Fascism has arrived

Let us be very clear. The United States is now well on the way to becoming a fascist state. Perhaps the most frightening thing about what is happening on the ground in the US - and over here with Brexit - is just how many people are actively supporting this dismantling of democracy. They are fouling the legacy our grandparents' generation left us after World War II by forgetting the lessons of the past and repeating them. Have no doubt that there is now a clear example of a new evil rising in the world.

I could sidetrack now and talk about broad strokes of black and white, how the democratic norms were hardly white given the west's track record in interfering in the affairs of other world states for its own gains. This is not the time, because if we're not talking about black and white or good versus evil we are definitely seeing the blackest evil rising swiftly.

Make no mistake, Donald Trump is an Adolf Hitler in the making. Once upon a time we could read histories of Germany in the 1920s and 1930s and wonder aloud how a man like Hitler was allowed to come to power. Now, in June 2018 we can wonder no longer.

The last few days have seen harrowing pictures of children being separated at the US border from their parents, to find themselves being kept in cages in conditions reminiscent of concentration camps from history. The response from those who actively - and uncritically - support Trump? They shouldn't have broken the law.

How do you respond to that? Perfectly, thanks to this tweet:

The Holocaust was legal. Slavery was legal. Segregation was legal.

The brave woman who cared for and hid my 6 year-old aunt in an attic in Budapest was a criminal. She broke the law by sheltering Juden.

Legality is not a guide for morality.

— Mister Bumface™ (@misterbumface) June 20, 2018

But however powerful this is, it will not penetrate the minds of these people. We have now arrived at the point where words and even marches may not be enough. Direct action will be required and things will undoubtedly get worse before they get better. But can we learn the lessons of history and hold firm against these forces, or will we find ourselves repeating history, hopefully with fascism defeated, even if it means the United States and United Kingdom - and maybe others - must learn an abject lesson we handed out smugly to the Germans and Japanese in 1945.

With a bit of luck we'll come out the other side without triggering an Atom bomb or two in the process, ready to confront the looming crisis of our time - the rapid warming of our planet's atmosphere. Only humanity could find endless ways to distract itself in the foulest possible ways in order to avoid facing up to its responsibilities. Fingers crossed.