Rediscovering Tyranny Before We Are Living Under It
Timothy Snyder is the Levin Professor of History at Yale. He's written several books. Up until a month ago I didn't even know he existed.
About a month ago is when Nick suggested I read "On Tyranny" by Timothy Snyder. Nick has just finished his first year of law school. He is the grandson of one of my oldest friends. We talk about once a week via telephone. He has a smartphone. I have a flip phone.
A conversation I had with Nick almost a year ago served as inspiration for one of my blog posts. If you are inclined, I've provided a link.
http://brendanbuschi.blogspot.com/2017/06/what-would-trump-have-to-do-grandpa.html
Nick carries around a pocket sized U.S. Constitution with him. He's wanted to be a lawyer since forever and he could end up being a member of the Supremes someday if our Republic survives.
A month ago I had at least 5 unread books on my night table. Somehow, no matter how much I read, I invariably have at least 5 unread books on my night table.
That's not actually my night table, but it's what I see when I look at my night table. Thing is - I failed to write down the title and decided to rely on my laser sharp memory.
Last week I posted a comment on a Twitter post by Chris Lutolf. He replied and suggested I read "On Tyranny". I was on my computer, so I checked it out on Amazon and ordered it. It was only $6.39. (What a deal.) It arrived 2 days later and it took me about an hour all toll to read. I read it over 2 days.
"On Tyranny" is an excellent book. When I finished it, I immediately called Nick and recommended that he read it. At first he thought I might be setting him up, but then he realized I wasn't. Sometimes I like to mess with him.
In a situation like this, I always plead my age. I'm 72. Ha! Ha! The short story here is that I urged him to carry it (it too is pocket sized) along with his pocket U.S. Constitution and read from it daily - use it for meditation.
I often recommend "Friendly Fascism" by Bertram Gosss to people. It's not a book you can read in a day - at least I couldn't. It was written in 1980, but it's what I would call a foundation book. If you want to understand our Republic it's excellent.
If you've never read "Stick and Rudder" by Wolfgang Langewiesche, I recommend that as well. It has nothing to do with politics. "Stick and Rudder" is about flying. It was written in 1944. It is still relevant. It too is what I would call a foundation book. I was so impressed with "Stick and Rudder", I suggested it be added to every high school student's reading list. I mention this because that is exactly what Chris Lutolf said about "On Tyranny".
The link above will take you to a video of Timothy Snyder talking about the Mueller Investigation. It is excellent and it gives you a feel for Timothy.
The picture above is of Robert Mueller as a young man. He is a Vietnam War veteran. He graduated from Princeton in 1966. In 1968 he enlisted in the U.S. Marines and was sent to Vietnam. After the war he went to UVA and in 1973, he got his JD.
In 2001, Mueller was unanimously confirmed as Director of the FBI by the U.S. Senate. He left the FBI in 2013 and in 2017 he was recruited as Special Counsel to investigate Russian interference in our 2016 election.
It's not an exaggeration to suggest that Robert Mueller is a modern day Atlas. He literally has the fate of our Republic and possibly the world on his shoulders. I doubt he forgets anything. Nothing gets passed him.
Donald Trump attacks Mueller almost daily. He trashes Mueller, the investigation, the FBI, our IC community and the press in a seemingly unending barrage of invective, lies and hate. Several Republican members of Congress and lots of right wing media folks join in those attacks.
Trump's supporters do not care about facts. Their morality seems to be whatever Donald Trump decides and that changes on a regular basis - sometimes from moment to moment. They are a cult.
They have also been a mob at times. That seems to be happening more and more.
We've seen this all before. We know how this story ends. The question is will we allow it to happen here? Will fascism and tyranny be in our future?
We have now begun taking children from their parents. The parents are coming to our border seeking asylum from murder and violence in their countries, so naturally we arrest them. The children are housed in "detention centers". Over 2,000 children have been taken to date. It must stop.
Trump and his criminal co-conspirators must be stopped. We need to protect Mueller and vote in the mid-terms. Until that time we need to put daily pressure on our House and Senate members to protect Mueller, protect the integrity of our elections, and stop the illegal and immoral actions committed by members of this administration and those they control. This is not what the immigrants I descended from had in mind when they came to America.
Meanwhile, Trump is pushing for a parade. Maybe he has earned one. Maybe we should watch as he and his minions are rounded up and paraded off to trial.
Holy Moly!
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