21 photos of military parades for Trump's authoritarian vision board.

Pinterest for the aspirational autocrat.

 Parker Molloy
02.07.18

In France last summer, Donald Trump saw a parade. Now, in true Trump fashion, he wants one of his own.

Back before he called members of Congress who refused to clap for him "treasonous," Trump traveled to France at the request of French President Emmanuel Macron to take in the country's annual Bastille Day military parade. There was pomp, circumstance, and of course, a bunch of big guns that go boom. Trump was thrilled, publicly talking about how much fun he had months later — but that's not all. According to a report in the Washington Post, he's been privately obsessing over the idea of ordering the military to throw him the same sort of parade, right here in Washington.

"The marching orders were: I want a parade like the one in France," the Post quotes a military official.

Trump and Macron watch the 2017 Bastille Day parade in France. Photo by Joel Saget/AFP/Getty Images.

There's a big difference between the Bastille Day parade and whatever it is that Trump wants for himself — namely, tradition.

The Bastille Day parade dates back to 1880 and has a rich tradition. While it is heavily intertwined with the country's military, it's not in itself intended as a display of toughness or signal of warning to other countries. At the United Nations General Assembly in September, however, Trump spoke about how the parade was such a great show of "military might," pledging to top it. In other words, he completely missed the point.

Macron listens while Trump gushes over the Bastille Day parade — more than two months afterward. Photo by Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images.

In fairness to Trump, there's actually a really long history of world leaders obsessed with demonstrating "military might" by way of parade — and they're not exactly as chill as Macron.

Check out a few highlights below.

Hitler and Stalin were both big fans of military parades.

Adolf Hitler salutes soldiers at a Nazi parade in Nuremberg in 1938. Photo by Topical Press Agency/Getty Images.

In May 1947, these Heavy artillery are on parade during a review of the Moscow Garrison troops in the May Day celebrations at Red Square.  Photo by N. Sitnikov/Hulton Archive/Getty Images.

Saddam Hussein considered himself a bit of a parade connoisseur as well.

Iraqi President Saddam Hussein watching a military parade in 2000. Photo by Karim Sahib/AFP/Getty Images.

Iraqi tanks roll through the streets of Baghdad in December 2000. Photo by Karim Sahib/AFP/Getty Images.

China, Iran, Cuba, and Egypt like to get in on the action too.

A 1999 photo shows members of China's People's Liberation Army passing in front of Tianamen Square. Photo by Robyn Beck/AFP/Getty Images.

An Iranian surface-to-surface missile rides past a photo of Islamic Republic founder Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during a 2008 parade. Photo by Majid/Getty Images.

This 1965 photo, taken in Havana, depicts the celebration of the sixth anniversary of the Cuban Revolution. Photo by Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images.

Hosni Mubarak watches Egyptian soldiers march outside Cairo in 1998.  Photo by Amr Nabil/AFP/Getty Images.

Don't forget about Malaysia, Guinea, Greece, or Myanmar.

In 2013, Malaysian military tanks roll down the streets of Kuala Lumpur. Photo by Mohd RasfanAFP/Getty Images.

Guinean soldiers ride along the streets of Conakry in 2013. Photo by Cellou Binani/AFP/Getty Images.

Greek soldiers celebrate "Oxi" Day in 2014. Photo by Sakis Mitrolidis/AFP/Getty Images.

Here's a look at Myanmar soldiers celebrating their Independence Day in 2015. Photo by Soe Than Win/AFP/Getty Images.

Of course, there's also India, Pakistan, Russia, and Sri Lanka.

Indian military personnel tanks parade through New Delhi in 2014. Photo by Raveendran/AFP/Getty Images.

Members of the Pakistani military drive tanks in a 2015 parade. Photo by Aamir Qureshi/AFP/Getty Images.

Russian tanks roll through Minsk during a World War II victory parade, in 2015. Photo by Host photo agency/RIA Novosti, via Getty Images.

Sri Lankan army tanks parade during the country's 68th Independence Day celebration in 2015. Photo by Lakruwan WanniarachchiAFP/Getty Images.

