On

Tyranny
Twenty Lessons From the
Twentieth Century

By Timothy Snyder
 Table of Contents

Defend Institutions 2

Take Responsibility for the Face of the World 6

Be Wary of Paramilitaries 10

Stand Out 14

Be Kind to our Language 18

Make Eye Contact and Small Talk

22

Establish a Private Life 26

Listen for Dangerous Words 30

Image Citations 34

Bibliography 35

1
 Chapter I
Defend Institutions
It is institutions that help us to preserve decency. They need our
help as well. Do not speak of “our institutions” unless you make
then yours by acting on their behalf. Institutions do not protect
themselves. They fall one after the other unless each is defended
from the beginning. So choose an institution you care about—a
court, a newspaper, a law, a labor union— and take its side.

2
 Supporting the Press in Nazi Germany

In 1933, when the Nazi party took control of Germany, they almost immediately sought

control over the press. Because the state was controlled by only one party, the state could fairly

unanimously decide to seize printing of any newspaper they chose. By only a few months into

the Nazi takeover of Germany, the party had full control over the majority of the radio,

newspapers, and newsreels. This incites fear in the people of Germany, particularly the owners

of printing presses who had not had their establishment taken over by the state. Franz Eher, a

Nazi officer, created a publishing house that drove away all competition due to the popularity of

the papers that came out of the said house. The popularity was probably in part because several

raids effectively put the other houses out of business, leaving few options for the citizens of

Germany to get their news from.

This shows that even in 1933, the news was biased - some papers leaned in the direction

of the views of the Nazi party, while others leaned the opposite way. Due to the tremendous

“support” of the papers that tended to write in favor of the ideals of the party in power, the others

got pushed out of business. The Nazi regime, of course, did not give many options as to what a

citizen should support; it supported the Nazi party or die (either on the spot or in a concentration

camp).

This is an image of a newspaper showing the way the people

were treated in Germany and the cut-throat atmosphere of

German society in the and ’40s.

3
 Defending the Press in the Modern Day United States

In the United States today, there are many views on display throughout the spectrum of

media. For example; The Wall Street Journal lies in the center of the spectrum, the New York

times lies to the left, whereas Fox news lies to the right. During the 2016 Trump/Pence

campaign, there was the talk of “fake news.” This was essentially referring to any major news

outlet that made fun of the campaign rather than supporting it, this ended up being any and all

outlets that lean left of center, or central. This left Trump with only one or two major news

corporations that he felt the people, as well as himself, could trust enough to read or listen to.

Due to the fact that Trump was not even elected yet, no one had to feel any pressure to listen to

those opinions; however, the “fake news” debouchel continued into the early months of his

presidency. During this time people started to feel more pressure to listen to things he said, and

this leads people to read and listen to news that does not align with their views.

Everyone should try to understand the view of the left and the right on any particular

issue, but should they totally swap their allegiance to the institutions that they trusted and

supported for many years of their life? This goes back to the takeover of the Germany printing

houses - just because the president does not currently have the power to disenfranchise a news

outlet does not mean they never will. Showing support and allegiance to both sides of the press

can keep those options open for the future.

This is a chart that shows the where all of the

major news outlets lie on the spectrum (far right,

4
towards the right, near center right, center, near center left, towards the left, and far left)

Reflection

Fake news is something that affects everyone, everywhere, all the time. People are

always talking about how one should never believe everything they read online and this has

never been truer. There are many trustworthy newspapers that are both print and digital, or just

digital, but there are many more that are not trustworthy at all. Whether or not something is “fake

news” is mostly up to the reader. When someone in power states that all but one or two sources

are “fake news” one must take a step back and remember who is making that call. A person

should really decide for themselves if what they are reading or watching is fake news or very

much real and pertinent information to their lives - this mindset should go for any person who is

old enough to begin to understand what is happening in the world around them.

5
 Chapter II
Take Responsibility for the Face of the
World
The symbols of today enable the reality of tomorrow. Notice the
swastikas and other signs of hate. Do not look away, and do not
get used to them. Remove them yourself and set an example for
others to do so.

