Re: Statecraft is statecraft...
Robert, I appreciate the thoughtfulness of your post.
I'm just tired of seeing the Goering quote. He was neither a wise not an insightful individual, and his sputterings, especially while facing prosecution for his crimes against humanity, should probably not be given much weight. He was trying to spread the implication of guilt upon all peoples, including the ones who paid a terrible price to stop him and his murderous cronies. That isn't fair, it isn't right, and shouldn't be repeated as if it were timeless wisdom.
And I hardly said that Americans are immune to manipulation; but it's indisputable that some peoples, at some times, are far more malleable than others.
Compare how far McCarthy got in his manipulations to how far Hitler got.