Opinion

The Octogenarian: This political rhetoric sounds familiar

trump podium talk

Trump using rhetoric that paints entire cultures in a bad light isn’t anything new when put into historical context. | Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

We are in a presidential election year, and though all presidential elections are special, this one is unique. Many of these candidates, like Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump, are unique in the number of new voters they are bringing out.

Whenever I come across these new voters, I always ask them one question for which I generally get the same answer from both camps: “If your candidate doesn’t win the nomination, who will you vote for?”

They usually tell me that if their candidate doesn’t win, they “ain’t gonna vote!”

Back when I was young, two political parties emerged on the world scene.  One was led by a man named Adolph Hitler and the other was Benito Mussolini.

These two men came to power by telling half-truths, using deceitful rhetoric on their people and gathering the less-educated demographic in their countries who had feelings of hopelessness and of not being part of the system.

Hitler eventually had his people gathering while wearing distinctive black shirts, and Mussolini had his people wearing brown shirts.

So, what color shirt will you wear?

Today, we have a phenomenon called Donald Trump.  He preaches prejudice against whole groups of people just as the eventual dictators of the 1930s did. He tells of the danger of the Hispanics “pouring across our southern border” when actually, according to the Pew Research Center, immigration is statistically way down.

He speaks of protecting us from an entire religion, Islam, when our problem is with radicals of all religions. And what is the demographic of his followers? Persons with a high school diploma or less who feel deprived. Look at the ethnicity of his crowds — they’re pure white.

One of our major problems is a great lack of knowledge by the greater part of our population of the real history of our nation and the potential actual ramifications of their actions.

This year, Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders are doing much to bring potentially new voters into their respective political parties. If these new people actually vote and caucus, this will be good for our democracy.  But we know that the average American voter is lazy, so we do not know if these new people will show up to actually vote.

Please vote this year. But do so after collecting information and becoming knowledgeable. Then you can vote with your mind and your heart.

Opinion columnist Ken Levin is a political science senior and may be reached at [email protected]

4 Comments

  • Many of your assumptions and conclusions are based on false premises and listening to the echo chamber from inside the Washington Beltway.

    Trump is perhaps a little more nuanced in his cry for sealing the borders than you may be able to comprehend after how ever many years it has taken you to become a political science senior. The southern border needs to be sealed and his statements were that many that currently cross it were bad people, not all but many. Recent news accounts list not only those with Hispanic surnames, but also those of Middle Eastern origin, and others from around the world as well.

    The call to cease Muslim, specifically Syrian, relocation and immigration was TEMPORARY but I guess that doesn’t fit nicely into your predefined narrative. There is no way to accurately vet Syrian “refugees” as record-keeping is spotty at best in rural areas all over the world. ISIS openly boasts of plans to infiltrate these groups of people to come here surreptitiously come here. Many Americans choose to take them at their word.

    And to say that Trump’s followers are “pure white” is beyond absurd. Americans as a whole are angry at politicians as an entire group and want change, real change this time. This anger knows no racial boundaries constructed and utilized by those elitists seeking to maintain power and control at any cost. As a political science major, this must be where you also aspire to seek you fame and fortune.

  • Ah … senility will hit us all in time. And its Ken’s time.

    Ken, you were alive during Hitler and Mussolini’s time, and in your teens would have been able to slap around a little NY kid named … Bernie Sanders. All three of which support the confiscation of citizens weapons. And they of course join illustrative company with the likes of Joseph Stalin, Mao Tze Tung, Pol Pot, Fidel Castro, Hugo Chavez … all of whom disarmed their political opposition for the purpose of dictatorial control over their people.

    Has Donald Trump suggested confiscating anyone’s weapon. No. But he is exposing hard truths that a politically correct left refuses to take seriously, and has since given birth to a Trump candidacy. And comparing Trump to any European leaders policies from the 1930’s? I’m mean Ken … really. Are you that dense to think that unchecked immigration will not harm our country. Have you seen what unchecked immigration is doing in Europe. Sweden, Denmark, Norway? Those cultures are literally dying, and the rest of Europe is not far behind.

    I have a question for you Ken. How many Americans have to die before you change your opinion on Radical Muslims. 10,000 …. 20,000, because it will happen someday. Does one of your grandchildren have to die?

    SocDems are happy in the Balkanisation of our society, and cannot see a problem in a religion supported by Radicals that degrades women, kills homosexuals and Christians, rape kids, and refuse homosexual wedding cakes in Michganistan. Shall I go on? How SocDems can support that I will never know. But you tacitly support it with your either your ignorance, or your knowingly refusaing to address the subject.

    As for Hispanics, unchecked immigration is a country killer. We already have over 90 million Americans out of work, so exactly how will amnesty be helpful in getting those people back to work? Hispanics with any sense have to know that a sudden legalization of millions of illegals, will hurt their earning and career potentials. Well actually, Obama has destroyed careers with his devastating policies against American business.

    I believe that you will be thoroughly surprised that Trump supporters run the gamut of political parties, races, unions, etc. I know that will disappoint you, but if you go to your safe-space, you will feel better afterwards.

    The people that hate Trump are the GOP Establishment, the SocDems, and the SocDem media. They’ve tried their hardest to destroy him by portraying him as a racist, evil capitalist, women hater, etc.

    The frustration of destroying Trump boils down to the fact that the SocDem media didn’t make Trump … and just like Rush Limbaugh, they can’t destroy Trump. Now the SocDem media made Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. No denying that. We’ve seen how the media threw Hillary aside in 2008 for Obama, and now with her second coronation attempt, Bernie Sanders, is coming along upsetting the apple cart.

    I know it will be tough to hear, but Sanders is not the preferred candidate of the SocDem elite. Bernie attacks the Wall Street SocDems, and that won’t fly at DNC HQ.

    • Soooo many conspiracies….oooh.scary. A social Democratic media in charge of the American conscience. Ohhh…mind control. Spooooky. And, by the way, Trump doesn’t seem to mind using those immigrants which he carps against, especially by exploiting immigration law. And if he really cared about “American” jobs, why he been he outsourcing manufacturing jobs to places like Mexico and China for years? Attacking the writer doesn’t change anything Trump has done, is doing, or, based on his documented pattern of exploitation, corruption, and malfeasance, is likely to do in the future. And supporting him with a bunch of revisionist history makes you look like a complete moron.

      • Alex … again with the name calling.

        For a 57 year old, you act rather childish in trying to get taken seriously in getting your point across.

        And exploiting immigration law? If you can’t see that of Obama subverting current law … then there is no sense into responding to your tripe.

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