6
 The Jewish Badge

As the empire that was Nazi Germany took more and more power the symbolism of the

stick pin became remarkably important. Everyone wore a pin - the Nazis wore a swastika and the

Jews wore a Jewish badge. The Jewish badge is a star of David, usually with ​Jude​ or just a

simple ​J​ on the pin, and have been worn on and off by Jews since 717. They were worn in

England, France, Spain, and Italy at some point or another in history, but they were, in theory,

discontinued by the 17th century. From 1938 forward all Jewish owned shops had to be marked

as such and after the time of the invasion of Poland (officially 9/1/1941), all German Jews had to

wear the Jewish Badge once more. Hungary was the last country to make Jews mark themselves,

officially doing so in April of 1944. Although the Jews wore the marking with pride, most not

realizing that they had just marked themselves for death. Anyone not wearing a Jewish Badge

was probably wearing a Swastica lapel pin, showing their allegiance to Hitler and the Nazi

regime (or marking themselves as such to not get killed). Wearing a Jewish Badge marked a

person as someone who was different, someone non-Nazi, someone who should be killed (in the

mind of Hitler anyway).

On the right is an image of the Jewish Badge worn by

German Jews during the reign of the Nazi party. Most
countries who required the badge had their own version,
the is the German one.

7
 The Make America Great Again Hat

The “make America Great Again” hat was worn by President Trump and supporters of

his 2016 campaign had a profound effect on the way the rest of the country thought of its

wearers. The slogan itself has been used by several past administrations, some examples include

Ronald Reagen, Bill Clinton, and George H. W. Bush. The slogan was used throughout

American history, even featured throughout President Reagen’s campaign pins. While campaign

merchandise has always been popular (traditionally in the form of pins and stickers) the red

“Make America Great Again” that grew to be not only a piece of merchandise worn by

supporters but a viral internet trend of remarkable proportion. There were many popular

variations made by supporters of the Clinton campaign, some of which include: Make America

Gay Again, Make America Mexico Again, and an image of President Obama wearing a red hat

saying “I’ve Already Made America Great Again.” While wearing a campaign hat would not

mark one to get killed, as wearing the Jewish Badge would have in Nazi-occupied territory, in

many places in the country you would get more than a few judgemental looks. Walking down the

street in NYC with a “Make America Great Again” hat would not have been a completely

foreign thing, it would have granted you more strange looks than support.

Pictured to the left is a “Make America Great Again”

hat from 2016 Trump/Pence campaign.

8
 Reflection

The teens of today remember the Trump campaign, and it may be the only one that they

really remember. This is not necessarily bad or good, but it is true for many of the younger teens

in today's world. All campaigns have mech of some kind, but MAGA hats turned into a meme of

sorts, a viral symbol worldwide. Within the younger teens of today, everyone will not remember

all of the details of the 2016 Trump campaign, but the hats will be remembered. They will have a

lasting effect on the impressionable memory of the young people of today, for better or for

worse.

9
 Chapter III
Be Wary of Paramilitaries
When the men with guns who have always claimed to be against
the system start wearing uniforms and marching with torches
and pictures of a leader, the end is nigh. When the pro-leader
paramilitary and the official police and military intermingle, the
end has come.

10
 Power of the Arrow Cross in Hungary

On October 16, 1944, the Arrow Cross took control of the Hungarian government, a

far-right fascist group started by ​Ferenc Szálas. One of the first things Szálas did once in power was

to declare a state of total war, making it mandatory for all men ages 12-70 to participate in the

military, and all men ages 17-37 to be in active duty and ready to fight. While doing this, the new

party in leadership made sure that all of Hungary’s military power was dedicated to the Third Reich.

This government had also planned to reinstall the Hungarian Royal Military to help the German

forces even more; this, however, was never enacted. ​The Arrow Cross, although fascist, functioned

on their own system of governing known as Hungarianism. This was a variation on Hitler's

standard socialism, which included beliefs such as anti-capitalism, anti-communism, and

antisemitism, with the added concept of Turanism. Turanism is the belief of radical unity and

greatness - it was actually a fairly common belief in groups originally from Eurasia, some

examples include the Finish, Estonians, Turks, and Mongols. During this time, Hungary was

technically under the rule of Germany, and therefore the 300,000 Jews that lived in there at the

time were not exactly treated with the utmost respect. The Arrow Cross sent all of these Jews,

plus 100,000 Christians mistook for Jews to different concentration camps all over Europe. Most

did end up going to ​Auschwitz-Birkenau, a camp in Germany. Auschwitz-Birkenau was a

distinctly different camp and should not be confused with the more famous Auschwitz

camp in Poland.

