learntoquestion ltq discussions

Questions to Consider:

1. Does history in fact rhyme? Do events from the past have similarities to the present, even if they are not exactly the same?

2. Where specifically, if at all, are there rhymes between the Weimar Republic and our present day, either within the United States or elsewhere? If there are no similarities, what accounts for the others attempting to make the direct correlation between society today and Germany between 1919 and 1933?

Word Count Requirement: 350-500 words

Work to Reference:

Please refer to the ideas, either using a quote or paraphrasing, from both your own visual essay and the work of others. Provide attribution to any quotes or ideas that you use from both your own work or the work of others.

Helpful but NOT required reading:

The ghosts of Weimar: is Weimar Germany a warning from history?

Warnings from Weimar

Weimar America?

Why People Should Stop Comparing the U.S. to Weimar Germany

History does in fact rhyme. Events in the past, even internationally, have had similarities with each other across centuries and oceans. One example of this is that countries during times of emergency have been known to sacrifice the rights of their people. In the Weimar Republic “the Weimar Constitution gave the president the right to declare a state of emergency and then suspend civil liberties” (Glaum & McVay). Only about a decade later the United States repeated the same process during World War II when the government decided to suspend the civil liberties of Japanese-American citizens by placing them in internment camps. Then, it happened again during the Cold War when the American government became accustomed to spying on their citizens in an effort to prevent the spread of Communism. The reason so many people see direct correlation between society today and Germany between 1919 and 1933 is during that time the president’s state of emergencies effectively made the already weak legislature useless. In America today the president has so much control of the decisions made in the country and seems so unchecked by the legislature since all three branches are controlled by a Republican majority that it seems to rhyme with the actions of Weimar Germany. With one party in control so many of the president and his party's whims are passed that the purpose of the rest of the government seems arbitrary. This seems a lot like the speed in which the government in Germany was moving and the unequal power the president seemed to hold. That being said, as Eric Weitz notes in “Weimar America” people forget “the great democratic experiment that was the Weimar Republic” (Weitz). The government was new to its job and creation while the American government has been around for a few centuries now and has been tested through many different circumstances and difficult eras. Therefore, the history of the Weimar Republic does rhyme with present day America, but there is a lot more to consider than the mentioned similarities. Additionally, sometimes history does not rhyme but echoes. For instance, Germany is now one of the biggest economies in the world, yet–or perhaps thus–they “still [keep] a close eye on inflation today” (Glaum & McVay). Sometimes history teaches us to be cautious in certain scenarios and Germany has used their past issues with central banks and centralized governments to become cautious of such systems while balancing their worries to create a successful nation.

History relies heavily on a few things: climate, geography, and human nature. Facing History’s first unit of study is about social psychology for very good reason. Studying the human being and its interactions with others can help explain a great deal of history. Generally, a larger sample size of a random group leads to more consistent results. Entire nations present very large sample sizes, so when groups of people are presented with similar situations, they often have similar responses. This is why there is so much rhyming in history. When there is a lack of order, people seek authority. When a civilization is struggling, people pay more attention to superficial divisions like race and religion. When a nation prospers, it makes great achievements in art, literature, and science. While the same event can’t happen exactly the same way, there are general patterns which can be studied.

There are rhymes between Weimar Germany and the current United States in certain political trends. As Alan Xiong and Kevin Wang pointed out in their presentation, the Germans “yearned for Germany to be powerful again which led to far extremist parties growing in popularity.” The American MAGA movement demonstrates this exact line of thinking where the country was once great and was then ruined by specific groups which must be targeted. Even on the left side of the political spectrum, there has been growing interest in moving away from the largely moderate (if not right leaning) establishment with the popular appeal of leaders like Zohran Mamdani.

There are, however, many aspects of Weimar Germany which are not present in the US. Although economic conditions have been weakening, the level of inflation is nowhere near the numbers seen in Germany. My website mentions that “People were unable to buy the staple foods they were accustomed to eat, including typically affordable grains like potatoes and bread. Buying groceries became a race against the clock with how rapidly currency lost value, leaving stores empty daily and causing constant looting and rioting.” The US has fortunately not descended into this kind of chaos and widespread economic desperation.

