In 1931, Thomas Mann spoke out against the rising tide of unreason which was sweeping his country, a movement which derided intellectualism and espoused the heavy handed nationalism which characterized the National Socialist propaganda mill. He expressed his thoughts in a tract entitled "In Defense of Reason".Among other things, he said:

"This fantastic state of mind, of a humanity that has outrun its ideas, is matched by a political scene in the grotesque style, with Salvation Army methods, hallelujahs and bell-ringing and dervishlike repetition of monotonous catch-words, until everybody foams at the mouth. Fanaticism turns into a means of salvation, enthusiasm into epileptic ecstacy, politics becomes an opiate for the masses, . . . and reason veils her face."

Startling, now 74 years later, to read this description and compare it to the mindless applause that was being generated by the frozen chosen at the Inaugural event, ringed by steel and carefully covered by lead.

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