While Donald Trump has dominated the American election cycle, Trumpism is not merely a U.S. phenomenon. “The underlying trends that have brought us Trump in America are happening around the world,” wrote Stratfor. For instance, Europe, especially Poland, France and Hungary, have similar attitudes about immigrants among middle class families whose employment and livelihood are threatened by globalization. Germany continues to deal with more radical elements in its own society, such as neo-Nazis and other racists.
Stratfor continued, “Trump is skilled at picking up the baton and making it look as if he is leading the parade. But what if this is one more case of a “leader” finding a parade to get in front of? It is the parade we should be worried about, not just the big blond drum major marching Trump, Trump, Trump, in front of it.”
“The movement involves familiar components, some of which deserve our sympathy, some not so much. Deserving of sympathy is the economic squeeze that globalization has put on unskilled labor… [Their] jobs have gone overseas… They feel betrayed by the political leadership of both parties, and they deserve our sympathy.
“But then things get ugly when we see racism and xenophobia rear their heads. Here again the issues in Europe are… not so different from those in America. The nationalities in question may be different… but racism is racism wherever it is found…” Racism manifests itself in economic uncertainty and a flat economic “recovery,” or stagnation.
There is a fundamental shift taking place in the world that takes a very long time to develop. The religious era gave way to the political era, which is now giving way to the economic era. The Protestant Reformation brought in the separation of Church and State. Power passed from the heads of the Church — the Pope and his priests — to the heads of State: Presidents and Prime Ministers.
“Today, power is passing from the heads of State to the heads of major corporations like Donald Trump and Silvio Berlusconi.” Even the pope acknowledges it by inviting heads of influential companies, like Apple, Alphabet (Google parent company) and Instagram to papal audiences in Rome.
And just as the heads of the Church were not happy about the first Reformation… so too the heads of our current political order are not happy about the rising power of our corporate titans… As we move from the political era into the economic era, the private sector tail starts to wag the public sector dog… [The] transition from the nation-state to… the market state… is being partly driven by the inability of the nation-state to fulfill the bargains inscribed in its constitutional order.” The disregard of constitutional principles by all branches of government leads to disregard for the rule of law, which in turn breds disrespect, and violence intensifies. And as constitutions break down, other forces replace them, such as economic oligarchies. These in turn create a reaction, including mob violence.
“At the same time anarchy is seeking to sweep away all law, not only divine, but human. The centralizing of wealth and power; the vast combinations for the enriching of the few at the expense of the many; the combinations of the poorer classes for the defense of their interests and claims; the spirit of unrest, of riot and bloodshed; the world-wide dissemination of the same teachings that led to the French Revolution–all are tending to involve the whole world in a struggle similar to that which convulsed France.” Education, page 228
“The instruments of government are not working well in either Washington or Brussels…” continued Stratfor. “What papal dispensations were to the declining years of the religious era, earmarks are to the declining years of the political era: scandalous reminders of a rigged system that offers favoritism for the few.”
History has examples of what happens in stressful economic circumstances when a large segment of the population is frustrated with their economic prospects. Witness the rise of Adolf Hitler, for instance.
“Donald Trump did not invent crony capitalism, nor did he invent the dysfunction in Washington. But he certainly is good at capitalizing on both as the fading political era gives way to an emergent economic era.
“Make no mistake: The institutions of government will no more disappear from the face of the Earth than churches have. Just as religion persists in the political era, even as it takes a backseat, so politics will persist in the economic era. Will religion reassert itself in the economic era? The Bible predicts that religious forces will eventually dominate the political and economic forces in social structure as the unification of church and state re-emerges in the economic era. See Revelation 13.
During the political era, the middle class was emasculated by a variety of forces. “Anxious about the economy and unemployment, threatened by immigrants, frustrated at the lack of efficacy on the part of the leadership in Washington, and fed up with feminism, the blue-collar American male is a ripe target for testosterone-soaked rhetoric. ‘Make America Potent Again!’” is the political message that is longed for and cherished by many middle class men.
But, it’s not just happening in America. It is also happening in China, Europe and other nations. But it is a reaction to the trends of history. And this reaction will lead to the issues facing God’s people in the last days, demands for more hierarchical and traditional principles and values, religious values centered in worship justified in order to bring rational order back to society.