Despite certain differences, Americans should still monitor their nation’s situation. When making extreme political decisions, there doesn’t really have to be the same level of crisis to achieve the same result as Weimar Germany. People only need to perceive a similar level of crisis. When politicians use inflammatory language and constantly make themselves or the group they sympathize with seem under attack, they stoke these flames and exaggerate ideological issues. If people feel they are the victims of a drastic crime, they will seek drastic solutions. Accompanied by an increasingly difficult situation with the growing national debt and income inequality, they may find solace in demagogues who endanger the nation.

“Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat”. This quote has been rewritten time and time again by various authors of various time periods and various origins. In history there have been numerous times that scenarios have been repeated with my mind drawing parallels between the cold war and 9/11. Both wars were fought over ideas with the US fighting communism in the cold war and terrorism/radical extremism in post 9/11. Both of these wars were long and drawn causing the US to reestablish its values; The United States after the cold war was looked upon to counter communism and after 9/11 The United States was again looked upon to fight terrorism. This quote by psychoanalyst Theodore Reik in “The Untouchables”(1965) gives a clear view to why this happens, “There are recurring cycles, ups and downs, but the course of events is essentially the same, with small variations. It has been said that history repeats itself. This is perhaps not quite correct; it merely rhyme” (Reik). In the instance that has been talked about, history does in fact rhyme, as they are not simply parallels of the same word, but like rhyming, they sound similar enough to where people can draw a connection between them. Another example I’d like to touch on is the similarity between the Weimar Republic and the present United States. The Weimar Republic: a German democracy lasting from 1919 to 1933 was formed in the vacuum left by World War 1. Through legitimate authority, moderate politics, and an effort to maintain treaty obligations with the nation's limited military (Flores), the Weimar Republic came to be. The main fault of the Weimar Republic can be chalked up to mass political disparity and hyperinflation. Presently, the US has increasingly been politically separate through groups fighting for control. In my lifetime I have witnessed political disturbances like MAGA, Charlie Kirk, the Capital Riot, and Covid. These huge disruptions have mainly been in the past 5 years, as well as hyperinflation which has been more and more of a possibility, since October’s unemployment rate has reached a high of ~8.1% numbers that haven’t been seen since 2021. These instances might not be parallels, but they are rhymes as the US has been making decisions to repeat history and become more like the Weimar Republic.

LTQ Post 4: Reflections on the failure of the Weimar Republic

Theodor Reik once said that “history does not repeat itself it merely rhymes” I think this means that whole events don't happen in exactly the same way the same kinds of patterns and emotions show up again. People's fears, hopes and reactions seem to be similar over time even if there are small changes.

When studying the Weimar Republic I saw how political division, economic stability and people not being able to trust the government came together to destroy democracy from the inside out. In my visual essay me and my partner focused on how propaganda and public frustration helped extremist groups gain influence. My classmate's essay showed an idea that was similar where anger and fake news spread faster than the truth. Those ideas are really connected to how people today sometimes lose faith in democratic systems when life feels uncertain and unfair. Looking at modern time I do believe that history “rhymes” with Weimar Germany in some ways. In the United States we have seen political polarization rising, misinformation through the media, and people questioning election results which are events that all occurred during the Weimar years. The difference is that our democracy is older and more established and our institutions are stronger. But still the patterns of frustration, fear, and distrust are similar. It shows us a reminder that even stable democracies are not exempt from being divided or manipulated. At the same time I understand why some people think the comparison is not a fair one. Not every instance of political tension means that the 1930s are being repeated, but I think that people make that comparison because they want to learn from history before it is too late. The Weimar Republic shows how democracy can become very weak very fast when people stop believing in it or start to see others as enemies rather than their fellow citizens.

Theodor Reik's ideas make sense to me because it helped explain how history can be repeated without being an exact copy of itself. The Weimar Republic and today's worlds are not the same story but have the same aspects or as Reik would explain the same rhythm. By being able to pick up on those rhymes it reminds ourselves that democracy depends on the ordinary people in our everyday lives that care enough to protect it.

History is a timeline of events that, although different, have like structures, motives, patterns, or situations, creating a rhyme with one another. Past and present intertwine with each other, creating parallels between important occurrences- similar, but not the same. Theodore Reik, an Austrian psychoanalyst who is best known for being trained and taught by the well-known psychologist Freud, in his essay “The Untouchables”, which was published in 1965, argues that “There are recurring cycles, ups and downs, but the course of events is essentially the same, with small variations. It has been said that history repeats itself. This is perhaps not quite correct; it merely rhymes” (Reik). Reik’s point refutes the claim that history is cyclical, in which all events repeat and are the same in themselves. The reality is that situations are situational- they are all unique and have different aspects, but they might still come from the same molds. These molds, the formats in which events arise, often stem from the similar routing of peoples’ emotion, opinion, and action, causing a similar and corresponding course of history. This explains the idea that history is more like a poem, containing patterns and relations, and less like a round that follows its route on repeat.

