“When Fascism came into power, most people were unprepared, both theoretically and practically. They were unable to believe that man could exhibit such propensities for evil, such lust for power, such disregard for the rights of the weak, or such yearning for submission. Only a few had been aware of the rumbling of the volcano preceding the outbreak.”
― Escape from Freedom
― Escape from Freedom
“Another fact that allowed Fascism to gain power over men was their blindness. A man cannot believe that he is about to be destroyed. The optimism of people standing on the edge of the grave is astounding.”
― Life and Fate
― Life and Fate
“It was one of the greatest errors in evaluating dictatorship to say that the dictator forces himself on society against its own will. In reality, every dictator in history was nothing but the accentuation of already existing state ideas which he had only to exaggerate in order to gain power”
― The Mass Psychology of Fascism
― The Mass Psychology of Fascism
“When arguing that every age has its own Fascism, Italian writer and Holocaust survivor Primo Levi added that the critical point can be reached “not just through the terror of police intimidation, but by denying and distorting information, by undermining systems of justice, by paralyzing the education system, and by spreading in a myriad subtle ways nostalgia for a world where order reigned.”
― Fascism: A Warning
― Fascism: A Warning
“To a Depressed Friend
Sometimes, to make sure
You're still here,
Look up for cloud sustenance.
Be sure they are
Different from yesterday,
From an hour ago,
From when you were 15
And sky didn't matter
Because only pretty girls did.
Note how cumulus
Will be looking down
And naming what
Kind of human you're
Shaped like: mailman,
Archaeologist, student of rain.
On clear nights, rely on starlight.
Pentacles. Pulses.
Further proof of existence.”
― Reincarnation & Other Stimulants: Life, Death, & In-Between Poems
Sometimes, to make sure
You're still here,
Look up for cloud sustenance.
Be sure they are
Different from yesterday,
From an hour ago,
From when you were 15
And sky didn't matter
Because only pretty girls did.
Note how cumulus
Will be looking down
And naming what
Kind of human you're
Shaped like: mailman,
Archaeologist, student of rain.
On clear nights, rely on starlight.
Pentacles. Pulses.
Further proof of existence.”
― Reincarnation & Other Stimulants: Life, Death, & In-Between Poems
Yves’s 2025 Year in Books
Take a look at Yves’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.
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