First imagine one of the most powerful countries in the world…wealthy, prosperous, innovative. It is a symbol of strength. It is run by duty, honor, and tradition.
Now, imagine that said country is forced to go to war…but the war, luckily, is said to be a quick affair. The good old military boys will fight, battle, and win. They will win in the name of flag and country, and most importantly, the war won’t drag on. They will be home by Christmas.
But the war does drag on…and more than expected perish.
Now imagine that this prosperous country is hit with an unexpected depression. Hyperinflation. No jobs. A crippled economy. This is a country that was once at the forefront of the Western world. The most powerful military. A strong economy. Now, people are at a loss…their money is worth nothing. They fear for their futures that were once so perfectly planned.
After a few years of dallying about, relying on the government in place to help sort things out (to no real avail), out comes this charismatic leader.
He is more than a leader. He is a sign of hope. A signal that things may once more be as they were.
This man is an incredible rhetorician.
He has no real experience…but he is educated…he knows how to speak.
This man knows how to play to a crowd. He can speak for hours in front of a large audience. Women swoon in his presence—so strong is his charisma.
Even though he reveals no particular plan…he repeats slogans that the masses believe in. He is aware he is more intelligent than these masses (or, at least, he believes he is). He knows that these people (who stand for hours before him just for the chance to hear him speak), are filled with a nostalgic longing for the days in which their country was again prosperous, in which their money of value, and their futures certain. And so he feeds them want they want to hear. This leader is an excellent manipulator—he knows how to pander to each audience.
In front of the masses, he does not speak of plans—nothing of real substance. But, he repeats with that sharp tongue of his, his mantras and slogans of hope. He repeats his mantras and slogans of change. He repeats his mantras and slogans that one day, under his leadership, and under his plans, this country will be as great as it once was…if not better.
Who is this man?
5 comments:
CORRECT!
That's cuz I went to a school and had a father that still taught readin' ritin' and rithmatic and made sure I lernt history and that Adolph Hitler was an evil despicable silver tongued monster and not a failed misunderstood Austrian painter who didn't get enough hugs from his mother and a trophy just for showing up at little league.
I thought it was that lampshade guy.
Funny story.
My Dad had a stroke back in 94. After the stroke he was admitted to a Rehab hospital.
Upon entrance, they gave him a test to see how well his brain was working. I was sitting with him during the test, which was administered by a young lady in her 20's.
A lot of the questions struck my dad as stupid and insulting, so he gave creative responses to the most tedious of them.
One of the questions was,
"Who was Hitler?"
My dad's response was, "He was a housepainter."
Hilarious.
The lady said, "No, Mr., Hitler was...
I was laughing my ass off.
What the hell do these kids know. Some think the Beatles were Paul McCartney's back up band.
If you raving racists would let go of your guns and bibles for a second and pick up "Dreams of my Father" you would become enlightened and become calm.
You must be, 'absorbed', and find the absolute good
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