As I am watching a speech by Donald Trump, I am beginning to have a whole new appreciation of Adolf Hitler.
Just how powerful is the message of hate!
And with each new public appearance, Trump improves his mastery of it.
Everything he says is about hate.
He tells you to hate illegal immigrants because they murder innocent Americans.
To hate Syrians because you don’t know where they came from, what they want, and where they are.
To hate gun control advocates because they are helping “these animals” who shot up 135 people in Paris.
To hate the Iranians. Common Core. Obama (of course). The (cheating and lying) media. Newspapers. Republican rivals.
Because “the American dream is dead” but Trump will fix things and “make America great again”.
Americans generally are not hateful people. In the past, they resisted the message of hate. During the Great Depression, the message of hope prevailed. During the Cold War, Joe McCarthy’s hateful witch hunt ended in disgrace.
But now… I never thought I’d see it within my lifetime, but the message of hate is back, and it may be more powerful than ever.
And it is bloody scary.