The 1930s and their aftermath are no guide to current events

The strongmen back then came out of an era of scarcely precedented chaos: the great war, hyperinflation, political gangs fighting for control of the streets. 

Today’s demagogues emerged in a period of sustained peace and affluence. It was more or less the richest nation on Earth that elected Donald Trump in 2016, after decades of falling violent crime, and more than 40 years since its last conscript war. 

The 1930s is simple to understand, as it conforms to common sense: trauma leads to anger. 

The real intellectual challenge is to absorb the theme of our own time, which is the perverse consequences of prolonged success.  

Janan Ganesh Financial Times 23 May 2025

https://www.ft.com/content/8e86c342-75d5-43e3-a4db-8d7224781993


Trump and Farage are politicians for the post-TV age

https://englundmacro.blogspot.com/2025/05/trump-and-farage-are-politicians-for.html


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