The Rise and Fall of the Second Trump

By Ed Raymond

fargogadfly@gmail.com

A column on How Trumusklicans are trying to change history

It took William L. Shirer a couple decades to write and then publish “The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich: A History of Nazi Germany,” but it took a very short time to become the 1,599-page explosion that “shook the conscience of the world” after it was published in 1959. I still treasure my paperback copy I paid $1.65 for when I was teaching English literature and history to Fargo Central High seniors for my third year.

Shirer’s opening paragraph begins perhaps the most important history book ever written by one man: “On the very eve of the birth of the Third Reich, on Saturday, January 28, 1933, General Kurt von Schleicher was dismissed by the aging Field Marschal von Hindenburg. Adolf Hitler, leader of the Nationalist Socialists, the largest political party in Germany, was demanding for himself the chancellorship of the democratic Republic he had sworn to destroy. Shortly before noon on January 30, 1933, 43-year-old Adolf Hitler, an Austrian, was appointed chancellor of Germany.”

It seems that autocrats, oligarchs, plutocrats, dictators and presidents with immunity have used the same Nazi playbook to gain and maintain power in the world. First, they try to destroy, warp and slow-dance the history of their country by lying about it. At the same time, they begin to ban books containing real history. German poet Heinrich Heine in 1820 described the autocratic playbook in a play: “First, they ban books. Second, they burn books. Third, they burn people.”

On May 10, 1933, four months after he was named chancellor, Adolph Hitler and his Nazi National Socialists took about 20,000 books on many subjects from universities in Berlin to the Franz Joseph Platz, started a bonfire and spent many hours tossing books into it. Propaganda Minister Joesph Goebbels had pictures taken of the scene, gave a speech on site and led the singing of Nazi songs. Many German newspapers reported the story and reproduced pictures of the bonfire. As a result of the publicity, many towns with universities repeated the book burning acts. Many newspapers reported it was the beginning of a purge of “the alien and corrupters of the German spirit.” The pictures and the story appeared in many newspapers around the world, often expressed with surprise and shock.

It was the first major goosestep in Hitler’s dance of death that burned six million Jews, millions of physically and mentally handicapped and many thousands in the homosexual community. Mothers of Liberty, our book banners, take note. By banning books, you have morphed to Mothers of Stupidity.

Hey, Elon! Please get on your rocket and go to Mars immediately!

The British Royal Society, the 365-year-old institution which has the leading scientists in the world on its long hallowed list — think Newton, Darwin, Huxley — is debating whether to throw Elon Musk out of the society on his immoral and narcissistic ass because the richest man in the world who engineers rockets, cars and satellites is helping the most ignorant president in the world screw up governments and the world economy. Musk was elected a “fellow” of the Royal Society in 2018, but since then he has blasted English politicians, wants the Divided States of America (DSA) to prosecute Anthony Fauci for his scientific work on COVID-19 and has used his “exalted” position in DOGGYDOO to slash research funding in many advanced countries in the world. Many members agree he has broken the code of conduct of scientists developed over centuries. Nobel Laureate and Artificial Intelligence (AI) scientific expert Geoffrey Hinton posted the following in Musk’s X regarding why they may ban him: “Not because he peddles conspiracy theories and makes Nazi salutes, but because of the huge damage he is doing to scientific institutions in the U.S.”

Musk supports Nazis in Germany although it is against German law, deliberately throws up the Hitler salute in people’s faces and is a Holocaust denier although there are millions of pieces of scientific evidence in plain sight. What is his game? Or is he just another Donald J. Trump in Elon Musk’s black T-shirts? Psychologist Mary Trump says her jerk, prick, asshole and narcissistic uncle is “the most dangerous man in the world.”

So is his buddy Elon. They are a perfect combo. Elon also loves only himself, has maybe 14 children by maybe four women and doesn’t give a damn about either children or women. Sound familiar? His women say he doesn’t share at all in his children’s upbringing or support. The women take him to court constantly. So, in the end he is also a jerk, prick, asshole and malignant narcissist sharing the White House.

Here is Musk’s reply to the Royal Society: “Only craven, insecure fools care about awards and memberships. History is the actual judge, always and forever. Your comments above are careless, ignorant, cruel and false. That said, what specific actions require correction? I will make mistakes, but endeavor to fix them fast.”