Pictured to the left is the flag of the Arrow Cross

flown by the Hungarian party that ruled for around
a year.

11
 Paramilitaries Today

There have been a few paramilitarism crises in the United States but none nearly

as bad as what was happening in the early twentieth century in Europe. The United

States has done a very good job of making sure that paramilitaries never get too much

power. The only long lasting paramilitary in the United States would be the Klu Klux

Klan (KKK). There are still functioning chapters today even though the KKK lies mostly

under the radar. There are still meetings every year where a cross is burnt and hazing

traditions are carried out. The KKK has never gained enough power to take over the

government because the government does a fairly good job (for such a big country) of

keeping the violence to law enforcement and military personnel. The bigger problem for

the USA has been terrorism, both domestic and people coming from abroad. This brings

up the question of where is the line between a terrorist group and a paramilitary. It

could be argued that ISIS was a paramilitary that successfully took over a government.

But did they take over, or did they start their own, making them a military rather than a

paramilitary? Either way, ISIS is a terrorist group according to most of the world

making that case both easier to believe and true. But where is that line, and is a

domestic terrorist group in the USA a paramilitary? Is a paramilitary in the USA a

domestic terrorist group? The question remains unanswered.

To the left is an image taken from a meeting of the

KKK from 2015, along with it is an article about

12
 hazing and processes in the modern day chapters of the KKK.

Reflection

Now, how does this relate back to the communities of a high school student? It is a hard

thing to relate back to the life of a young person who lives in the city, but paramilitaries are

everywhere. In a true paramilitary crisis, everyone would be swept up into the violent mess of

people fighting for ultimate power. Almost everyone would be involved in some way, just as

everyone got dragged into the position of power or line of fire from the arrow cross in Hungary.

People would get killed or they would be forced to join in the killing, everyone would be so far

into the paramilitary that they would not be able to step back and see how they got there. So, the

truth is, if there were to be a true paramilitary crisis in the United States, every single person

would be affected by it in one way or another.

13
 Chapter IV
Stand Out

Someone has to. It is easy to follow along. It can feel strange to

do or say something different. But without that unease, there is
no freedom. Remember Rosa Parks. The moment you set an
example, the spell of the status quo is broken, and others will
follow.

14
 Winston Churchill

Winson Churchill was one of the best leaders of modern society. He worked hard to

prevent England from the danger of Hitler and Nazi Germany. Many countries who ended the

war on the side of the allies actually started out their relationship with Hilter on a fairly good

note. As Germany conquered more and more countries, Churchill began to notice that he had to

do something if he did not want England to become a part of Nazi Germany. Come direct and

violent contact between the two counties, Churchill’s voice was one of optimism. These are

some famous words spoken by Churchill when giving a speech to the House of Commons in

June of 1940: “​We shall go on to the end. We shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas and

oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend

our island, whatever the cost may be. We shall fight on beaches, we shall fight on the landing

grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never

surrender.” These words of spirit, confidence, and energetic charisma brought England together

with one solid view on how they would push forward into more fighting. Churchill said these

things often, statements of optimism. Statements of sheer power. As a nation, England was most

powerful when motivated to defend what they had left as a nation. In this scary time, Winston

Churchill was a beacon of hope for the English people as well as the whole of the allied forces.

Pictured to the left is Winston Churchill

giving a speech to his nation during World
War Two

15
 Presidents Obama and Bush

There is yet to be a crisis to the caliber of World War Two in the 21st century that any

United States president has had to calm their nation as much as Churchill had to do in the early

1940s. There have, however, been two notable crises in this century in which the two sitting

presidents at each given time had to use his power to calm down the people of the United States.

Going chronologically, September 11, 2001, was noticeably terrifying for all citizens of the

United States. Not only do most adults who were old enough to remember this day remember

exactly where they were when the first saw the planes flying into the world trade centers in New

York City, but also where they were when they heard President Bush’s inspirational speech later

that night. The speech brought hope to many of the people who were scared out of their minds

about the future of the nation. Similarly, President-Elect Obama gave a speech on the economic

crash of 2008 that calmed many of the people of the United States. The caliber of the economic

crash that people were witnessing was only bested by the great depression, but the promise that

others were experiencing the same feeling and having the same effects on their lives was

reassuring. Obama treated the situation very well and provided hope for the people of the country

in the same way that Churchill had in the 1930s and 40s and that President Bush had in 2001

while the nation was under a spell of shock from the events of 9/11.

