In Florida, a Reich of fools

These damned Nazis. They’re having a moment now in Florida. The other night, when the Jacksonville Jaguars were playing here for a wild-card spot, some cretins thought to project the image of a swastika – entangled with a cross – on a building within view of the stadium. 

Yeah, the swastika and the cross. Of course. Who would Jesus kill?

During other Jags games, we’ve seen banners in support of the Confederacy and endorsing the concept that America should collectively fuck Joe Biden.

Excuse my German. But this is what we’re dealing with: Nihilist mouth-breathers, mostly. It’s not a movement fueled by intellect. They have not steeped themselves in the core tenets of national socialism. Or anything else. Because they don’t read. Unless you count 8Chan or certain dark corners of Elon Musk’s Twitter.  

Which accounts at least partly for the appeal of “Hunters,” the Amazon Prime series about Jews hunting Nazi war criminals in late-’70s America. We finished the first season last night, only to find that season 2 has just started. We’ll watch that too; it’s pretty good.

“Hunters” doesn’t have much to do with history. It plays out like a Tarantino movie – like “Inglourious Basterds,” or “Django Unchained,” or “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.” It’s a revenge fantasy where the good guys do not stand on niceties like due process. In this world, the Nazis are diabolical, smart and lethal. Their evil is unambiguous. They hatch grand, complicated schemes to resurrect the Reich. And you know they’ll eventually get what’s coming to them. 

In other words, they’re a far cry from the banal swine around here, who nurture their vague resentments, and scatter leaflets, and embrace swastikas. These fools don’t merit a second episode, much less a second season.