Ravi S. Iyer: Worldly

Two short videos below give us a glimpse of how scary and terrifying the Nazis and Hitler really were. The first video shows the Nuremberg rallies. Extracts from  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuremberg_Rally  are given below: The Nuremberg Rally (officially meaning National Party Convention) was the annual rally of the Nazi Party in Germany, held from 1923 to 1938. They were large Nazi propaganda events, especially after Hitler's rise to power in 1933. These events were held at the Nazi party rally grounds in Nuremberg from 1933 to 1938 and are usually referred to in English as the "Nuremberg Rallies". Many films were made to commemorate them, the most famous of which is Leni Riefenstahl's Triumph of the Will and Der Sieg des Glaubens. ... The first Nazi Party rallies took place in 1923 in Munich and in 1926 in Weimar. From 1927 on, they took place exclusively in Nuremberg. --- end extracts from Nuremberg Rally wiki page --- Here's a short Encyclopaedia B...

Last updated on 24th Jan 2017 As far right movements in some parts of the democratic world are seeing a resurgence with rural voters propelling far right leaders to power, I came across some link between Nazism and an earlier rural (and anti-urban) movement in Germany called Volkisch movement. What I read tells me that between end of world war I (1918) and beginning of World War II (1939), Germany seems to have experienced at least some things similar to what USA and some parts of Western Europe are experiencing now. In particular, there seems to be a disconnect and a divide between less educated, less sophisticated and financially struggling rural citizens/voters, and typically more educated, more sophisticated and perhaps economically better off urban citizens/voters. As the economic squeeze on these rural citizens continues in USA & Western Europe, they seem to be banding together and using their electoral power to vote in candidates who support rural citizen values (typical...

Donald Trump Holds First Chairman Of The Board Meeting As President Of The United States, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=71VKWv0hMbo , 14 min. 29 secs, published on Jan. 20th 2017 The above video shows USA President Trump signing documents/orders as USA president. Along with Mr. Trump we see vice-president Mike Pence, Speaker Paul Ryan, Senate Majority leader (R) Mitch McConnell, Senate Minority Leader (D) Chuck Schumer, House of Representatives Majority leader (R) Kevin McCarthy and House of Representatives Minority Leader (D) Nancy Pelosi. These people are the top ranking political leaders of the USA now, and are all elected leaders. Trump's White House chief of staff Reince Priebus, Trump's family members, and others are also seen. President Trump signs his first documents as USA president and gives away the pens used to sign the documents to various people around him. The room, according to the video caption, is the President's room in the US Capitol. It is a frie...

President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump First Dance at the Inaugural Ball (1/20/2017), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-fV4OUP3ldg , 5 min 38 secs. Nice family dancing touch to USA president inauguration, part of the Western way of life, I guess. This is one area where Indian democracy traditions (and perhaps Indian ruler traditions prior to democracy) are very different. I don't recall reading about/seeing any such family dancing event associated with inauguration of any Indian Union/Federal government or state government.

Last updated on 26th Jan. 2017 I saw the swearing in ceremony of Donald Trump as USA's 45th President on an ABC news Live Stream youtube video. It was a nice ceremony highlighting the peaceful transfer of power in the USA. It was nice to see that Hillary Clinton attended the ceremony along with her husband, former President Bill Clinton. Former presidents George W. Bush and Jimmy Carter were also present. Donald Trump Is Sworn In as President, Capping His Swift Ascent, https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/20/us/politics/trump-inauguration-day.html , Jan. 20th 2017. A short extract from it: Donald John Trump was inaugurated as the 45th president of the United States on Friday, ushering in a new and more unpredictable era in which he vowed to shatter the established order and restore American greatness. -- end extract -- Donald Trump is sworn in as president, vows to end ‘American carnage’, https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-to-be-sworn-in-marking-a-transformative-...