Pictured to the left is President Bush on September

11th of 2001with a look of worry for the people of
his nation.

16
 Reflection

Most people of generation Z do not remember the details of the economic crash of 2008

and only 1.3% of generation Z Americans remember 9/11 and most likely none of those in great

detail. These events, most likely, did not directly affect the memories and lives of most gen zers,

but the way they were treated by the leadership of the country at the time greatly affected the

lives of young people today. As a nation, had President Obama not made a direct and dedicated

effort to reform the economy, the nation might still be in an economic crisis. Who knows what

would still be in existence had President Bush not made such a strong and powerful impact on

the world with his reaction to the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

17
 Chapter V
Be Kind to our Language
Avoid pronouncing the phrases everyone else does. Think up
your own way of speaking, even if only to convey that thing you
think everyone is saying. Make an effort to separate yourself
from the internet.

18
 Books, the language of humanity

From the years of 1930-1965, there were 63 books that “shaped America” (according to

the library of congress) published. Most of these are books that much of modern society has

never heard of, but there are some notable titles to list from these 35 massively influential years

include: ​Gone With the Wind, 1936; The Catcher in the Rye, 1951; Charlotte’s Web, 1952;

Fahrenheit 451, 1953; a​ nd​ To Kill a Mockingbird, 1960; a​ s well as three children's books that

greatly changed how we bring up the American youth (​Goodnight Moon, 1947; The Cat in the

Hat, 1957; ​and ​Where the Wild Things Are, 1963). ​These books, as well as many others, have

grown to be the books that “all Americans should read,” however, not nearly enough Americans

read these stories (myself included). Part of the problem is that both in private schools and many

public school districts, many of these titles have been banned because of the language used in the

stories. Use of the “n” word is not something that the school systems of America should

condone, but they should not stop students from reading the few great works of American

literature because of a word that was frequently used at the time of writing. The “n” word was a

phrase of slang used by almost everyone until fairly recently. No one in the youngest generations

use books to get any of their wisdom or information, they simply ask their elders or find it

somewhere on the internet, a vast and wonderful place that can not always be trusted.

Gone With the Wind​ by Margaret Mitchell was one of the most

influential stories of the 20th century. The book inspired a movie

19
 which is still the largest grossing movie in the United States after 79 years of successful

blockbuster films.

Texting, the language of humanity today

Today, the whole world is essentially on their phones all of the time. The recent

generations have created their own language of texting acronyms, some examples include; LOL,

TTYL, TBH, and hundreds more. Within these phrases of slang, there is often a hidden meaning,

something that older generations may not be able to see through the code. In recent years, emojis

have become increasingly popular. These little symbols started as drawings, just a smiley face

that someone wrote on a handwritten letter. Once people started sending emails and using other

chatroom type methods of communication a more basic version of the modern smiley face emoji

was created. It was very simple, just a parenthesis, hyphen, and colon [(-:]. Apple released its

first set of emojis on IOS 5 in 2011 and this started the reign of the new and modern language.

Apple was the first major tech company that markets toward the general public to include emojis

in their keyboard settings. Now, there are 2,823 emojis in the Apple emoji keyboard and

everyone probably knows exactly where their favorite ones are. For comparison, Mandarin is one

of the most popular languages that still uses a hieroglyphic type image set of characters and has

about 3,000. There are only 177 more Mandarin characters than emojis, that is one IOS update

from being about the same amount, this shows that emojis are potentially a language of the

future. Of course, emoji is not a language that can be spoken but just like a book, there can be a

hidden meaning to a conversation had in emoji.

20
 To the left is an image of the original IOS emoji keyboard from 2011. Apple still has most of

these in their current emoji keyboard.

Reflection

As a student in 2019, I feel like my education has been very good about balancing

modern methods of teaching age-old lessons with those lessons themselves. Throughout my

middle school and high school career, myself and my classmates have read some of the landmark

pieces of literature including Galloway’s eighth-grade assigned language arts novels ​To Kill a

Mockingbird​ and ​Lord of the Flies. A

​ s a member of generation z, texting has become my

primary method of communication. Like many teenagers today I use emojis frequently but I do

tend to gravitate towards words. The lessons that can be taught to us by reading old books about

the future or any book for that matter are unparalleled in so many ways. The lessons that we can

learn from communicating, even through text, are even more valuable in many ways. Being able

to communicate with someone through a series of images is an important skill in today's world of

social media, but knowing how to pull hidden meanings from a text is evermore a crucial skill in

today's world of technology.

