Hitler's Great Lie theory works very well in USA

Preface

I was originally going to title this article America's Republican Party Thrives on Ignorance, until I recalled the theme of my previous Pravda. Ru article America's Fascist Party: A Warning to the World (02/01/21).

In this article, I explained how America now has three mainstream political parties: the Democrats; the moribund Republicans; and the "Fanatics Against Sanity and Conscience Instigating Sedition and Treason” (Fascist), led by their Fuhrer Donald Trump. The stench of these fascists is now malignantly polluting local, state, and federal governments, and while they incessantly moan about being "canceled,” they have no hesitation about silencing others (like the few remaining members of the Republican party who refuse to genuflect before Fuhrer Trump or dare to express viewpoints the fascists disagree with).

I also want to explain that, in my title, I am considering an ignorant person to be one that has the ability to learn and/or understand concepts like history, law, social issues, philosophy, and politics (especially political machinations), but voluntarily chooses not to; thus, ignorant people may be perfectly capable of thinking for themselves when it comes to programing a computer, fixing an automobile, or indulging in a myriad of other occupations or hobbies, but are more than willing to allow unqualified and self-serving pundits and politicians to dictate to them what to think, believe, and feel about the concepts described above.

Hitler's Great Lie theory

Regular readers of Pravda.Ru are undoubtedly aware that in several of my articles I have discussed Hitler's Great Lie theory. For those who haven't read these, this theory opines that if political leaders tell Great Lies, these lies will readily be believed, because the "common” person, blissful in his/her ignorance, will never believe that a leader would lie so blatantly.

This theory also requires that the Great Lie be packaged in the form of an easily repeatable slogan. This serves to minimize debate, because whenever a proponent of this Great Lie is challenged about its veracity they simply respond with this slogan.

The Great Lie theory has one Achilles heel, however: It only works on the ignorant. This means that people schooled in history, politics, law, or government can recognize and expose Great Lies, which also means that the creators and propagators of such lies must find a way to silence these critics.

Hitler did this by imprisoning and/or killing them.

Since America's government has largely refrained (at least openly anyway) from killing critics within its own borders, a smug belief has developed that its people will never succumb to the allure of Great Lies.

But, in this century alone, this belief has been proven wrong, not once, but twice. First, George W. Bush incessantly repeated the Great Lie about "weapons of mass destruction” to dupe Americans into supporting his invasion of Iraq, and more recently, Donald Trump has continued the lie that the 2020 election was "stolen” from him, and his slogan "Stop the Steal,” still resonates with his fascist supporters to this day.

It would seem that the rise of the Internet, where information can be retrieved at the touch of a button, would make it easy to disprove Great Lies. But, as I discussed in previous Pravda.Ru articles, anyone with a Facebook Page, Twitter Account, Microphone, and/or Webcam can become "influencers,” even if they have no expertise, education, experience, or knowledge about what they are espousing.

In addition, when I was growing up, anonymous opinions were disdained, due to the belief that anybody who was unwilling to put their name beside their beliefs was not to be trusted.

Yet with today's Internet, people seem inordinately willing to blindly accept the viewpoints of those who hide behind this curtain of anonymity.

While there have always been conspiracy theories and theorists, even that has changed. Prior to the Internet, conspiracy theorists at least had the integrity to realize that the burden of proof was on them to provide some evidence (however dubious it may be) to support their allegations.

But today, simply uttering the conspiracy is enough, and the burden has somehow shifted to the "unbelievers” to disprove it.

This is why Trump's Great Lie about the "stolen” election was (and is still) embraced by millions of people, and why the fascists in local, state, and federal governments continue to exploit it, even when it routinely failed in the courts. Courts, after all, still subscribe to the old burden of proof, which required Trump's attorneys to provide evidence of the alleged election "theft.”

By keeping the momentum of the "Stop The Steal” lie reverberating, the fascists are now working zealously to instill the ignorance it thrives upon into future generations.

In three recent articles, Tyranny Disguised as Patriotism (04/19/21), When Tyranny Masquerades As Law and Order (04/22/21), and America's Complacent Descent Into Fascism (04/30/21), I discussed how America's Fascist party is not only hiding its reprehensible efforts to inflame the hatred and bitterness that is destroying America's democracy under the innocuous guise of "patriotism” and "law and order,” they are also seeking to force schools, even at the university level, to instill these fascist thoughts and beliefs into America's youth, by passing laws banning the teaching of theories these fascists oppose. And, as discussed above, even though they cry "foul” whenever they claim they are being censored, they are also attempting to pass laws that will permit the firing of teachers and professors who don't obediently adhere to the mandates of the Fascist party.

One of the drawbacks of expressing one's thoughts in writing is it is difficult to emphasize the urgency of an issue or the magnitude of a threat.

All I can say is the urgency is genuine and the threat is real. And with a Trump-packed judiciary, most notably the Supreme Court, there are few obstacles to prevent these fascists from achieving their goals.

Hyperbole? I don't think so.

The fascist tactic of fueling the ignorance essential to the continued dissemination of Great Lies, and the destruction of America's educational system to ensure these lies live on in perpetuity, coupled with the toadying eagerness to put the whims and mendacity of Fuhrer Trump before the good of the nation are evidence enough to confirm that history may indeed be repeating itself, migrating from 1938 Berlin to 2021 America.

I truly pray that history will prove me wrong. America is too young to die, and it is definitely too young to be killed by a corrupt cabal of sycophantic fascists. But it will be killed, nonetheless, if people continue to bask in their ignorance.

David R. Hoffman, Legal Editor of Pravda. Ru