The Weimar Republic is most notable for its decline in economics, politics, and social cohesivity, but its rise in constitutional rights and freedom of expression (artistry). Julia Morellato and Lidia Bolec, in their website about this democracy, state that during the Weimar period, “After World War I, many people descended to the streets to riot for or against their wanted leader. Here, in this photo, the crowd came to the streets to support Emil Eichhorn because he was their "ideal leader" (Morellato-Bolec). The gatherings in favor of a particular political leader during this period of time parallel to the protests against and/or for presidents in the U.S., especially in recent years as competition between Republican and Democratic parties become more extreme. Another example that matches an aspect of instability in the Weimar Republic is the financial crisis, in which certain people were becoming richer and other people were becoming extremely poor as the value of the German mark continued to decrease weekly, aligning to the unequal distribution of wealth in several countries in the world today, including America. Parallels or “rhymes” in history are demonstrated through the comparison of the Weimar Republic and modern day society.

Instead of History coincidentally rhyming because of the widespread information of news and knowledge people now choose to be ill-informed or hateful. Today there are many comparisons of the Nazi party to Trump and his MAGA followers with comparisons that will still continue long after Trump's reign and possibly long after our own lives. What is most talked about though and what people claim connects the Nazi to MAGA party is facism along with white supremacy making a “rhyme” but more likely a purposeful action. These things do intersect not by coincidence but because Trump is a man who idolizes Andrew Jackson, a dedicated racist and White supremacist. MAGA just like the Nazi’s are a far-right group who are extremely nationalistic, extremely authoritarian and want the suppression of opposition which falls right into place on the definition of facism. MAGA will follow Trump extremely cult-like and Nazi’s did the same to Hitler because they were extreme nationalists who wanted a strict social hierarchy and worshiped their leaders. These comparisons and beliefs aren’t just coincidental more than enough times have we seen throughout America and Europe as of right now these bold white supremacists are rising up with their main reasons being because of nationalism claiming, the immigrants or insert certain brown group is destroying the country and is taking up their houses and taking all the jobs all the while claiming to be the superior master race. This is the same thing that happened in Germany with anti-semitism being on the rise, anti-semitism was a historic thing that had been happening for a very long time and when things get extremely rough even though Jewish people actually faced the harshest brunt of the hyperinflation/famine they were the ones who got blamed. Although this isn’t exactly the same as white people who now put themselves based on a high podium on more of a variety of things like immigration, skin color they still judge on the same things like culture, facial features, blood, history and mass propaganda. MAGA folks know this and understand this quite well, some of these people are dumb they are doing this on purpose, they understand that white women take up a majority of SNAP/EBT benefits but will go after black women anyways. They also know who and what Hitler was and despite learning about him and diving into his work they at the end of the day will still claim in order to support their hateful rhetoric that, “Hitler was right”.

Theodor Reik’s claim that “history merely rhymes,” makes note of the familiarity between the Weimar Republic’s collapse and today’s world. Due to the devastation of World War I, Germany’s democracy struggled through humiliation, social division, and debt. The “stab-in-the-back” myth that blamed social democrats and Jews for the nation’s defeat leaving the confused citizens angry, like how misinformation tends to spread online today. Sebastian Haffner, a German journalist, recalled when he was 11, discovering the armistice terms to make “his entire inner world collapse” (Defying Hitler: A Memoir). The sense of betrayal towards the masses was utilized by the extremist voices to harm them, just as disillusionment is utilized in political and economical systems.