And be sure to remember Lebanon, Belarus, Nicaragua, Romania, and finally, "little rocket man" himself, Kim Jong Un in North Korea.

A Lebanese M60 tank drives in a military parade in Beirut in 2016. Photo by Anwar Amro/AFP/Getty Images.

Balarus soldiers participate in the country's annual Independence Day parade in 2017. Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images.

Nicaraguan soldiers ride T-72 tanks during a 2017 parade. Photo by Inti Ocon/AFP/Getty Images.

Romanian tanks participate in a military parade to celebrate the National Day of Romania in 2017. Photo by Daniel Mihailescu/AFP/Getty Images.

Members of the North Korean People's Army ride tanks through Pyongyang as a show of strength in 2017. Photo by Ed Jones/AFP/Getty Images.

If these types of parades all seem like a huge waste of time, energy, and money in a purportedly democratic nation like ours, that's because they are.

Throwing parades to demonstrate "military might" seems to be a common thread among insecure male world leaders desperate to prove the size of their "gun" is bigger than their rival's. The last time the U.S. held a military parade of any sort was in 1991 when soldiers returned home to declare victory following the Gulf War. The cost that time around, according to The New York Times, was about $12 million, with $7 million paid with federal funds.

There's little doubt Trump's proposed parade would be even more expensive.

Another concern people are already bringing up is the effect that rolling a bunch of 70-ton tanks down Pennsylvania Avenue might have on the roads themselves. The Washington Post suggests that Trump will try to frame this as a show of appreciation for our military, but when you consider that his rationale for trying to ban transgender troops from joining the military was the "tremendous medical costs" and realize that the cost of this parade (assuming it runs on roughly the same budget as the 1991 edition) would exceed even the top-end estimates of what trans people actually cost the military or that he once brushed off criticism over a fallen soldier by saying "he knew what he signed up for," it becomes clear this isn't about showing support for troops at all. It's about throwing himself a big proto-authoritarian party.

No, Trump's occasionally authoritarian musings don't make him equivalent with any of the countries or leaders in the list above, but it's becoming inarguable to suggest that he doesn't share a bit of their autocratic flair.

military places trump world leaders parades authoritarianism
Most Shared

Watch Sandy Hook Promise's 'school essentials' PSA, but prepare to be gutted by it

This is not normal.

Sandy Hook Promise/Facebook

Someday, future Americans will look back on this era of school shootings in bafflement and disbelief—not only over the fact that it happened, but over how long it took us to enact significant legislation to try to stop it.

Five people die from vaping, and the government talks about banning vaping devices. Hundreds of American children have been shot to death in their classrooms, sometimes a dozen or so at a time, and the government has done practically nothing. It's unconscionable.

Keep Reading Show less
school shootings gun control gun violence
Education & Information

After going viral for helping a 91-year-old, this humble plumber now exclusively serves the elderly and disabled

via James Anderson

Two years ago, a tweet featuring the invoice for a fixed boiler went viral because the customer, a 91-year-old woman with leukemia, received the services for free.

"No charge for this lady under any circumstances," the invoice read. "We will be available 24 hours to help her and keep her as comfortable as possible."

The repair was done by James Anderson, 52, a father-of-five from Burnley, England. "James is an absolute star, it was overwhelming to see that it cost nothing," the woman's daughter told CNN.

Keep Reading Show less
free bu pber uk free boiler elderly free plumbing service AARP james anderson free plumbing
Heroes
truth
truth

A funny new video nails the disturbing truth behind e-cigarettes

Truth

Don't test on animals. That's something we can all agree on, right? No one likes to think of defenseless cats, dogs, hamsters, and birds being exposed to a bunch of things that could make them sick (and the animals aren't happy about it, either). It's no wonder so many people and organizations have fought to stop it. But did you ever think that maybe brands are testing products on us too, they're just not telling us they're doing it?

I know, I know, it sounds like a conspiracy theory, but that's exactly what e-cigarette brands like JUUL (which corners the e-cigarette market) are doing in this country right now, and young people are on the frontlines of the fallout. Most people assume that the government would have looked at devices that allow people to inhale unknown chemicals into their lungs BEFORE they hit the market. You would think that someone in the government would have determined that they are safe. But nope, that hasn't happened. And vape companies are fighting to delay the government's ability to evaluate these products.

