So what is the big deal in giving a ‘Nazi Salute’?
For one, used repeatedly by racists, white supremacists and Neo-Nazis, it implies that the 6 million Jews, gas chambered in the concentration camps during the Holocaust by Adolf Hitler, do not really matter. And, second, that despite eliminating a ghastly collective memory with a mere gesture, they can still support Israel, weaponise it with billions, and allow one of the worst genocides of ordinary folks, including innocent women and children, with not a qualm of guilt in their conscience.
Well, that is the American white establishment, and its Deep State. The blood on its hands does not even dry up, when it starts chasing another graveyard of silence and screams, like the famously disturbing Edward Munch painting. Munch was walking at sunset, in Kristiana, Norway, when, according to him, he “heard the enormous, infinite scream of nature”.
‘The Scream’ symbolises the inner-most, invisible, suppressed angst simmering inside a human being, which is suddenly expressed — echoing in the tragic vacuum of a cold, impersonal and unhappy modernity. It was painted in the late 19th and early 20th century in two pastels and two painted versions by Munch.
Till this day, it tells a story, as in the infinite screams in Gaza, now, still hidden in the vast rubble, where the dead live, waiting for a decent funeral. Or, perhaps in Auschwitz and other concentration camps in Poland, where thousands of Jews, women, men, elders, kids, were liquidated by the Nazis.
So what is the goddamned big deal in giving a Nazi salute?
Writes Benjamin Clark, Head of Digital Audience, in the Prospect, “So, after Elon Musk made a hand gesture that looked a lot like a ‘Nazi salute’ at Donald Trump’s inauguration rally, we, objective journalists, must ignore the context of Musk often sharing Far-Right content on X. We must instead, present the gesture in abstract isolation. The Times, for instance, called it an ‘awkward salute’. The Telegraph, conversely, a ‘Roman salute’…
….In the past, members of (British Prime Minister Kier) Starmer’s cabinet have called the president (Trump) a “buffoon” and a “neo-Nazi-sympathising sociopath”. Will this come back to bite them?”
Elon Musk, the richest man in the world, and Trump’s latest buddy, and a big time donor for his campaign, gave a back-to-back fascist salute, and said: “I just want to say thank you for making it happen.” He was in a rally addressing supporters at Capital One Arena in Washington.
Reports The Guardian of London: “Musk then slapped his right hand into his chest, fingers splayed, before shooting out his right arm on an upwards diagonal, fingers together and palm facing down… As the crowd roared, Musk turned and saluted again, his arm and hand slightly lower… ‘My heart goes out to you,’ Musk said, striking himself on the chest again. ‘It is thanks to you that the future of civilization is assured. Thanks to you. We’re gonna have safe cities, finally, safe cities. Secure borders, sensible spending. Basic stuff. And we’re gonna take ‘DOGE’ to Mars.’”
(DOGE is the new Department of Government Efficiency, created by Trump, with a unilateral Musk calling the shots. So much so, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, who lost the race in the Republican presidential campaign much early, left DOGE in a huff. Apparently, he did not get along with Musk, pointing to early rifts in the new power establishment.)
ALSO READ: Ramaswamy Withdraws From Trump’s DOGE
The London newspaper reports that Ruth Ben-Ghiat, a history professor at New York University, said categorically: “Historian of fascism here. It was a Nazi salute and a very belligerent one too.”
Musk responded typically to the tide of critical commentary overflowing in social and mainstream media: “Yeah exactly,” and added a ‘yawning’ emoji.
Haaretz, a prominent Israeli newspaper, not exactly in the good books of the fanatic regime in Tel Aviv, wrote, that it was, indeed, “a Roman salute, a fascist salute, most commonly associated with Nazi Germany”.
Trump has chosen to ignore the controversy, even while he was putting his first foot forward. Musk would have pricked his own ageing mind cells.
As this reporter wrote (Lokmarg, October 30, 2024): “John Kelly is a former four-star general and was the longest serving chief of staff of Trump. He told The New York Timesthat Trump ‘preferred the dictator approach’, fits into the concept of a ‘fascist’, disliked the American Constitution, and threatened to use the military against American citizens whom he considered his enemies. According to him, Trump seems to have an obsessive fascination for Adolf Hitler, and often seemed to want American generals to obey his command as the Nazi generals used to obey Hitler. Kelly told The Atlanticthat Trump wished his military personnel showed him the same deference Hitler’s Nazi generals showed him.”
Meanwhile, a female Episcopal bishop in the Washington National Cathedral has rocked the front pages, while leading the inaugural prayer service with Trump and other big shots seated right in front. Said Rev Mariann Edgar Budde, “In the name of our God, I ask you to have mercy upon the people in our country who are scared now… There are gay, lesbian and transgender children in Democratic, Republican and independent families. Some who fear for their lives…They may not be citizens or have the proper documentation, but the vast majority of immigrants are not criminals. They pay taxes and are good neighbours. They are faithful members of our churches and mosques, synagogues.”
Soon after, when asked by a journalist, “Did you like it? Find it exciting?”, Trump said, “I didn’t think it was a good service, no.” He later branded her on social media as “a radical Left hard-line Trump-hater”, and demanded an apology.
At the world stage, his friend, Vladimir Putin, his economy down and thousands of his soldiers dead, seems to be preparing for the end of a mindless war in Ukraine, provided Ukraine is denied a NATO membership. This would be close to Trump’s heart.
The Gaza ceasefire seems to point to Trump taking over, and Benjamin Netanyahu knows that the new president does not prefer war, like most Democratic and Republican presidents of the past, including Barack Obama and Joe Biden. It is a fact that during his first term, he waged no war in any part of the world, including in conflict ridden Middle-East, rich with oil, which America needs desperately.
Surely, he is no maverick. He is a cold, determined and focused Right-wing, white supremacist, capitalist, and he might be choosing the profit industry rather than the arms industrial complex.
As for India, one setback seems to be following another. In the first instance, Narendra Modi was not invited for the inauguration by his “dear friend”. Instead, Mukesh and Nita Ambani were invited. That was bad news for Modi, considering he declared, ‘Ab ki baar, Trump sarkar’ at a rally in the US. Trump lost to Biden in that election.
As many as 18,000 illegal Indian immigrants in the US might be repatriated, even as Trump has ordered enforcement authorities to go after them. According to reports, more than 700,000 Indian immigrants are still undocumented officially. India has no option but to accept the ghar wapsi of its citizens. The anti-immigrants issue scored big for Trump in the polls, and he seems to be serious about it.
As for the H-1B work permit visa, Trump is trying to walk a tight rope, with his support base divided on the issue. Trump has said, “I like both sides of the argument, but I also like very competent people coming into our country, even if that involves them training and helping other people that may not have the qualifications they do… And H-1B, I know the programme very well. I use the programme. Maître d’, wine experts, even waiters, high-quality waiters — you’ve got to get the best people…”
Another bad news is the possible denial of ‘citizenship’ to children born to Indian parents in the US. This would include H-1B visa holders, immigrants who are undocumented, students with visas, and those waiting for the coveted green card. Considering a large chunk of such individuals arrive to America from Gujarat, for the ‘friends of BJP/VHP and Modi’ out there, truly, acche din seem to be becoming elusive.