Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century
by Timothy Snyder, 2017
Short book about how the 2016 election of Donald Trump and his presidency have many similarities to the rise of Hitler and Communism in the twentieth century. I wish everyone would read this book, especially Trump supporters. They have been duped.
His twenty lessons are: 1. Do not obey in advance. 2. Defend institutions. 3. Beware the one-party state. 4. Take responsibility for the face of the world. 5. Remember professional ethics. 6. Be wary of paramilitaries. 7. Be reflective if you must be armed. 8. Stand out. 9. Be kind to our language. 10. Believe in truth. 11. Investigate. 12. Make eye contact and small talk. 13. Practice corporeal politics. 14. Establish a private life. 15. Contribute to good causes. 16. Learn from peers in other countries. 17. Listen for dangerous words. 18. Be calm when the unthinkable arrives. 19. Be a patriot. 20. Be as courageous as you can.
Some of the quotes I liked: “No doubt the Russians who voted in 1990 did not think that this would be the last free and fair election in their country’s history, which (thus far) it has been.”
“What is patriotism? Let us begin with what patriotism is not. It is not patriotic to dodge the draft and to mock war heroes and their families. It is not patriotic to discriminate against active-duty members of the armed forces in one’s companies, or to campaign to keep disabled veterans away from one’s property. It is not patriotic to compare one’s search for sexual partners in New York with the military service in Vietnam that one has dodged. It is not patriotic to avoid paying taxes, especially when American working families do pay. It is not patriotic to ask those working, taxpaying American families to finance one’s own presidential campaign, and then to spend their contributions in one’s own companies.”
“It is not patriotic to admire foreign dictators…It is not patriotic to call upon Russia to intervene in an American presidential election…”
This is an important book, but it makes me despise Trump supporters and that is just as wrong and evil, so I need to take care. But please, Trump supporters, educate yourself on this person you elected. He is not the anti-Christ because he is not smart enough, but he is ruled by his base instincts: malice, greed, lust, hatred to name a few.