Paxton's work continues to provide more jaw-drops and shivers than a George Romero film. I've worried before that Obama's presidency may be more like the Weimar Republic than one would care to realize: well-meaning, measured, willing to compromise, oblivious. It seems that there is a more direct comparison available between these two historical moments: in 1929 Germany had a malfunctioning parliamentary majority -- socialists with laissez-faire moderates, Left Catholics with secular conservatives -- there was no agreement to be had in the coalition. Add to this massive job losses and the 1929 market crash, smothering what was left of the economy.
"In 1930, as unemployment soared, the government had to decide whether to extend unemployment benefits (as socialist and Left Catholics wanted) or balance the budget to satisfy foreign creditors (as middle-class and conservative parties wanted). A clear choice, but one about which no majority available in Germany would be able to agree (92)."
As Walter Benjamin said, sometimes there are flashes from the past that illuminate our understanding both of the past and the present. The government's insistence on indecision, despite history that shows the consequences of indecision in moments like this is worse than folly.
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