Okay folks, now I am mad!  And when Filosofa gets mad, let the sparks fly.

• At a campaign event in Birmingham, Ala., on Saturday, Nov. 21 2015, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump demands the removal of a well-known activist Mercutio Southall Jr. after he shouts, “Black lives matter!” (Reuters) Trump’s response: “maybe he should have been roughed up.” At one point, Southall fell to the ground and was surrounded by several white men who appeared to be kicking and punching him, according to video captured by CNN.  Southall was apparently shouting “black lives matter” and “dump the Trump” amidst the crowd, and was wearing a BLM (Black Lives Matter) shirt.
• Donald Trump supporters shout racial slurs, Nazi salute at protester in Las Vegas rally: ‘It felt like a mob’. (New York Times, Dec. 15, 2015) As the guards drag the heckler out, protesters are heard yelling “Shoot him!” and “Kick his a–!”  One man caught on camera barks the Nazi salute, “Sieg heil!” and appears to shoot his right hand into the air.

In neither of these cases did Trump do or say anything to stop the brutality, nor did he express regret or remorse.

Where did the First Amendment Freedom of Speech get de-railed?  Southall was protesting Donald Trump, a political candidate who has exhibited racism, bigotry and pure hatred in the past.  Whether you are a Trump supporter or not, whether you support the #Black Lives Matter movement or not, is all irrelevant for the purposes of this conversation.  The only things that matter here are the facts.  The facts are that Mr. Southall and others were protesting, peacefully, and he was beaten and cursed, actions which were lauded by the candidate Trump and his supporters.

In the 1930’s, Adolph Hitler, an unlikely candidate, a racist and a bigot, rose to the highest power in the German nation.  The main reason he was able to do so was because the German people were sick and tired of the status quo.  War bonds that had been sold to the German people to finance the war were now worthless.  Food and other resources had been diverted to the war effort.  Germany was struggling under the burden of war debt, and then came the Treaty of Versailles.  Harsh reparations had been imposed on the nation for its role in World War I and the German people were suffering greatly as a result.  Jobs were scarce, food was scarce.  In addition, there was a worldwide economic depression.  The German people had lost confidence in their government, the Weimar Republic, to be able to help them through these times.  The environment was fertile for the rise in power of the Nazi party. Although not particularly well-educated, Hitler’s oratory skills and anti-Semitism gained him the spotlight where he caught the eye of the DAP, the German Worker’s Party.  He attracted large numbers of Germans who were disenchanted and desperate for change … any change from the status quo.  The Nazis appealed especially to the young, unemployed and members of the lower middle class.  To make a long story short, because this is a blog post and not a history book, Hitler rode the wave of popular support to the Chancellorship of the German nation.  Was there opposition to his bigotry, his anti-Semitism?  Sure, but they were not successful, as they were rapidly silenced by Hitler’s thugs, his bodyguards, the thugs known as the Stormtroopers or Brown Shirts, who got their start defending his rallies.  They “roughed up” people who protested or disagreed with Hitler, they pushed, shoved and threw out his rivals.

Does some of this sound familiar?  Hitler believed in the superiority of white-skinned nationalists, just as does Trump. Hitler was actually a more polished speaker than Trump, but the message was basically the same.  Hitler swore to restore Germany to its previous glory, as Trump is promising to do for the U.S. today, and Hitler brooked no resistance, no protests, tolerated nobody who disagreed with his policies and methods, just as Trump today.  In 1930’s Germany, the people were tired, they were angry, they wanted change … any change and seemingly at any cost, just as the American people of the 21^st century.  Hitler was a bigot, a racist and a cruel dictator.  Donald trump is no different.  The difference is that we will be holding free elections in just under ten months and we have the freedom to choose.  If you think that the Constitution and our democratic system of government will prevent Donald Trump from becoming the ruthless dictator that Adolph Hitler became some 83 years ago, think again.  Donald Trump does not want to be the president of a democratic nation where he works in conjunction with two other branches of government to implement policies for the good of the nation.  Donald Trump intends to rule the nation with an iron fist and if the people of the United States do not wake up and realize the danger this man poses, he may get the opportunity to do just that.

It started with Mr. Southall, or even before him, but unless We The People put a stop to it, it will not end there. I am waiting for Mr. Trump to come to my city.  I will be there, I will be wearing my BLM shirt, and I will not be quiet.  Let Mr. T sic his thugs on me, and the next day let the headlines read “65 year-old woman brutally beaten by Trump bodyguards as Trump says “she probably deserved it, crazy old bitch”!  I will have gone down fighting for what I actually believe in, fighting for what is right.  Some things are worth fighting for, worth giving your life for, and if we forget that, then yes, we deserve what we get.