Economic instability was a major factor in Weimar’s fall in that hyperinflation in 1924 wiped out savings overnight. In addition, Sebastian Haffner also notes “a pound of potatoes which yesterday had cost fifty thousand marks now cost a hundred thousand” (Defying Hitler: A Memoir) further destroying faith in the democracy’s ability to give stability and security to citizens. Today, widening economic inequality creates a similar resentment where SNAP benefits have been put to a halt as of recently, putting many that rely on it uncertain and at a loss of food security. Additionally, across the U.S. and Europe, working-class citizens feel the need to turn to a figure of authority that will listen to their needs and respond to the crises due to feeling abandoned by elites, echoing the emotional interests that led to the rise of the Nazi Party. Rhetorics like the proclaimed “Make America Great Again” in the U.S. reflect the desire to restore national pride in the Weimar Republic as well.

The manipulation of reality and truth also rhymes throughout time. During the Weimar period, pieces of propaganda such as Der Stürmer worked to spread antisemetic lies and blamed the Jewish people for Germany’s decline. In today's world, misinformation often is also spread through forms of social media that give a sense of falsehood, distorting the public discussions and thought as Der Stürmer strived to do. Both of these eras reveal how the media, no matter the time period, can easily overpower facts when there is a lack of trust in institutions due to fear.

Reik’s statement still remains true, as history rhymes through the human tendency of fear, a search for belonging and division. The Weimar Republic serves as a warning that democracy fades away through separate terms of truth. In recognizing the rhymes between past and present, we ensure that the next course of history doesn’t become a tragedy.

I believe that history can in fact rhyme. Obviously, we can point to certain moments in history and compare them, some with striking similarities, yet never exactly the same. But, factors such as economic instability, political collapses, and minority exploitation, all exhibited in the era of the Weimar Republic, can create this belief in history repeating itself. Therefore, there are plenty of events from the past that have great similarities to the present. In the US context, we see this with periods of economic instability, having both The Great Depression in the early 20th Century and the more recent 2008 Financial Crisis. Although resulting from different acts and again, not exactly the same, we see their similarities in the impact they had and the turmoil that resulted from them. In The Ghosts of the Weimar, we see a direct correlation between Weimar period ideologies and the later Nazi regime. In the context of political polarization and rejection, there is an evident striking similarity between the two. Notably, the Nazis are recognized and frowned upon for their exploitation, rejection, and scapegoating of the minority of Jews in Germany, killing millions in the process of World War II. If we point to a prior point in history, such as The Armenian Genocide in the 1910s, it is fair to assume how great of an influence past points in history can have in creating new ones, both good and bad.

The truth is that the US is imperfect, and there are certainly rhymes between the Weimar and the present day US. Like previously mentioned, the US has seen some significant points of economic struggle, yet so has the Weimar. As me and my partner discussed in our Economic Conditions portion of the Weimar Visual Essay, there was a point in 1922 where the people in Germany saw a period of extreme hyperinflation, as the Weimar Republic overprinted money in order to pay their soldiers and subsequently shrinking the value of all currency. This was extremely similar to The Great Depression, both in economic downfall, but also in political reliance and the decline of social mobility, as the majority of both populations grew extreme distrust in their government groups and their later decisions. Switching topics, there is another similarity in that of propaganda. The most common propaganda during the Weimar was political, specifically in misinformation and antisemitism towards the Jewish population. The US has seen much of the same throughout its own history, specifically in segregation in the south during the mid-20th Century, targeting the black population of the US. But now, all propaganda, beyond political, has been heightened in the rise of social media, separating society more than ever.

Although history doesn’t repeat itself, as two moments will never be exactly the same, it does rhyme because of the common tendencies that humans share. Yes, events from the past do have similarities to the present, even if they aren’t identical because human behavior and specific social patterns are bound to reoccur. According to Theodor Reik, “ There are recurring cycles, ups and downs, but the course of events is essentially the same, with small variations. It has been said that history repeats itself. This is perhaps not quite correct; it merely rhymes”. I completely agree with his opinions because events are unique to their own selves to a certain extent. For example, some events are tied to specific time periods or conditions to that time, such as the American Revolution, would never repeat in the United States, one reason being there’s more than 13 colonies here now, and the U.S. is under the control of Great Britain anymore. Events are repeated, but may emerge in a different form. Specifically within the Weimar Republic, the hyperinflation period rhymes with today's inflation as prices are drastically rising , despite the Republic being on a much larger scale that the U.S has never matched. The Americans who ran and crowded the stores for toilet paper and stealing baby powder during the early stages of Covid, resemble the Germans who crowded the streets of Berlin to obtain low-stock demanded items, as well as an uprising in robberies and looting. On the other hand, Anti-Semitism is widely seen in current events, as the war between Palestine has heightened both Anti-Semitism and Islamophobia, specifically there have been cases on Anti-Semitism that have been captured on the news in the U.S, such as stabbing Jewish officials, shootings, hate-speech/slurs, or vandalism.