21
 Chapter VI
Make Eye Contact and Small Talk
This is not just polite. It is part of being a citizen and a
responsible member of society. It is also a way to stay in touch
with your surroundings, break down social barriers, and
understand whom you should and should not trust. If we enter a
culture of denunciation, you will want to know the
psychological landscape of your daily life.

22
 Hitler’s Charisma

Many people look at the effects of the Holocaust, they look at what the Nazi powers did,

they look at Germany in 1938 and 39, and they wonder how Hitler convinced so many people

into doing what they did, how anyone could convince 90 million people to confide into one

system of beliefs and react so violently. The answer lies a few years before 1938, after World

War I, in the midst of The Great Depression where all of the world's nations were concerned

about preserving what was left of their own economies. During this time Hitler was taking over

power in Germany and proving to be quite a charismatic leader. There are 1.2 billion Catholics in

the world, this is a group of people who share a group of beliefs and once reacted violently with

the army of the Holy Roman Empire. Granted the Holy Roman Empire fell 133 years before the

start of World War II and 83 years before Hitler was born. The point here is that a leader with

Charisma can make a group of people follow their lead with ease. For many Germans there were

no questions, Hitler was right to them and whatever he said went, no matter how crazy. Listening

to speeches the man gave, even not knowing any German, it is clear that it would be easy to

follow the man. This also has to do with the fear factor of not following his lead. What would

happen if people did not fall into his spell, would he have killed them? Probably, as a matter of

fact, it is easy to say that it probably happened on numerous occasions.

This is an image of Adolf Hitler giving a speech to

his army in 1924, well before the start of World
War II, he was already starting to get Germany on
his side.

23
 Obama’s Charisma

President Obama was the first nonwhite male president in the history of the United

States. In 232 years and 58 presidential elections later the United States got an African American

president. That was no easy feat, it required a lot of work on the front end of Obama’s campaign

for him to even have a chance. In 2007, when Obama was first elected he won the electoral

college by 67.87% and the popular vote by 52.93%. There is no dispute that Obama won his

2008 election. The United States has been known to be a racist country, not as racist as some

others, but still racist. The fact that an African American man won the Presidental seat is

incredible to me considering this country’s historical hatred toward black people (slavery, Jim

Crow laws, the need for the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments in the first place). The fact that he

got elected in the first place probably in part has to do with policies he promised to work on

while campaigning, but the person who wins the presidency mostly has to do with how much

they can get the whole of the United States to like them. Sure, in the case of politics this does

have to do with what the candidate promises to do once in office, but largely running for

president is like running from prom king or queen in high school, the most liked and most

popular candidate usually wins. Obama proved to be a fantastic public speaker who engaged his

audience whether they be in front of him or watching on tv 1,000 miles away.

Pictured to the left is an image of President Obama

giving a campaign speech in Columbia, South
Carolina during his 2008 election campaign.

24
 Reflection

For me, remembering anything before 2009 is difficult just do to my age. I remember

when Obama became president, it was a big deal even in my kindergarten class. This was a class

where we played with all the different pen options on the smart board, dressed up and played

house, and took a fake trip to Mexico where the teacher projected the view outside of a plane

window and we ate tortilla chips, a class where we lied down under the tables and drew with

crayons on the paper under there and pretended that we were Michaelangelo. This was not a

class that anything educational happened in, I think I learned more in preschool than in this class,

but it still mattered that a black president was elected. We didn’t know what that meant at the

time, we knew that there was a new president and that he wasn’t white, but I don’t think I could

have told you who George Bush was when I was a kindergartener. I was too young at the time to

really remember a ton of the details, but I remember asking my parents why it was such a big

deal, I don’t remember how they answered me though. Obviously, I was not alive when Hitler

was, but I have seen a video of his speeches. I don’t know a word or German but if I didn’t know

better I would have joined the man, not because I agree with what he is saying but because just

like a lot of Europe when Hitler was in power, I fell into his spell. I didn’t know what he was

saying and I think that made it easier for me to just mindlessly agree. I know that whatever he

was saying was probably ethically and morally wrong but I can see how he built up his

following, it was the exact same way the Obama built up his.

