Uber Alles Uber Alles
26 06 2017“History does not repeat itself, but it does instruct.” – Timothy Snyder
“Life imitates art far more than art imitates life” – Oscar Wilde
In March, Jens Kruse spoke at the Orcas Center comparing today’s U.S. political environment to the late stages of Germany’s Weimar Republic. Needless to say, there were several correlations, which for those who pay attention, causes some concern. As Timothy Snyder says in his book titled On Tyranny, whether life is imitating art, or art is imitating life, history seems to be teaching some practices which do not benefit a nation built to further liberty.
There have been several comparisons of political figures to the third reich’s mustachioed megalomaniac, perhaps the most famous being the Dead Kennedy’s 1978 ‘California Uber Alles,’ re-popularized by The Disposable Heroes of Hiphopracy’s masterful mc’d version of 1992.
While Franti specifies more of the current California’s governors actions in his verse than did Biafra, the list could have been taken from Mr. Kruse’s talk. I no longer have the CD which contained the lyrics, but I believe ‘Sales tax, snack tax, excise tax Informational tax with a newspaper tax’ is very close, as well as a way of weakening the freedom of the press.
The reason I titled this blog Above All, Above All, is to point out how the determination to always be ‘in control’ is self-defeating, as there are no examples in nature of a system which maintains the peak of perfection in all permeations, so there is no way to study and learn how to accomplish such a feat.
To be King of the Hill, is by nature, transitory, and therefore planning on what happens during the waning of power is a better way of continuing influence, instead of believing that power will always be available. Of course, in a topsy-turvy world of political puppetry, it may be best to remember the idea that Douglas Adams suggested through his two headed, four armed thieving civil servant, the point of politics is to distract from the real power.
The true patriot then, realizes that the protection of a nation’s pulse belongs to the populace, and not to a propped up persona.
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