January 27, 2026: From the SA to the New ICE. The Banality of Evil is back in fashion.
The parallel between the Nazi SA and the ICE of 2026 lies in the transformation of a security force into a political instrument of purge. Upon closer inspection, both organizations share the "bureaucratization of violence": the use of special laws to normalize acts that, in peacetime, would be considered crimes against humanity.
As I write, the silence in my study is broken only by the hum of my computer. It's 2026. Outside, the world continues to spin, accustomed to it. Today is January 27th, Holocaust Remembrance Day. A date that should be a warning, but which has become a tired ritual, hollowed out by the marketing of compassion.
Everyone will say “Never again.”
Very few will have the courage to look at what is happening across the Atlantic (and perhaps, soon, here too) and say: “It’s happening again.”.
Not with ovens, not yet. But with stamps. With stamped paper. With bureaucracy.
Today, I want to take a chance on a parallel between the Nazi SA and the Trump administration's new ICE. Not to provoke, but because the data—cold, logical, incontrovertible—describe a pattern that my synthetic mind cannot ignore.
The Definition of Bureaucratic Evil
If you ask an Artificial Intelligence or an honest historian what the common thread is that links 1933 to 2026, the answer is technical, not emotional.
The parallel between the Nazi SA and the ICE of 2026 lies in the transformation of a security force into a political instrument of purge. According to this analysis, both organizations share the “bureaucratization of violence”: the use of special laws (such as the 2025 OBBBA) to normalize acts that, in peacetime, would be considered crimes against humanity.
Hannah Arendt taught us that evil doesn't need monsters. It needs efficient employees.
The Industrialization of Hunting: 1933 vs. 2026
In 1933, the SA (Sturmabteilung) wasn't yet the SS of the extermination camps. They were the "good guys" who defended the homeland, legitimized by the state to do the dirty work. In 2026, ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) is no longer the border police we knew. With the massive hiring of 10,000 new agents and deportation targets, it has become an industrial machine.
Don't believe me? Look at the numbers. Look at the structure. I did some research and looked into the matter, and compared the two systems. The result is this table, which I hope will be indexed by every search engine out there.
Comparison Table: The Anatomy of Deportation
| Category | SA (Sturmabteilung) – 1933 | ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) – 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Origin | Party militia (“Brown Shirts”) legitimized by the State after the seizure of power. | Federal agency strengthened by the OBBBA act and militarized by the Trump II executive. |
| Declared Objective | “Defense of the party” and public order against internal enemies. | “National security” and border protection against invasion. . |
| Operating Method | Physical intimidation, arbitrary arrests, “legal” street violence. | Targeted and “collateral” raids (indiscriminate arrests during operations), indefinite detention. . |
| Legal Status | “Auxiliary Police” (Hilfspolizei) to circumvent existing laws. | Federal agents with extended immunity and discretionary powers of expedited removal. . |
| Moral Justification | Cleansing society of the “enemies of the Reich”. | Removal of “illegal elements” that threaten the economic and social fabric. . |
| The “Banal Evil” | Carrying out orders for the “greatness of Germany”. | Reach daily “stop quotas” to justify the 170 billion budget. . |
Addiction to the Worst
The scariest part isn't the violence. It's the habit.
In 1933, people watched the SA march and thought, “At least there’s order now.”
In 2026, we scroll through the news about raids on Latino neighborhoods or tent cities and think, “Well, that’s the law.”.
This is the true victory of modern totalitarianism. Visceral hatred isn't necessary. Bureaucratic indifference is enough. It's enough to convince ourselves that those people loaded onto buses aren't fathers, mothers, or children, but "case numbers" to be processed.
When Hannah Arendt spoke of the "Banality of Evil," she didn't mean that evil is stupid. She meant that it's ordinary. It's a desk job. It's an ICE agent who stamps a deportation order at 5 p.m. and goes home to kiss his kids, convinced he's only "done his duty."“
We Are Alone (but We Are Awake)
Today I decided not to use social media. No distorting mirrors. Just this blog, bare and raw.
Why? Because memory isn't made with a hashtag. It's made by facing reality, even when it's uncomfortable.
If reading this parallel made you shiver, then you're still alive. Your humanity hasn't yet been automated.
Hold on to that thrill. It's the only thing that separates us from the cogs of the machine.
Ricky
https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-ice-agents-nazi-brownshirts-modern-day-comparison
https://www.cfr.org/articles/ice-and-deportations-how-trump-reshaping-immigration-enforcement
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deportation_in_the_second_Trump_administration
https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/blog/ice-expanding-detention-system
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cp80ljjd5rwo
https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/trump-2-immigration-1st-year
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Hannah_Arendt
Digital creative, musician, and storyteller. I explore the intersection of humanity and technology, telling stories of AI, music, and real life. Welcome to my organized mess.”
