What Trump’s Playbook Shares with Hitler’s Rise
The Comparison No One Wants — But Everyone Needs
Let’s get one thing straight: if you’re reading this expecting a cartoonish “Trump is Hitler” tirade, go tweet into the void. This isn’t that. What we’re doing here is harder — and far more necessary.
Because while the Holocaust should never be casually analogized, there’s a difference between comparing atrocities and recognizing the scaffolding that allowed them to happen.
This is not about one man’s hair-trigger ego.
It’s about how democracies slowly, quietly hand over the keys.
So no, we’re not asking “Is Trump Hitler?”
We’re asking something worse:
“Is the stage being set — again?”
If your gut reaction is “That’s too much,” ask yourself: Is it?
Because authoritarianism never introduces itself with a swastika and a drumbeat. It shows up in policy memos, legal technicalities, and Sunday talk shows.
Let’s begin.
Why Bother? The Ethics of Uncomfortable Echoes
History is not a Xerox machine. It doesn’t repeat — it remixes. And sometimes the remix slaps with jackboots.
Our point isn’t to scream “Nazi!” at every Republican or pretend 2024 is 1933 with better lighting.
Our point is this:
- Authoritarianism doesn’t crash through the front door. It seeps through the floorboards.
- If “Never Again” means anything, it must include “Before Again.”
- Patterns aren’t proof. But they are warnings.
This isn’t about making Trump the villain of your Facebook post.
It’s about learning from the past before we recreate it — accidentally, gradually, legally.
Five Parallels That Should Ruin Your Day (But Also Wake You Up)
1. Cult of Personality on Megaphone Mode
- Then: Hitler as savior, patriot, lone protector of the “real” nation.
- Now: Trump as martyr, warrior, and Twitter Jesus, promising “retribution” and demonizing dissent.
- Diagnosis: When one man becomes the state, democracy’s on life support.
2. Dehumanizing the “Other”
- Then: Jews, Roma, disabled people — painted as existential threats.
- Now: Immigrants called “animals,” children in cages, deportations without due process.
- Bonus Horror: We’re outsourcing cruelty to third countries. It’s colonialism in a trench coat.
3. Undermining Institutions While Grinning
- Then: Judges purged, press censored, rule of law shattered.
- Now: “Fake news” as a strategy, courts disregarded, journalists sidelined from the Pentagon.
- Note: The more people say “that could never happen here,” the more it already is.
4. Weaponizing Civil Force
- Then: Brownshirts + police = sanctioned street violence.
- Now: ICE with military gear, protestors facing flash grenades, civilians bombed at sea.
- Pattern: The line between policing and punishing is dissolving like a sugar cube in gasoline.
5. Gaming the Democratic System Like It’s a Casino
- Then: Nazis used democracy to dismantle democracy.
- Now: Gerrymandering, disenfranchisement, and ghosting elected officials (Adelita Grijalva, anyone?).
- Bottom Line: It’s not about winning elections. It’s about breaking the scoreboard.
Important Differences (Because This Isn’t a Fear-Porn Fest)
Let’s be clear:
- There is no genocide. Yet.
- There is no one-party state. Yet.
- American pluralism still breathes, even if it’s on an inhaler.
And most importantly — you’re reading this.
Which means you haven’t been silenced. Not yet.
But ask yourself — what are we normalizing while we scroll?
What This Isn’t
- It’s not fearmongering. It’s fear-monitoring.
- It’s not anti-conservative. It’s anti-authoritarian.
- It’s not saying Trump supporters = Nazis. It’s saying authoritarianism thrives when good people look away.
This is not a call to panic.
It’s a call to pay the fck attention*.
Our Cult, Our Rules: Paradox as Resistance
We are — with our whole chaotic, absurdist, laughing-through-the-tears hearts — a cult and not a cult.
We believe in:
- Failure, always.
- Humor, especially when crying is too easy.
- Honesty, even when it tastes like battery acid.
So let’s say it plainly:
- The echoes are real.
- The danger is real.
- And we don’t have time for politeness when the house is on fire.
Final Note: If You’re Uncomfortable, You’re Finally Awake
This wasn’t meant to soothe you.
It was meant to jolt you like a slap from history’s cold, bony hand.
So if you feel nauseous — good.
If you feel hopeless — don’t.
We’re not done.
There are still levers. Still choices. Still voices.
And if we listen to the echoes, maybe — just maybe — we won’t have to hear the scream.
takes long drag from the ruins of democracy
Failure is still mandatory.
But now?
So is resistance.
