“Here’s the thing,” Robinson said. “Whether you’re talking about Adolf Hitler, whether you’re talking about Chairman Mao, whether you’re talking about Stalin, whether you’re talking about Pol Pot, whether you’re talking about Castro in Cuba, or whether you’re talking about a dozen other despots all around the globe, it is time for us to get back and start reading some of those quotes.”
This is the Lieutenant Governor of a state (North Carolina) saying we can get gems from the quotes of genocidal maniacs. This is where we are now.
I’d prefer them acknowledging how stupid these failed leaders were, and how we should never repeat this history.
There’s nothing good or positive about someone who is debatably a fascist, says something fascist, and then confirm they endorse facisim.
There’s no world I can think of where the above is true. Sure, you could say “but it’s easier to punch Nazis!”, which yes, should be the immediate response to learning someone is a fascist. But clearly if they’re comfortable implying it, then doubling down, we’re clearly not punching enough Nazis.
I much prefer a world where people are too afraid to espouse facisim, because they actually know its a terrible idealogy, and they will immediately lose all respect and social standing from anyone who hears about it.
I find it interesting that they are now also trying to lump in other despots we know they wouldn’t agree with, as though trying to gloss over and obfuscate their apparent ties to White Supremacist ideology.
Was there any mention of “reading their quotes” in a context of ‘how can we learn from, and not repeat the mistakes of history’?
Not even as an afterthought.