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Fed paper says 1918 pandemic led to German austerity and extremism [pdf]

newyorkfed.org

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Re: Fed paper says 1918 pandemic led to German austerity and extremism [pdf]

#11
post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> So, the 1918 pandemic did not lead to just extremism; it led to right wing extremism. (I'd suggest changing the title to reflect this, if possible.) This is a danger that we are facing right now in the US. Are we? Show me some actual evidence. Yes, there are some similarities between our situation and 1918. But there are massive differences. We should certainly observe the situation to see if the pandemic causes pe…

I am not suggesting we are facing an issue with right wing extremism because of the pandemic. I am merely suggesting that we are facing an issue with right wing extremism. From https://www.csis.org/ground-combatting-rise-right-wing-terro... : > Right-wing terrorism is on the rise in the United States and across Europe. In the United States, right-wing extremists were responsible for nearly 50 killings in 2018, a 26 p…

Before you confidently snark about how I could have researched your point for you, consider that you just demonstrated how small of a problem right wing terrorism is. According to your own post, 2018 saw 50 killings from right wing terrorism in 2018. Compare to 36,560 motor vehicle deaths in the same year[1]. Or, you know, the over 70,000 people who died of Covid19 so far this year.

Keep in mind, right wing extremism in 1918 grew into the holocaust, which killed 11 million people[2]. This from the Spanish flu which killed 17+ million people[3]. I don't think 50 deaths in a year is comparable, and I stand by my claim. In a conversation where events that caused millions of deaths are being discussed, comparing something that caused 50 deaths two years ago as "a danger that we are facing right now in the US" is alarmist.

I'm not saying it's not a problem, and I'm not saying we shouldn't talk about it. But I am saying, we should keep some perspective.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motor_vehicle_fatality_rate_in... [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Holocaust [3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_flu

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