“The similarity between Trump and Malema is scary. Scariest of all is that they live in countries that take them seriously. They epitomise führer-like bluster. They come across as racists and bigots. They are divisive and stir the passions of followers with emotion, not policies. They are for protectionism, indigenisation and anti-immigration extremism. They are rich, yet appeal to poor, uneducated, uninformed and potentially violent sycophants. They believe in omnipotent Big Brother government. That they are Tweedledee and Tweedledum reveals the extent to which the difference between the ‘left’ and the ‘right’ is more apparent than real. The alternative to both is personal and economic freedom. Just as people at a Trump rally might think of protecting rather than recruiting a black stranger, no one at the EFF rally tried recruiting a white stranger, not even when he suggested the opportunity”.
Trump and Malema appeal to prejudice: Leon Louw’s latest column on BDlive published by Business Day yesterday.