The rise of the NSDAP to power is often seen as inexplicable, but placed in the context of interwar Europe as a whole, is the ascension to power of a radical, nationalist and anti-Semitic party more easily understood? This is a topic I’ve been thinking a lot about lately, so I thought I’d write about …
Tag Archives: authoritarianism
The Medvedev Interregnum
6.1. What was the significance of the Medvedev interregnum? I think the greatest significance of the Medvedev interregnum was that the period signaled to the world and the country itself that Russia would at least continue to give the outward appearance of democracy, even while ultimate political power continued to be wielded by Putin. For …
Stalinist Totalitarianism
3.1. Stalin’s regime is an archetype (or model) of totalitarianism. Do you agree? I don’t think it’s much of a question of whether Stalin’s regime was totalitarian. Rather, I think the dispute that has arisen is not over whether it was totalitarian but rather over how well and accurately the term had been defined before …
Softening the Ground
This post will probably be long and perhaps only tangentially connected to history, but it’s important, I think, to write down some things I’ve seen going on. I’m not alone in having seen these things, but perhaps can offer a perspective not yet put forward. My topics will be two, one specific and one general. …
Inevitable Historicity 