25
 Chapter VII
Establish a Private Life
Nastier rulers will use what they know about you to push you
around. Scrub your computer of malware on a regular basis.
Remember that email is skywriting. Consider using alternative
forms of the internet, or simply using it less. Have personal
exchanges in person. For the same reason, resolve any legal
trouble. Tyrants seek the hook on which to hang you. Try not to
have hooks.

26
 Stalin’s Totalitarianism

Joseph Stalin ruled the Soviet Union (USSR) from the mid-1920s to 1953 under a

complete totalitarianism regime. In a similar fashion to Hitler, Stalin killed anyone and everyone

who got in his way. Stalin killed up to 20 million citizens of the USSR during his time in power.

For comparison, 40 million died in all of World War One from all 32 countries who were

involved in the war. In 1927, Stalin launched his “revolution from above” plan - a plan that set

the goals of rapid industrialization and collectivization of agriculture in order to create a

completely socialist state. Ultimately the Five Year Plan went into action in 1927, the goals of

the plan were industrialization of the economy, specifically heavy industries. All industries and

services were nationalized making the small business impossible. This act also forced all small

and family-owned farms to become a part of the national agricultural system. With the Five Year

Plan enacted the USSR lost any traits of capitalism that still remained and became a

totalitarianist socialist state. People who did not follow these rules died a painful death, and

Stalin arguably did more damage to the world population that Hitler did. The USSR and

Germany were on opposing sides of World War Two, but it was later revealed that the USSR had

many of the same goals has Nazi Germany did in terms of wanting to control everyone and know

everything about their citizens.

Pictured to the left is Stalin looking out into the distance. Stalin
killed many more than Hitler and was overall much more of an
organized leader.

27
 Hillary Clinton’s Emails

One of President Trump’s main running points during his 2016 election campaign was

that Hillary Clinton used a private email server for highly classified information during her time

as Secretary of State under President Obama. Within the State Department, there is an email

server, one that is protected by the federal government and the FBI from hacking. There is a

reason that there is a complex process to get a high-security clearance, one that involves

interviews with the FBI, ones where not only the person applying for the security clearance but

almost everyone they know. Cabinet members have some of the highest security clearances, they

meet with the president often and know all the information that they need to be able to

effectively do their jobs. The Secretary of State works in foreign affairs, this means that they

know the ins and outs of every major given problem within an embassy, participates in many of

the international diplomatic phone calls, and advise the president on international policy such as

treaties and tariffs. The Secretary of State works almost exclusively with information that most

American citizens do not even know the slightest bit of context about. That being said, Clinton

had access to just about any piece of information she wanted to know about and all of that

information was being transferred between the federal government and herself through a totally

hackable email server, not only was she in danger, but the whole country was because of this

epic international diplomacy flop.

Hillary Clinton and her emails that were

recovered by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

28
 Reflection

International diplomacy is not a profession that is near and dear to my heart, as a high school

student I have to assume that the professionals know what they are doing. As an adult, I will

probably continue along that path as I have no interest in working for the government or the

United Nations. As a citizen, I have to trust that what is going on between the President, his

cabinet members, and the individuals who report to them is being kept only to the individuals

that are involved. I would think that the majority of the world is not in any desire to have world

war three, but if the people in charge of the powerful nations of today's world make stupid

decisions we could be getting closer and closer to mass nuclear war. Having the head of the State

Department of one of, if not the, most powerful countries in the world make major national

security “oops” is not good for anyone. For 5 years Hillary Clinton was putting the world in

danger by conducting international bureaucratic relations and conversations from a personal

email server. That information could have gotten out to the countries that the United States is

trying to defend themselves from, that would be back to square one without the knowledge that

going back to step one is necessary. Overall, Clinton made a mistake, one that is a federal crime,

and it could have put the whole world and certainly the whole of the United States in danger

because of one strange and illegal act of favoritism.

29
 Chapter VIII
Listen for Dangerous Words
Be alert to the use of the words ​extremism​ and ​terrorism. B ​ e
alive to the fatal notions of ​emergency a​ nd ​expectation.​ Be
angry about the treacherous use of patriotic vocabulary.