We know that the Lyin’ King hasn’t read a book. But perhaps Musk has read Huxley’s “Brave New World” and has his heart, such as it is, on becoming one of the ten World Controllers in charge of a large section of the world.

God: “I’m not pleased when we blur gender!”

A few decades ago when the Reverend Pat Robertson of the famous Christian Moral Majority played around in politics and ran for president, he claimed that God spoke to him once a week. He never really said what God talked to him about, whether it was in English and whether God ever listened to him. I often wondered why Pat didn’t have a tape recorder in his cashmere suit’s pockets. The reason I mention cashmere: Pat believed in the prosperity gospel where Christian fundamentalists and evangelicals who make lots of money should live in multi-million-dollar homes in high-value ZIP Codes and fly private jets. I always used to call Pat a man of the cloth — as long as it was cashmere. Pat also loved diamonds…but that’s another story.

Now we have religious ministers and faithless charlatans running around the country shouting: “God is not pleased when we blur genders!” The Lyin’ King increased the volume when he signed his executive order declaring that there were only two genders. Every village has an idiot, and King Donald is Manhattan’s

Ken Sims of Moorhead often writes letters to editors about abortion, life beginning at conception, transgender persons, and what the Bible says. His latest fascinating statement: “The Bible is clear that all human life is sacred and has dignity; we are unique creations by a loving God. He implanted his image (including a soul) within each one of us at the exact moment of conception. A soul makes us different from all God’s creations; it completes our humanity. Conversely, pro-abortionists do not believe an unborn baby is human, nothing more than a personal “choice.”

Catholic bishops in the Divided States of America insist there are 60 million Catholics in this country. I have been told by Catholic authorities that your name is not removed from the church attendance list until one writes a letter resigning from the church. Corky and I became ex-Catholics 66 years ago but we still might be on the lists of several churches on the East Coast and in Fargo-Moorhead.

Well, Ken, according to experts in genetics, at least 10% of the population are homosexuals in the LBGTQUIA+ community. Do you think they are “unique creations by a loving God?” Your Vatican thinks “they” are “intrinsically disordered” and led by Satan. Frankly, there is a real blurry blur of 74 different genders researched so far. It’s time you moved to the 21st Century. It’s also time for you to accept the fact that abortion is an economic issue, not a religious one. I’m an old farm boy. I have seen life and death. Sure, human life begins at conception, but 20% of fetuses die before “unborn babies” take their first breath of life. You mention that a legislative “conception” bill had some “legal flaws.”

Do you have a life insurance policy that insures fertilized cells for $100,000? Will SNAP or WIC give you more money for food stamps if you certify you fertilized an egg last night? Will the Trumusklican Internal Revenue Service accept two more unborn baby dependents on your annual income tax form? We call the first breath of life a “birthday” for many good reasons.

Some facts to consider when evaluating children, child care, and abortion: One, in 2025, it costs an average $303,000 to raise a child to 18. Two, the cost of child care in the DSA ranges from $521 a month in Mississippi to $1,893 in Washington, D.C. And three, In New Mexico, a rather average state, it costs $14,000 a year for child care — more than rent.

Why are millions of Americans deserting the pews like Europeans?

The Pew Research Center, one of the most reliable polls in the country, has just released a new version of the Pew Research’ s Religious Landscape Study. It shows that Americans are following their brothers and sisters in Europe out of the churches and pews in what was “Christian” Europe. The Vatican, surrounded by cynical Italians, is the biggest victim of the purge. Only less than 18% of Italian Roman Catholics attend weekly mass.

In 2007, 78% of Americans considered themselves Christians. Today that figure is down to 63%, representing many millions. The “nones” (no affiliation with a church) have increased to 30% from 16% in 2007. Only 38% of 18-to-24-year-olds say they believe in God or some kind of “universal spirit.”

This is a shocking statistic: Only 40% of American parents of minor children are giving their children any kind of religious instruction. Only 26% of these parents go to religious services once a week.

“The bottom line is that two-thirds of the millennial generation view religion as either obsolete or not a matter they have an opinion about, which is arguably an indirect expression of obsolescence,” Christian Smith wrote in his new book “Why Religion Went Obsolete: The Decline of Traditional Faith In America.” Smith is director of the Center of Religious Study of Religion and Society at the University of Notre Dame. “The movement to save Christian America for God ended up pushing many Americans away from Christianity, God, and the church.”

This is written at the most famous Catholic institution in America.