The America I love would not vote for someone like Donald Trump

I am Jewish. No, I am not a Holocaust survivor. But I was a little girl when World War II ended.

I have read a great deal about the rise of Adolph Hitler in Germany and have traveled to the Nuremberg Parade Grounds in Nuremberg, Germany and listened to recordings of Hitler’s speeches and to the tens of thousands of Germans who said, “We will make Germany great again! We will get rid of all the Jews who have taken away our greatness! We will purge our beloved country of all the infirm, the impure and once again restore Germany to its rightful place! We will restore our pure Aryan race and make our country great again!”

An entire country, whether out of pure hate, ignorance, fear of reprisals, or just plain complacency, followed a narcissistic sociopath, a mad man who murdered millions of Jews, gypsies and the infirm. Even prominent Jewish people who lived in Germany at the time said to themselves and their families, “It is only talk. I am a renowned doctor, lawyer and musician - a German.”

They couldn’t see what was to happen until it was too late.

This election is not about Republican philosophy or Democratic philosophy. It is not about Medicare or Social Security or the Supreme Court. It is about electing a hateful, dangerous narcissistic sociopath – a madman.

Words are power. They can be used to play on fears and prejudices.

Donald Trump is saying, “Elect me, I will make America great again.”

What exactly does that mean? Does it mean that by rounding up 11 million hard working immigrants (not rapists and murderers) we will rid our country of people who are taking away our greatness? Should we laugh at the infirm the way Trump did when he encountered a handicapped reporter?

Should we do away with all the handicapped and infirm in our country?

Should we undermine our judicial system and our laws by attacking a federal judge because of his Hispanic origins? When Trump says that all Muslims are terrorists, does that mean we should round up all Muslims and do what with them?

When Trump calls women pigs and demeans their gender, does that mean we should go back to a time when women had no rights?

When this election started, a very close friend of mine from childhood said, “Oh, you are overreacting because you are Jewish. He won’t get the nomination. People will see what he is.”

Now she says, “He won’t get elected. People of this country know better.”

Do we know better? Did the people in Germany know?

One of my close Jewish friends said, “Don’t worry, the Holocaust could never happen in this country. We have laws, checks and balances.”

A very close devout Christian friend said to me: “I am voting for Trump. I am a Republican and I will vote for whoever the nominee is.”

But if that nominee stands for bigotry and hate and would seek to undermine the very foundations and values of our country, as a devout loving Christian, can you vote for him only because he is a Republican?

I listen to the thousands of people rallying around a mad man. I have seen the hate on their faces as Trump ridicules and demeans those around him. With each affront, they scream even louder, applauding the insanity. Even prominent Republicans are excusing crazy, erratic frightening behavior and say they will vote for Trump.

Where is the outrage against this mad man? Why aren’t more people against his rhetoric? Is this the America I grew up in?

Is this the America that went to war to get rid of a tyrant worse than the devil himself?

Yes, I am frightened, as a Jew and an American. I have close friends who are voting for Trump. I have neighbors who are rally around this mad man.

George Santayana said, “Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it.”

This election is not about being a Democrat or Republican; it is an election about humanity and goodness versus insanity and evil.

I can only pray that the faith that I have in the goodness of the America I grew up in - the America that fought against hate and intolerance and evil during WWII - will prevail.

The writer lives in Pawleys Island.

This story was originally published June 19, 2016 at 7:12 AM with the headline "The America I love would not vote for someone like Donald Trump."