Political chaos echoes in both the Weimar Republic and in the United States, as the abdication of Wilhelm II left the Germans without the monarchy, whereas the government shutdown was temporary but definitely caused a lot of problems. Both, very different, events raised uncertainty, lack of faith for the government, showcased the instability, and growing tensions that heightened racism and prejudices amongst different people. Conversely, Jews were a means for scapegoating in the republic, just as many minority groups today are blamed for certain things that are going on in life today, including but not limited to Jews. According to Julia and Lidia, “ The Weimar Republic then started to be recognized as the “Jew Republic”, further emphasizing how Germans thought that Jewish people were the cause of all their post WWI issues”. Again, when conditions aren’t optimal, there needs to be someone to take the fall for these subpar conditions, most likely it’s the minorities, or groups that are already not well-liked. However, according to another point that was made in their project, Julia and Lidia said that “ ‘The Agitator’, By George Grosz the jumbled figures, distorted shames. And crowded space represents how the German people felt in a society full of propaganda and rapid change.” This echoes in today’s society with the rising influence of social media. Social media not only promotes propaganda, but is propaganda to me. I don’t mean in the sense of lying or promoting lies, but in the way that they are both devices that are wired to communicate or sway people towards a specific objective/goal. They both either make people think one way, or a way that is starkly different.

On the contrary, with the Anti-Semitism occurring, it creates an us. vs. them mentality, which plays on the idea that in the Weimar Republic people were allotted the right to treat Jews badly because they are the “them”, or the reason for all the failures. Furthermore, with the prevalence of this prejudice, a lot of people tapped into the idea of mob mentality, “since a lot of people are acting this way in a large group, why would I not do the same?” It also plays on the idea of a charismatic leader, such as Hitler, as well as obedience theory. How far are Germans willing to take this? With growing resentments towards the unstable government, extremist groups, such as the Nazi Party, exploited the attraction felt by people who were desperate to be a part of something much stronger and more put together. Unfortunately, it also makes me think of the Armenian Genocide for the reason that the Young Turks sought for reforms and a better sense of government that couldn’t be achieved with Christian Armenians present, therefore they sought to exterminate or rid them to achieve what they wanted. Lastly, the Weimar Republic was met with deep political tensions and divisions, which rhymes with today's political parties, radical left or radical right. If you are a liberal, who is deeply political and passionate, you’re more than likely to view a conservative as an enemy, or binding their personality to their politics, and vice versa if you are a conservative. People are being reduced down to a label that represents their political party, which is fact is telling, but then also ignorant because for a lot of people, their personalities boil down to something much more than their political beliefs.

Theodor Reik’s idea that “history doesn’t repeat itself – it merely rhymes” accurately describes the theme that while certain circumstances may change, human behavior tends to follow similar patterns, regardless of time periods. Modern-day political tensions often echo events that occurred in the past, although they may regard different topics. In my visual essay, I examined how Germany’s democracy following World War I was built on an unstable base. Citizens lost trust in their government as economic crises such as hyperinflation and the Great Depression corrupted the lives of many Germans. The Weimar Republic struggled from the beginning with staggering reparations and deep psychological trauma following the war. As I wrote in my visual essay, “The Weimar Republic’s collapse in 1933 was the result of years of social trauma, economic instability, political chaos, and deep seated prejudice.” Each of these factors weakened the citizens' faith in democracy and further opened the stage for extremist voices to rise. After viewing some of the other projects, my understanding of the economic conditions, specifically, has deepened. One group in particular explored how by 1923, the exchange rate had collapsed to $1 USD equaling over 4 trillion Papiermarks. As a result of the Treaty of Versailles, Germany owed more money than they would ever be able to pay, thus its government began printing money as a last resort. This caused hyperinflation so extreme that the Papiermark became nearly worthless.

