Page 84 - Šolsko polje, XXVIII, 2017, no. 3-4: Education and the American Dream, ed. Mitja Sardoč
P. 84
šolsko polje, letnik xxviii, številka 3–4
York’s famous sports arena, Madison Square Garden, in a rally organ-
ized by the German American Bund in 1939? And now, in 2017, Ameri-
can Neo-Nazis can be found tracing their ancestry from all across Europe
(as if Germany’s Third Reich had won World War II), waving Confeder-
ate flags, robes and pointed hoods, warning Anglo-Americans of the per-
ils of “mongrelizing their seed.” Will the U.S. become the home of some
kind of Fourth Reich? During Trump’s inaugural presidential address, at
the Capitol’s West Front, one of his signature themes—America First!—
caused some anxiety among onlookers old enough to remember the Amer-
ica First movement of 1941, a movement headed by aviator Charles Lind-
bergh that campaigned against U.S. involvement in World War II while
blaming Jewish Americans for trying to push the United States into a
war with Germany and at the same time expressing sympathy for the Na-
zis. From the podium Trump exhorted: “From this day forward, it’s go-
ing to be only America first,” he said. “America first.” Watching the tele-
vision footage, it reminded me of a McDonald’s hamburger rendition of
Leni Riefenstahl’s Triumph of the Will. Trump’s hypocritical solidary for
the poor can be contrasted with his hyper-solidarity for everything mil-
itary. He loves generals, he loves to be surrounded by high-ranking mili-
tary officers and has given the Pentagon carte blanche to do what it wants
in Afghanistan. Contrast this attitude with that of Republican President
Dwight D. Eisenhower, America’s top general throughout World War II.
In 1961, Eisenhower famously warned the U.S. public about the dangers
of the military industrial complex:
This conjunction of an immense military establishment and a large arms
industry is new in the American experience. The total influence — eco-
nomic, political, even spiritual — is felt in every city, every State house,
every office of the Federal government. We recognize the imperative
need for this development. Yet we must not fail to comprehend its grave
implications. Our toil, resources and livelihood are all involved; so is the
very structure of our society. In the councils of government, we must
guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought
or unsought, by the military industrial complex. The potential for the
disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist. We must never
let the weight of this combination endanger our liberties or democratic
processes. We should take nothing for granted. Only an alert and knowl-
edgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial
and military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods and goals,
so that security and liberty may prosper together. Akin to, and largely
responsible for the sweeping changes in our industrial-military posture,
has been the technological revolution during recent decades.
82
York’s famous sports arena, Madison Square Garden, in a rally organ-
ized by the German American Bund in 1939? And now, in 2017, Ameri-
can Neo-Nazis can be found tracing their ancestry from all across Europe
(as if Germany’s Third Reich had won World War II), waving Confeder-
ate flags, robes and pointed hoods, warning Anglo-Americans of the per-
ils of “mongrelizing their seed.” Will the U.S. become the home of some
kind of Fourth Reich? During Trump’s inaugural presidential address, at
the Capitol’s West Front, one of his signature themes—America First!—
caused some anxiety among onlookers old enough to remember the Amer-
ica First movement of 1941, a movement headed by aviator Charles Lind-
bergh that campaigned against U.S. involvement in World War II while
blaming Jewish Americans for trying to push the United States into a
war with Germany and at the same time expressing sympathy for the Na-
zis. From the podium Trump exhorted: “From this day forward, it’s go-
ing to be only America first,” he said. “America first.” Watching the tele-
vision footage, it reminded me of a McDonald’s hamburger rendition of
Leni Riefenstahl’s Triumph of the Will. Trump’s hypocritical solidary for
the poor can be contrasted with his hyper-solidarity for everything mil-
itary. He loves generals, he loves to be surrounded by high-ranking mili-
tary officers and has given the Pentagon carte blanche to do what it wants
in Afghanistan. Contrast this attitude with that of Republican President
Dwight D. Eisenhower, America’s top general throughout World War II.
In 1961, Eisenhower famously warned the U.S. public about the dangers
of the military industrial complex:
This conjunction of an immense military establishment and a large arms
industry is new in the American experience. The total influence — eco-
nomic, political, even spiritual — is felt in every city, every State house,
every office of the Federal government. We recognize the imperative
need for this development. Yet we must not fail to comprehend its grave
implications. Our toil, resources and livelihood are all involved; so is the
very structure of our society. In the councils of government, we must
guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought
or unsought, by the military industrial complex. The potential for the
disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist. We must never
let the weight of this combination endanger our liberties or democratic
processes. We should take nothing for granted. Only an alert and knowl-
edgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial
and military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods and goals,
so that security and liberty may prosper together. Akin to, and largely
responsible for the sweeping changes in our industrial-military posture,
has been the technological revolution during recent decades.
82
