{"id":6351,"date":"2023-05-18T09:51:37","date_gmt":"2023-05-18T13:51:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dahlman.online\/?p=6351"},"modified":"2023-07-13T11:25:03","modified_gmt":"2023-07-13T15:25:03","slug":"then-they-came","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dahlman.online\/index.php\/2023\/05\/18\/then-they-came\/","title":{"rendered":"Then They Came"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

This essay is in direct violation of “Godwin’s Law”, comparing present political actions to Nazism. On the other hand, I would counter with an older proverb: “If the shoe fits – wear it”.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Niemoller<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Reinhold Niemoller was a German Lutheran minister in the 20th<\/sup> century.  During World War I he defended Germany, serving as an officer in the German Navy.  When Hitler and Nazism first came to power, he, like many Germans, thought it was \u201cgood\u201d for the economy.  It took years, but Niemoller ultimately stood against the Nazis prior to the beginning of World War II.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

He was arrested and sent to the concentration camps, first at Sachsenhausen<\/a> and then Dachau<\/a>.  He managed to survive the war, and continued to minister, becoming the head of the World Council of Churches in the 1960\u2019s.  After the war, he wrote the following \u201cconfessional\u201d for his inaction at the beginning of Hitler\u2019s rise to power.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Confession<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\n

First they came for the Communists  
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Communist<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then they came for the Socialists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Socialist<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then they came for the trade unionists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a trade unionist<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then they came for the Jews
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Jew<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then they came for me
And there was no one left
To speak out for me.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Who Speaks<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

We live in a time when \u201cthey\u201d are coming.\u00a0\u00a0We see it in our nation, the United States of America, today.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThey\u201d are coming, right now, for the trans-gendered.\u00a0\u00a0They are denying medical care for trans children, determining that \u201cthey\u201d know better what\u2019s good for them; better than the parents, the doctors, the kids themselves.\u00a0\u00a0It’s happening now. \u201cThey\u201d are determined that those children must suffer.\u00a0\u00a0And many of \u201cus\u201d are not speaking out, because we are not trans-gendered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey\u201d are coming, coming for those that are gay, or even simply cross-dressing.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThey\u201d are banning drag shows that children might see, even though drag shows are as old as theatre.\u00a0\u00a0Even the ancient Greeks dressed in drag in amphitheaters; women were not allowed to perform.\u00a0\u00a0But now \u201cthey\u201d are calling drag shows some kind of \u201cgrooming\u201d, tapping into America\u2019s fear of the \u201cmolester with candy\u201d in the shadows.\u00a0 “They” are banning even the mention of gay in elementary and middle schools. Even a gay Disney movie character caused a teacher to be suspended.\u00a0And many of \u201cus\u201d are not speaking out, because we are not gay or cross dressers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey\u201d are coming, coming for the rights of women.\u00a0\u00a0It starts with forcing women to bear children, but it will move onto restrictions on birth control and ultimately what women (alone) must do to raise a child.\u00a0\u00a0But, many of “us” are not speaking out, because we are not women.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Happening Now<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey\u201d are coming, coming for educators who dare to teach that America is \u201cimperfect\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThey\u201d don\u2019t want children to hear about a diverse nation with a history of discrimination.\u00a0\u00a0Instead, \u201cthey\u201d want a literally whitewashed version of our story.\u00a0\u00a0In fact, \u201cthey\u201d are denying our own Constitution, which establishes our nation as becoming \u201cmore perfect\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThey\u201d demand that we are already \u201cperfect\u201d, that all of those who continue to face discrimination are simply \u201cweak\u201d or \u201cwhiners\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0But many of “us” are not speaking out, because we aren\u2019t teaching, or minorities, or disadvantaged.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s Happening  — right now in Florida and Texas, Montana and Iowa, and even quietly here in Ohio as well.  \u201cThey\u201d are taking away rights, taking away votes, taking away the truth in classrooms.  But don\u2019t worry.  \u201cThey\u201d will make sure there\u2019s plenty of weapons of war in the streets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And if we don\u2019t speak out, \u201cthey\u201d will ultimately come for “us”.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This essay is in direct violation of “Godwin’s Law”, comparing present political actions to Nazism. On the other hand, I would counter with an older proverb: “If the shoe fits – wear it”. Niemoller Reinhold Niemoller was a German Lutheran minister in the 20th century.  During World War I he defended Germany, serving as an officer in … Continue reading “Then They Came”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6351","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nThen They Came : Our America - Essays on Politics and American Life<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/dahlman.online\/index.php\/2023\/05\/18\/then-they-came\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Then They Came : Our America - Essays on Politics and American Life\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"This essay is in direct violation of “Godwin’s Law”, comparing present political actions to Nazism. 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