I don't think our guest is that far off in his comparison between pre-WWII Germany and present day America; I would, however, back the analogy up by a few years. I think pre-WWI is more apt. They, too, felt that they had reached a high level of culture and civilization. So high, in fact, that they could brush off the shadow culture of which Jung spoke as unfortunate anomolies in an otherwise wonderful world. They (like us?) thought very highly of themselves AS A PEOPLE and paid little attention to the rumblings from the cultural fault lines that seem so obvious to historians in retrospect.

Their mantra - and ours - was summed up quite well by Frank Zappa:
It Can't Happen Here
I keep telling you, my dear
That it can't happen here. . .

Guess again.
I remain, respectfully yours
Ozymandias