Several months ago, I posted on what I thought was the relevance of the movie Judgment at Nuremberg to today’s world, specifically to what has been happening in the U.S. since the start of the second Trump administration.

That post focused on Spencer Tracy’s character, Judge Dan Haywood, rendering the court’s decision – with his devastating point that if the rights of even one individual can be abused, there can be no justice for anyone. Read here.

Another scene that is an eerie reflection of the U.S. today is when Burt Lancaster’s character, Ernst Janning – one of the defendants in the case – explains how rational people can justify the abuse and persecution of others, while claiming ignorance of what was being done, all because of “love of country”.

Listen to his speech and you can hear echoes in our country’s ‘leaders’, claiming the U.S. can do what it wants; it will make the rules others must follow; and it can destroy who it wants – with many of our citizens waving flags and shouting “USA, USA, USA” every time a new ‘enemy’ is declared and bombed.

For the majority, perhaps not as fervent, there is still the socialization through movies, television, and the school system that creates a nostalgia for the symbols of American goodness – the ‘greatest generation’; parades and fireworks; the “genius of the free market”; and ‘the finest fighting force in history’ used only for good.

They are reminded every year that expenditures for the military – so large that one year’s budget would rebuild this country’s infrastructure, schools, and hospitals, and provide housing for millions of homeless – is a cost that must be paid for ‘love of country’.