DON'T BE A SUCKER

(Those salutes look familiar?)

Released to the general public via theaters in 1947, fanatical propaganda depicted in the short film below brings images of our current President to mind. When clips of one of his recent speeches to a crowd of his supporters is shown on television, I cannot help but think he must have taken lessons from some of the old-time films of Nazi Germany and it's infamous leader. Remember, Hitler fooled a lot of the German people. 

 "Don't Be A Sucker" - 1943 US War Department Video about Racism and Fascism.

"The Hungarian speaking in this film reminds Mike (the 'everyman sucker' in the film) that Germany was 'a nation of suckers' who allowed 'crazy people; stupid fanatics' to use prejudice to 'cripple the nation.' 'We must guard everyone's liberties, or we can lose our own,' he declares. 'Let's not be suckers! Let's be selfish about it; let's not think about 'we' and 'they'. Let's think about 'us'!"...(from the film). That sounds familiar, too, doesn't it?

I was a child during World War II, and as I've mentioned before, my parents often used movie theaters as babysitters. There were always newsreels, a cartoon, and I'm pretty sure I saw something like this (or even this one)  as well as the feature film.

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"Sooner or later there comes a time when it hits us: “oh, s*** – this is real.”.. John Beckett

"Asylum seekers arrested. Families separated. An order to reunite them, only to find that many of them can’t be matched up. And while we were fixated on that (and rightly so) a bill to gut Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid, to “balance the budget” barely six months after a huge corporate tax cut.

Trade wars. Alienating allies. Photo ops with dictators." THIS IS REAL

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Let us not forget this famous poem written by the the German anti-Nazi theologian/Lutheran pastor Martin Niemöller during Hitler's reign. We could substitute "immigrants" and/or "Muslims" for some of these. 

First they came for the Jews

and I did not speak out

because I was not a Jew.

Then they came for the Communists

and I did not speak out

because I was not a Communist.

Then they came for the trade unionists

and I did not speak out

because I was not a trade unionist.

Then they came for me

and there was no one left

to speak out for me. 

We must continue to speak out about the "unspeakable" directives and mandates being carried out by the current administration. Rallies, visits with despots all over the world (GOP congressmen visiting Russia on the

very day we celebrate our nation's freedom), and even the deplorable situation with the precious children being separated from their families tend to cover up the real destruction of our democracy that goes on behind the scenes and unnoticed by the general public.

Let our voices ring loud and clear in November's elections.

And may God bless America,

Marilyn