30
 Exception

For a moment to be exceptional it has to be better than average. Every day cannot be

exceptional for it is a relative word. If every day was exceptional then every day would be

rendered ordinary, every person cannot be exceptionally smart of exceptionally gifted at the

same random skill. For something to become ordinary, it once had to be exceptional. For

example, Nazi leaders forced the people of the countries that the regime took control over into a

delusion that any given moment is exceptional, even if it is not. This brings energy to the people,

leading them to follow, and that moment never becomes normal to them, even though it is far

from exceptional, by definition, 4 years later. But, to some people, seeing the Mona Lisa, or

Stary Night is exceptional every viewing because they see something new. This could have been

true some of the Nazi soldiers, they could be finding something new every time they killed

someone, or sent gas into the gas chamber in a concentration camp. After all, exception is not

necessarily a positive word, when something is stated to be exceptional it is assumed that this is a

positive thing, but it could mean something rather negative. As the Nazi party grew powerful and

began to conquer Europe and share the ideas of communism worldwide something became clear

to the bystanders who lived continents away in the United States, Hitler was an exceptional

leader, as a matter of a fact he was an exceptionally good leader who did exceptionally bad

things.

31
 To the left is a gas chamber used in World War Two by the Nazi party to aid in the execution of
an exceptional amount of people.

Terrorism

In 2004, the United Nations (UN) Security Council defined terrorism as, “criminal acts,

including against civilians, committed with the intent to cause death or serious bodily injury, or

taking of hostages, with the purpose to provoke a state of terror in the general public or in a

group of persons or particular persons.” Now, the United Nations is an organization that most

people trust. They trust that the United Nations has their back when it comes to the ideal of

world peace. If the UN comes to a conclusion about what the world should use the word

terrorism to define, shouldn’t the world use it? Now, this definition is vague so the overuse of the

world could almost be supported by this definition. It seems as though every time someone gets

shot it is a terrorist attack, and theoretically, it could be. Humans are fight or flight animals, they

get paranoid and work to protect themselves from a repeat occurrence of the same event, or the

same fate of someone whom they were close with. There are huge terrorist groups in today’s

world, the most known of which would be ISIS. By a civilians definition, a terrorist is someone

(or some group) who has a goal of and has successfully raised people into a state of terror, that

could be anyone, but should society call everyone that scares people a terrorist? Of course not

but the overuse of the term makes it seem like modern American society calls all criminals

terrorist, not legally but casually.

32
 The United Nations security council having a meeting to discuss some sort of foreign policy.

Reflection

As a citizen of today’s world, I find trusting the United Nations to make any decision

regarding true steps toward world piece difficult because of one country, North Korea is in the

United Nations. Do they send a representative to every meeting, probably not considering the

current leader's stance on the position his citizens should hold, but the country still has to

approve of every major treaty that the organization makes, then abide by them. Not only does

North Korea never hold up their end of treaties but they are the most unhumanitarian country of

today and they should not be allowed to participate in the decisions on how to handle

humanitarian crisis. Beyond that, the society I live in likes to dramatize everything, news anchors

jump to conclusions. Live breaking news with 20 anchors on the scene of a murder and all them

asking one question, was this a terrorist attack. While the police officers calmly walk under the

yellow tape yelling a striking “no comment” the real act of terror is that the parents of the victim

can’t leave their house because someone leaked the address to the press and they can’t get out

because news vans and anchors are crowding their front door, their driveway, their apartment

building. That is closer to the act of terror, sure the parents are sad and scared, should their sanity

be sacrificed for a police officer to say “no comment” until there is a press release? If the media

is going to overuse the term “terrorist” that much, are they really the ones who are the terrorists?

They are the ones that are striking fear into the public, even into specific individuals.

33
 Image Citations

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zation-media-habits/pj_14-10-21_mediapolarization-08
/

Take Responsibility for the Face of the World https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/yellow-badges-sta

rs-and-markings

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Donald-Trump-Hat-Cap-
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Be Wary of Paramilitaries https://fotw.info/flags/hu%7Dnyi.html

https://flashbak.com/the-klu-klux-klan-in-the-21st-cent
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http://graphics.wsj.com/hillary-clinton-email-document

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 s/

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https://www.irishtimes.com/opinion/campaign-for-un-s
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