|
Don't imagine that what is happening in the United States today has not happened before. Donald Trump builds upon one of the central templates of 20th Century Western History.
One may call the diseased and dangerous other a Jew or a Bolshevik or a homosexual or a mental patient or a Slav (as the Nazis did).
Or one can call this diseased or dangerous other a Mexican, a Muslim, a Syrian, an Arab or an immigrant (as Donald Trump has). In our hearts, the dream remains the same.
The name of the offending class of people doesn't matter. The fantasy or template is the same. At the heart of radical nationalism is the idea or belief that certain groups of people are the source of the nation's problems--and suffering.
The "removal" of certain classes of people is imagined to constitutes the "cure." The names differ, but the dream remains the same. Certain classes of people are identified as the source of the nation's suffering. Removal of these classes of people is understood as the means to eliminate suffering.
The nation can return to greatness only if certain classes of people are removed from within the boundaries of the nation--or denied entry. As long as these diseased or dangerous others remain, the nation will continue to suffer.
This common fantasy or template has been at the core of 20th Century history (and not only Western history), generating numerous wars and genocidal movements.
Donald Trump is a mild manifestation of this template or fantasy-system.
|
