America Still Hasn’t Won
It doesn’t matter what the rules of checkers are if your opponent flips the table over. That’s what’s at stake here. Democrats are trying to win elections while Republicans are trying to overturn them. This is the runoff America finds itself in. Not for the Senate. For democracy itself.
It is important to remember that Hitler rose to power thru democracy. If even a minority of people want fascism, democracy will do that. It has no inherent value judgements of its own. It is also important to remember how slowly Hitler did it. From 1920 to 1932 Hitler chipped away at German democratic norms, playing the game until he got in. Then he flipped the table and lit the world on fire.
The German elites always treated him like he was playing their game, but he was actually trying to change the rules. It’s not that they were playing checkers and he was playing chess. They were playing checkers and Hitler punched them in the face.
This lesson is vital for Americans because this is precisely what Trump is doing and — even if it fails (as it did for Hitler at first) — the fascists won’t stop until you stop them. Politics is just norms, and these are your norms now. Sabotage voting. Don’t accept results. Stage a coup. Encourage violence. It could be Trump again or some more organized…
