Anna_5588, I’m suspicious of the loving fathers who are also monsters. They “love” their children because they love themselves and their children are merely an extension of them…until they do something “distasteful” like marry a Jewish man.
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I mean, he was horrid to his sons and overall a bad person to say the least…
Just an interesting tidbit, especially since his daughter defected and had absolute NO incentive to say anything good about him
The book is called 20letters to a friend. Very interesting and well written.
Love you history guys. Keep on learnin’ me stuff! (Oh yeah, the pesky dead. Can’t forget about them. Insert smiley winky face here).
I appreciate the compliment. I’ve always enjoyed your writing, your website and your great products.
I believe that there will be many books written in the future that explore the perceived positives of both Hitler and Nazi Germany, but the first mainstream one is still probably at least a few decades away. Give it a few hundred years and it will become an edgy and eventually in-vogue topic.
World leaders shaping events across the planet always get special treatment on the balance scales of good and evil. Take the job of President of the USA, for instance. It’s a job you can’t do unless you’re ready to get blood on your hands. This opens up endless lines of contemplation for subjective good and evil arguments.
When you forget about the big names, spend a few decades on the planet and learn a little bit about the world around you it becomes very apparent that evil is alive and well in the world.
I know of no culture or society that would call this man anything other than an evil monster who needs to be removed from society, and this is just the first name that popped into my head when I thought about “who is really evil?”.
(Thanks!) Yikes. I forgot about that guy. You ever felt you were in the presence of evil? Someone who set off every mental/emotional alarm bell? I have. A strange feeling.
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The article was terrific. More of these please! (historical articles that makes you think, love the quiz at the end)
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Hey thanks! Much appreciated!
I agree, more please!
Thank you for this interesting and highly readable article. In addition you gave your readers some philosophical ideas to mull over. Now i want to listen to this particular Radio Lab podcast.
Thanks!
You can find The Bad Show on the RadioLab podcast. One of many great shows.
Wasn’t he appointed chancellor by Hidenburg?
Mein Kampf did not sell very well prior to 1933. It was after Hitler’s appointment as chancellor that sales increased dramatically but that was due to pressure by the publisher.
Most didn’t know and most didn’t vote for him.
A fascinating idea for a thread @TC_Luoma!
I instinctively came to think of the paradox, where doctor’s made the decision who was to live or being terminated - in the nazi concentration camps.
No easy task trying to explain this behaviour, other than a shift of what is right or wrong from a contextual standpoint. Also, a disturbance in empathy may make the step towards evil behaviour “easier” - though many of these offenders were just ordinary men, with families. I have read that they consumed lots of alcohol, which may also lower the emotional threshold for reactive behaviour.
What can’t be explained in any sane way, though, is how anyone (the doctors) could have performed the horrendous experiments on other human beings - which they evidently did in the camps. It’s a sad truth they invented the life vest that way - which by no means should be considered an extenuating circumstance.
Thanks! Yeah, that is a tough one. I suppose they somehow bought into the propaganda that the people they were experimenting on were “less than human,” and simultaneously tried to justify their actions because they believed it was for the betterment of mankind.
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There’s probably also a level of self/family preservation involved.
I’d wager to guess that at least some portion we’re forcefully assigned and a majority of those who signed up voluntarily saw job postings that were less than honest regarding the nature of their position
Then, once they got to camp, authorities made them stay either by force or by compensation.
If I were in a position where quitting would bring danger (disobeying orders could get me and my family sent to camp) or serious financial harm (loss of work and being unable to find work elsewhere bc of a ruined reputation from disobeying) to my family, I’d personally stay. It would result in some serious mental health problems, but my family would keep me going.
People don’t like to admit it, but blood runs far thicker than water
With that said, Burnout, depression, ptsd and even suicide was probably not uncommon and I don’t think any form of compensation would have prevented such outcomes
I noticed some comments about Hitler winning elections. I’m wondering if they ever heard of the brown shirts. Terrorists that worked for Hitler. Anyone that opposed Hitler was killed. And it has been mentioned his book. Atheists love to say Hitler was a Christian, but failed to read his transcripts of radio addresses were he cursed Christians. So , if he was at one time a Christian, he denied the truth later.
I like to point out that Hitler and Stalin had something in common, they both at one time claimed to be a Christian, but later renounced it. As well as Jeffrey Dalmers. As a former atheist, then skeptical Christian, I couldn’t deny what happened… some sweet old church goers prayed for an injury and boom !!! Healed. Don’t know why me, I was still messed up. Not better than anyone, but way better than I used to be. The desire to kill, lusting, lying is tamed. When a bad thought surfaces, I think of the places in the Bible that says to do right. Not perfect but I’m so happy with this journey.
yeah, he never got more than 33% of the vote
The two had WAYY more common than not, including rabid anti-semitism
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Another interesting case study in evil phenomena both past and present is Jim Jones.
Jim Jones cynically exploited Christians through his twisted notions of preaching, roping a whole lot of well-intentioned people into his communist ideology. He was a big hit with a lot of the right people in California politics back in the 70’s, even being a guest of Carter’s White House. He kept up a religious veneer for a little bit but eventually went all-in on hard-core communism. He’s just another example of someone who was the darling of the left for years, someone with all of the right words and rhetoric, until everything went to total shit.
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@twojarslave You’re right, of course. Of all the things Jim Jones did, being liked by those damn lefties was the worst.
@anna_5588 33% was enough to win him elections though. Through a heady mix of coercion, propoganda and simply exploiting the sentiments of the time. I think pointing the finger exclusively at any one of those elements is a mistake, there’s things to be learned from all of them.
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Was waiting to see if anyone else knew this. There’s an excellent book on the Nazi parties rise to power “The Hitler Years’. The first volume (Triumph 1933–1939)” by Frank McDonough on how despite the fact the majority of the electorate didn’t vote for him Hitler managed to consolidate power and suppress opposition. Also very depressing for me as a Brit it shows there was a certain amount of sympathy amongst brits and a particular newspaper (which is still pretty popular in the UK today) towards the Nazi party
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