazi's only please.
A debate comparing anyone to Hitler in a knee jerk fashion IMHO is not a fruitful one, and I was just glad to see that there are others out there that agree.
Please give your serious comparison of Maher and Hitler.
And so it continues.
Ok, British lieu: mail in yr evidence to the NYT so everyone can be clear on how Blair = Hitler, so we can then clearly turn that around and deduce that Bush = Hitler.
I think some of the below comments from Brits who read that same article were pretty poignant.
<i>That Flight Lt Kendall-Smith felt the war in Iraq was illegal is his right to believe. However, it is not within the remit of service personel to decide which orders they would like to obey or which 'enemy' they would or would not like to fight. He had a very simple option if he felt so strongly: resign his commission!
- Terence, Hereford
I am an ex-serving member of the Royal Air Force. I can understand his reasons for not wanting to go to Iraq as I also did not want to serve in this area. However, I believe the good Doctor should have voted with his feet and resign his commission rather than go to court and cause bitterness between the ranks of serving airmen and airwomen. I could see the war on the horizon after 9/11 and resigned from the RAF in 2002 and believe that he should resign also.
- Jim Greer, Stafford, England
Regardless of opinion as to the legallity of the conflict this man joined a branch of our armed forces and presumably took an oath to serve as and when required which he has failed to do therefore did he expect anything other than a court marshall.
Picture this, 1939 War declared, Colour Sgt adressing soldiers, 'hands up all those who don't mind fighting'
- John Phillips, Derby</i>
http://www.rideside.net:8080/ = Hitler
Grownups comparing a dolt who probably can't tie his own shoes much less murder 6 million people to Hitler = Hitler
This Hitler Comparison thread = Hitler
Please try and comment on the actual article, and again try to use serious and honest Hitler comparisons.
I agree with TGL's above assesment re: <i>deplorable treatment of captured enemies</i> and in no way am talking about US policy of any kind.
What I personally find childish is to frequently flog a dead horse as far as the 'nazi comparison' issue is concerned. Since this is all the same folks who already debated this ad nasueaum, why bring it up to the same group?
Why aesthetically bring it up as a lengthy paragraph linked to everyone's favorite GR other than to say ' I told you so' and to also remind everyone how factually correct and righteous you are?
I share dissent and dislike of GWB and the current situation. I do not share the sentiment that we are living in a fascist state and do not choose to compare apples and oranges.
Don't make me come out there.
Why is it that you have this omniscent way of understanding all of my posts and telling other people what I meant?
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As far as flogging the dead horse goes... I don't know. I see this stuff and want to alert CC, at the very least. I know that CC is following along. I know that you'll see it as well. Don't click the shiny red "1 new" link?
Are you saying we should self-censor?
Is it offensive as every time something is "not good" someone uses a euphemism for fellatio to describe it as such?
I guess I don't have a good answer for this.
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You're right, we aren't living in a fascist state. However, that's not what anyone is claiming, I think claims are limited to "we're starting to do things that other fascist regimes have done".
I am more sensitive to this type of stuff than I should be.
I definitely should use more of my own advice re:"One of The buttons turns the browser off, the other changes the web page".
I'd like to state for the record that I am not advocating:
-censorship (of any kind)
-The Curent state of affairs in the US as a good thing
If anyone could use more self-censorship up in this piece, it's me (how many unnecessary posts do I make every day?)
[said in earnest with no sarcasm to Conor and TGL and anyone else reading this]Please accept my apologies for my overreaction to this thread. [/said in earnest with no sarcasm.]
This is current. People are still being tortured! It is not a dead horse in any way. It is an "I told you so" of sorts, but more like a "I'm telling you so". So perhaps we should heed those who had the vision to see just how awful it is to torture people, let alone the consequences of the American soldiers who tortured.
Has everyone on rs.n written their Senator/Representatives demanding we stop torturing?
It is tough to interrupt online.
Would the Rideside Ref have had to been called out for this if the post was initially <b><i>"We're starting to do things that other fascist regimes have done"</b></i>? instead of <b><i>"The Nazi Comparisons Continue"</b></i>?