When States Go Bad.

[peter]

I have been reading a book called Hitlers First Victims that gives an account of the incremental process of change of the German Nation from [relatively] democratic and cultured society into the murderous regime of Hitlers Nazi, state that occured over a couple of relatively short decades. The book is disconcerting not the least because of the somewhat chilling paralells that can, using a bit of imagination [dangerous, I know], be drawn with the political and cultural climate that exists in Europe [including the UK] as we speak. [I have commented briefly on the book in the General Literature forum so it might be worth having a look at that.] This morning I read an article by Gideon Rachman drawn from last weeks Financial Times - not known for hysterical conspiricy laden journalism - which ran as follows.
GROWTH ALONE WON'T MEND EUROPE

The political signals in Europe look bleak, with extremist political parties well entrenched across the continent. There are by now grounds for economic hope. Both Spain and Ireland are in recovery, and even Greece experienced a return to growth before the latest twist in it's debt crisis. Lower oil prices and monetary easing should deliver a considerable stimulus. That might buy some breathing space, but it won't neccesarily stem extremism - often a delayed reaction to economic trouble. To choose a particularly 'doom-laden' example, the Nazis took power in 1933, after the worst of the German recession was over. Prolonged recession causes more than economic hardship; it also discredits mainstream ideologies and whips up anger against elites. And even nations that escaped the worst of the crisis are going through an adjustment that is hitting the young hard. A modest uptick in growth alone isn't going to put things right. Europe needs mainsstream politicians who can paint a convincing and optimistic picture of the future. So far, there's not much sign of that.

[Published in The Week, Issue 1015, 28/03/15]

There is a horrible quotation "By the time you hear the jackboots on the stairs it's too late" - but the trouble is [and the book above clearly illustrates this] that on the evidence of history it seems very difficult to actually know the point at which things are begining to go wrong - and even harder to tell when a state has passed 'the point of no return'. Hence the reason I have put this post here rather than in the Tank. Nazi Germany is just one example we have, though clearly the best known one] of a State going rogue on it's own people [or significant groups thereof] - but there are many others. I'd like to hear what people have to say about the comparisons between these rogue nations;or the point at which it might be right to consider getting worried, or getting 'the **** out of Dodge'. What have these types of States got in common [or have they got anything in common]. How worried should we in Europe be, not for ourselves perhaps, but for our children - or theirs. Those who do not learn from history are condemned to repeat it. We have to get this one right.