Similar “rhymes” have been apparent in parts of the modern world today, specifically where economics struggle and lead to weakening faith in institutions. One example of this is Venezuela; years of government overspending resulted in extreme hyperinflation and corruption, reaching over 1,000,000% in 2018. Similar to the Weimar Republic, money lost a lot of its value, and citizens were left struggling to afford basic necessities. Similar to how Germans carried wheelbarrows full of Papiermarks, Venezuelans carried stacks of bills to buy basic goods. In both the Weimar Republic and Venezuela, economic collapse turned frustration into hopelessness, and hopelessness turned to anger toward the government. While the two situations occurred years apart, the same human reactions were experienced: fear, frustration, and the desire for control.

Comparing the Weimar Republic with modern day is not an attempt to prove history is repeating itself, but to serve as a warning. When trust is replaced by despair, people often turn toward extremism for answers, leading to a fragile democracy. The Weimar Republic teaches us that even small rhymes in history deserve to be paid attention, for if they are overlooked, patterns can grow stronger.

I think history does in fact rhyme. For example women's rights and feminism show signs of history repeating itself. In the first waves of feminism women were fighting for the right to vote and to work or maintain their jobs after the war had ended. They wanted the same rights as men and a say in their government that had a large effect on their lives. In the more recent years, women have been fighting for reproductive rights and the right to equal pay. Their goals haven’t changed much, they still want a say in what happens to their bodies and their lives, as well as the same opportunities as men, including equal pay. This is an example of something that parallels quite well but an example of a parallel that is not as obvious are the Japanese internment camps in America following pearl harbor and the Cold war. This parallels the relocation of races and ethnic groups due to insufficiently supported accusations. The Japanese Americans and citizens were taken out of their homes and forced to stay in inadequate housing and overall carry out a low quality of life. Although quite harmful to the Japanese people living in America, this is not at all the same as the genocide of the Jews during the holocaust.

I can identify a rhyme others may agree with which is the parallels between Adolf hitler and Donald Trump. Both have been called fascist and have been accused or obviously guilty of discriminating based on race or on other minorities. Hitler was infamous for being prejudiced against Jewish people, those with disabilities and homosexual people as well. Donald Trump has made insensitive remarks about people of color, educated people, and people of his own territories namely Puerto Rico.

While reviewing the visual essay of my peers I noticed some interesting ideas that I didn’t initially think of. They used personal stories and first person accounts as well as a video to explain the antisemitism in the Weimar Republic. They also depicted the political chaos through examples in art work. Specifically there was a graph that showed the amount of people that voted during those years and what demographic of people they voted for. In our project specifically I emphasized the way the economic status of the country had a negative effect on the people. They were in despair and desperate. They longed for a sense of belonging that wasn’t available without working. This made them increasingly susceptible to the pressures of the Nazi regime because they were hopeless.

I think the main reason why people think that history repeats itself is because in life issues all stem from the same place: is life good or bad. Factors that make life bad are always pretty much the same, food, economy, fighting, quality of life. So history will never repeat itself, however it will follow the same issues that occur time and time again: war, economic changes, political changes, culture and public response.

However, I definitely do think history can rhyme and that anything that happens or has happened has also already happened and will “rhyme” again. Rhyme is the best word to describe this since not every event is a carbon copy of another, but rather each event can have similarities to another one. WWI Germany and the Weimar Republic is a great example of this. For example, the Avant Garde Art & Culture aspect of the Weimar Republic is similar to the media response of musicians and artists, in a more modern day, after and during the Vietnam War. In the Weimar Republic, Dadaism was their response and reaction to the war. As Isabella Endozo and Tripp Rousmaniere’s site says, “Dada art was created for people to fully process their emotions and reactions to the horror and destruction of society that took place during the war.” Art, particularly music, during the time of the Vietnam War displayed opposition to fighting after the trauma of War. Bruce Springsteen’s satirical song “Born in the USA” is an example of this. Verse two says, “So they put a rifle in my hand / Sent me off to a foreign land.” He criticizes the Vietnam war and fighting in general as he goes on with his song. Though in Weimar Germany, people gained a nihilistic and existentialistic perspective, the purpose of Anti-War/Hippie music in the 60s/70s was more about making the world better rather than realizing the world lost meaning.

Though not by the same means, the United States right now is experiencing a similar economic situation as Weimar Germany in the sense that we both are experiencing a kind of hyperinflation, mentioned in Malia Mack and Christina Luo’s site. The cost of living and taxes being high due to a political reason is both present in Weimar Germany and present day United States. Though Weimar Germany may have its differences from us in the modern day and on the other side of the world, there are still similarities and “rhymes” that can be noticed.