Political Forums
Page 2 of 8 1 2 34 Last »
Show 40 post(s) from this thread on one page

Political Forums (http://www.politicalchat.org/index.php)
-   History (http://www.politicalchat.org/forumdisplay.php?f=40)
-   -   Lessons for Now From History (http://www.politicalchat.org/showthread.php?t=11633)

JCricket 04-19-2017 07:56 AM
Hey DQ
thanks for posting these. I do have to say I am feeling pretty stupid. I can read his remarks and follow maybe 50%. Then my mind goes off in a dozen directions wondering about all the different possibilities of what he "could" mean. Or more specifically, how it could apply to us.

donquixote99 04-19-2017 10:03 AM
Thinking about a dozen directions is good. These are not cut and dried simple commandments, the author calls them 'lessons.' When you explore what they might mean to you, you think new thoughts and figure out stuff. These lessons are open-ended, so one need not expect to necessarily find the 'one answer,' as with a math problem. Each reader can go where they want and need to with them.

donquixote99 04-20-2017 09:49 AM
Lesson Four from historian Tim Snyder:

Quote:
4. When listening to politicians, distinguish certain words. Look out for the expansive use of “terrorism” and “extremism.” Be alive to the fatal notions of “exception” and “emergency.” Be angry about the treacherous use of patriotic vocabulary.
Also, know a meme when you see one.

donquixote99 04-21-2017 08:44 AM
Lesson Five from Historian Tim Snyder:

Quote:
5. Be calm when the unthinkable arrives. When the terrorist attack comes, remember that all authoritarians at all times either await or plan such events in order to consolidate power. Think of the Reichstag fire. The sudden disaster that requires the end of the balance of power, the end of opposition parties, and so on, is the oldest trick in the Hitlerian book. Don't fall for it.
Such events will be blamed on 'the enemy within.' Divide-and-conquer tactics.

donquixote99 04-22-2017 07:22 AM
Lesson Six from Historian Tim Snyder:

Quote:
6. Be kind to our language. Avoid pronouncing the phrases everyone else does. Think up your own way of speaking, even if only to convey that thing you think everyone is saying. (Don't use the Internet before bed. Charge your gadgets away from your bedroom, and read.) What to read? Perhaps The Power of the Powerless by Václav Havel, 1984 by George Orwell, The Captive Mind by Czesław Milosz, The Rebel by Albert Camus, The Origins of Totalitarianism by Hannah Arendt, or Nothing is True and Everything is Possible by Peter Pomerantsev.
Thinking in slogans is not thinking, and the debasement of language is the debasement of thought. To a huge extent, the Internet is a study in modern advanced techniques of opinion control. Beware what is served to you; find your own reading.

donquixote99 04-24-2017 06:12 AM
Lesson Seven from Historian Tim Snyder:

Quote:
7. Stand out. Someone has to. It is easy, in words and deeds, to follow along. It can feel strange to do or say something different. But without that unease, there is no freedom. And the moment you set an example, the spell of the status quo is broken, and others will follow.
One of their chief weapons is inertia--reinforced by intimidation. Be brave and bold.

donquixote99 04-25-2017 08:05 AM
Lesson Eight from Historian Tim Snyder:

Quote:
8. Believe in truth. To abandon facts is to abandon freedom. If nothing is true, then no one can criticize power because there is no basis upon which to do so. If nothing is true, then all is spectacle. The biggest wallet pays for the most blinding lights.
Truth is the beating heart of resistance. That's why it is targeted.

donquixote99 04-26-2017 11:16 AM
Lesson Nine from Historian Tim Snyder:

Quote:
9. Investigate. Figure things out for yourself. Spend more time with long articles. Subsidize investigative journalism by subscribing to print media. Realize that some of what is on your screen is there to harm you. Learn about sites that investigate foreign propaganda pushes.
If you aren't careful, the next-to-last sentence changes: strike 'some,' insert 'most.'

donquixote99 04-27-2017 09:57 AM
Lesson Ten from Historian Tim Snyder:

Quote:
10. Practice corporeal politics. Power wants your body softening in your chair and your emotions dissipating on the screen. Get outside. Put your body in unfamiliar places with unfamiliar people. Make new friends and march with them.
Getting out on the street means you care. Staying home means you don't.

Stand Against Racism Rally today in Dayton. 12-2, Courthouse Square. See you there!

merrylander 04-28-2017 05:57 AM
Not only power - age does much the same.


All times are GMT -5. The time now is 06:41 AM.
Page 2 of 8 1 2 34 Last »
Show 40 post(s) from this thread on one page

Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.6
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.