This is a great video to watch. Not because I think it contains much insight into contemporary American politics or culture (although we will see whether the upbeatness about Trumps re-election will bear out; I sincerely hope not).

https://johnhcochrane.blogspot.com/2020/08/goodfellows-rnc-commentary.html

It is interesting as a history lesson. Watching @JohnHCochrane @nfergus and two other @HooverInst guys trying to find something good about a proto fascist president, provides a deep insight into what must have been the conversations of German conservative intellectuals in the

late 1920s. It’s basically a direct window into that era. The arguments are even the same: HE is terrible but HE will save us from communism. Etc.

No, this is NOT comparing Trump to Hitler. No this is not a Holocaust comparison. It’s not calling anyone a Nazi.

It IS about conservative intellectuals in the late Weimar Republic that we can see repeat themselves in this era.

Really quite astonishing.

@BillKristol

And let me just add: this is somewhat personal to me as a German (and new American). I have always found the behavior of German conservative elites in the late 1920s both interesting and unfathomable. Of course, this might be due to bias of hindsight.

But seeing this play out in real time to me is both fascinating and frightening.

I should add: historically accurately I should have written probably early 1930s instead of late 1920s.

Another addendum: I am still trying to wrap my mind around this asymmetric fear. They literally fear a Biden administration will bring communism but have no fear about this concretely bad Trump regime. Is it because they are (mostly) white and do not fear a leukocracy? Hope not.

I think it's more a deformation professionnelle, as the French say. Conservatives ARE a minority in the Ivory Towers and leftist academics can have some crazy ideas and demand some crazy stuff. So, yes, there might be a leftist danger in academia. Let's grant them that.

But how representative is academia as a sociotope of American society or even a Democratic administration / congress? I think very little. These guys just need to get out more into the "real" America and they will see there is little appetite to make America Marxist, communist

or socialist, or whatever leftish ism they fear. And this includes the vast majority of the Democratic party. The Democrats simply want to transform America a bit more into Germany or Scandinavia, and, as everyone knows, those are complete hellholes of countries - not.