I love history. There’s much in the patterns of human behavior that are repeated by our species throughout the millennia. Books provide us with the opportunity to learn from the lives of others.
For instance, had the Inca possessed writing and libraries, Atahualpa, king of the defunct and disappeared Inca Empire, might have known not to trust the Spanish when they invited him to a party, where they killed him.
We have writing and libraries, yet our species continues to repeat our historical mistakes countless times. In contemporary times, we have Donald Trump, the current occupant of the White House, because he loved the uneducated and they voted him in.
He wasn’t the first to love ignorance: Hitler was another who loved the uninformed so he could manipulate them, like “Don the Con” is presently doing. Both were supported by conservative farmers and the unemployed. Both blamed Democrats, socialists, communists and immigrants for their country’s problems.
Both claimed the “fake” news opposed them. Putin and other autocrats use the same levers to push division among the people to prevent any organized opposition.
Both Hitler and Trump insulted and disparaged their militaries; Trump goes a step further by undermining our confidence in our institutions and our intelligence agencies.
Hitler murdered his critics and opponents, while Trump calls for locking them up (to start). Both used concentration camps to corral their undesirables; Hitler went a step further and exterminated them when possible. Trump only mocks the handicapped on national media, while Hitler removed them from sight.
Both Hitler and Trump claimed superior minds. It’s no wonder, since both are considered malignant narcissists. Hitler’s megalomania is much apparent in the grandiose plans he had for Berlin as capital of the world. Trump’s megalomania is found in his gold-covered toilet seats and the worldwide branding he sells.
It’s no wonder that Trump is “hailed” by white supremacists and American Nazis. Yet, while Hitler was truly a courageous man in war, having earned two Iron Crosses (1st and 2nd class), Trump stayed safe at home with countless bone spurs.
I’ll never forget the scene of Trump slapping a man hard at a sporting event, and Keith Schiller, Trump’s bodyguard, stepping between them to prevent the man from retaliating. There’s a man for you. He’ll take on a 16-year-old girl instead.
Trump tasked Eric Prince, founder of the mercenary army Blackwater, to form a private bodyguard army of 400 to protect him, since the Secret Service isn’t trustworthy and reliable. Note well: Hitler’s SS began as his 400-strong private security guard. Um.
Don’t get me wrong: Trump is no Hitler, since he has no ideology. He’s Mussolini — and a punk.
Lance Corey
Westhampton
Shut Him UpFolks: it is time to take Michael Daly at his word(s), unpleasant as that may be. First: glide by his smarmy greeting card calls for “love.” His own words reveal him, above all, and consistently, a purveyor of hate and...
Suffering in SilenceWhen our world gets out of balance, we lose our comfort and security. Too much or too little of anything spikes our fear, and we lose our sense of peace. Those who have what they want and need are comfortable....
Advocate & Adjudicate?The previous administration of [Supervisor Jay] Schneiderman and current board member Tommy John Schiavoni did not give high priority to monitoring appointed public officials for ethical lapses in their private life activities. This laissez-faire policy towards ethics enforcement appears to...
Soil Is CallingIn a book titled “In Old Southampton,” Abigail Halsey reminds us that in the early days of Southampton, “every man was a farmer and a fisherman.” But those days are long gone and most people, today, have no connection to...
A Web of InterestsKudos to Craig Catalanotto [“What Are We Doing?” Letters, April 18] and Barbara Ring [“Tangled Web” Letters, April 18] for their letters to the editor shining a light on the web of special interests, conflicts of interest and misinformation that...
Dates of InfamySeptember 11 and October 7, similar dates of infamy for strong allies with similarly divergent reactions. Now gathered mobs of protesters are cheering on those who cry “Death to America” and call for the complete annihilation and genocide of the...
Your VoiceOn June 25, registered Democrats will go to the ballot box to determine who will represent their ticket for New York’s 1st Congressional District. Although CD1 has recently been held by Republicans, both parties have assumed leadership over the years....
Master ClassI thank Barbara Ring for aptly proving my point. In response to my letter [“An Alliance,” Letters, April 11], which decried the state of civic public discourse in Hampton Bays as being overtaken by misinformation, fear-mongering and conspiracy peddling, Ring...