So no one really knows the long-term health effects of e-cigarette use, not even JUUL's CEO, nor are they informing the public about the potential risks. On top of that, according to the FDA, there's been a 78% increase in e-cigarette usage among high school and middle school-aged children in just the last two years, prompting the U.S. Surgeon General to officially recognize the trend as an epidemic and urge action against it.

These facts have elicited others to take action, as well.

Truth Initiative, the nonprofit best known for dropping the real facts about smoking and vaping since 2000 through its truth campaign, is now on a mission to confront e-cigarette brands like JUUL about the lack of care they've taken to inform consumers of the potential adverse side effects of their products. And they're doing it with the help of animal protesters who are tired of seeing humans treated like test subjects.

The March Against JUUL | Tested On Humans | truth www.youtube.com

"No one knows the long-term effects of JUULing so any human who uses one is being used as a lab rat," says, appropriately, Mario the Sewer Rat.

"I will never stop fighting JUUL. Or the mailman," notes Doug the Pug, the Instagram-famous dog star.

Truth, the national counter-marketing campaign for youth smoking prevention, hopes this fuzzy, squeaky, snorty animal movement arms humans with the facts about vaping and inspires them to demand transparency from JUUL and other e-cigarette companies. You can get your own fur babies involved too by sharing photos of them wearing protest gear with the hashtag #DontTestOnHumans. Here's some adorable inspo for you:

The dangerous stuff is already out there, but with knowledge on their side, young people will hopefully make the right choices and fight companies making the wrong ones. If you need more convincing, here are the serious facts.

Over the last decade, 127 e-cigarette-related seizures were reported, which prompted the FDA to launch an official investigation in April 2019. Since then, over 215 cases of a new, severe lung illness have sprung up all over the country, with six deaths to date. While scientists aren't yet sure of the root cause, the majority of victims were young adults who regularly vaped and used e-cigarettes. As such, the CDC has launched an official investigation into the potential link.

Sixteen-year-old Luka Kinard, a former frequent e-cigarette-user, is one of the many teens who experienced severe side effects. "Vaping was my biggest addiction," he told NowThis. "It lasted for about 15 months of my high school career." In 2018, Kinard was hospitalized after having a seizure. He also had severe nausea, chest pains, and difficulty breathing.

After the harrowing experience, he quit vaping, and began speaking out about his experience to help inform others and hopefully inspire them to quit and/or take action. "It shouldn't take having a seizure as a result of nicotine addiction like I had for teens to realize that these companies are taking advantage of what we don't know," Kinard said.

Teens are 16 times more likely to use e-cigarettes than adults, and four times more likely to take up traditional smoking as a result, according to truth, and yet the e-cigarette market remains virtually unregulated and untested. In fact, companies like JUUL continue to block and prevent FDA regulations, investing more than $1 million in lawyers and lobbying efforts in the last quarter alone.

Photo by Lindsay Fox/Pixabay

Consumers have a right to know what they're putting in their bodies. If everyone (and their pets) speaks up, the e-cigarette industry will have to make a change. Young people are already taking action across the country. They're hosting rallies nationwide and on October 9 as part of a National Day of Action, young people are urging their friends and classmates to "Ditch JUUL." Will you join them?

For help with quitting e-cigarettes, visit thetruth.com/quit or text DITCHJUUL to 88709 for free, anonymous resources.

truth
True

Lush to shut down all stores and operations, asking 5000+ employees to march for climate crisis

CEO says it's a "no brainer."

LUSH

Handmade cosmetics company Lush is putting its money where its mouth is and taking a bold step for climate change action.

On September 20 in the U.S. and September 27 in Canada, Lush will shut the doors of its 250 shops, e-commerce sites, manufacturing facilities, and headquarters for a day, in solidarity with the Global Climate Strike taking place around the world. Lush is encouraging its 5000+ employees "to join this critical movement and take a stand until global leaders are forced to face the climate crisis and enact change."

Keep Reading Show less
Planet