3 ms·

I wonder if hitler is studied in political sciences. Especially his speeches, rhetorics and strategies, and why they worked out how they did. I hate to feel t

by jokoon 12y ago

I wonder if hitler is studied in political sciences. Especially his speeches, rhetorics and strategies, and why they worked out how they did. I hate to feel that hitler is somehow still a little controversial today. I don't really want to watch his speeches or read what he was saying because it's a little depressing and painful to think about, but understanding how he politically convinced people, and the underlying causes. We're safe from that today, but I'd still like to understand how we protected ourselves from that happening again.

prawn 12y ago
I don't think we're safe from politicians exploiting fear and selfishness to push dangerous policy at all.
- jokoon 12y ago
  well I guess we're more wary
  - efuquen 12y ago
    It depends what you mean by "we". Russians seems pretty ok with accepting it's strong man in Putin with propaganda and media control. And they're a large nation with immense resources and a huge nuclear arsenal, not very comforting in my book.
  - prawn 12y ago
    I don't think we are. I bet that a modern Hitler could slowly exploit the same reactions in the general population and have the same arguments against opponents as used before. It already happens where I live where we have what I'd consider a mean government in power, winning the vote based on fears over financial position and terrorists and Muslims and whatever else. I think the belief that we're more wary and would "see it coming next time" is quite dangerous.
sytelus 12y ago
Hitler used very simple formula that had been often repeated: You have a nation of people defeated and stripped of wealth and pride. A leader comes up with a extremely strongly held view that these people are the greatest thing on the Earth and they will rise from the ashes. He quickly gains followers, boldly breaks rules and obtains initial victories that fuels his next moves in self-feeding way. Mein Kampf actually does not have any plans or even hints for the atrocities that Hitler's regime performed later on. There are few words of Hitler's dislike for jews here and there where he basically complains that they are not as sophisticated as Germans, they smell, have unusual rituals, they look different etc. He then complains about they controlling major outlets of newspapers and art. Finally he discloses his real reason for dislike: He believed that jews supported socialist party that Hitler hated truly bottom of his heart, perhelps far more than jews. One should not underestimate frustration of German people in those days. After WW-I, the peace treaty essentially put Germany in the dumpter. They can't have their army, Austria was broken apart, country needed to pay huge sums as part of the treaty and entire nation was under extreme financial depression. It was difficult to get a loaf of bread during that time for an average person. German people though their nation was sold off to winners of World War by their monarch. They thought they had been forever relegated as defeated people from who winners of the war stole everything. This was quite opposite to their belief of Germany as the greatest nation before the WW-I started. Hitler promised to make bold moves including breaking the post WW-I treaty and payments all together. He promised to throw away monarch and socialist party which were favoring the status-quo. It was little surprise that he won hands down in elections. The interesting part of Mein Kamf is that Hitler was rather regular guy without any political connections and even desires during the early years. He had bad experiences with members of socialist party which combined with his belief that nation was being sold by them and monarchs, lead him to rebel without caring about consequences including going to prison. This gave him publicity and outlet to write articles in newspapers as well as his autobiography. This in turn earned him strong supporters and even more exposure. Rest is the history.
- jokoon 12y ago
  I still wonder if the more a country is in a financial depression, the more it's vulnerable to extremism, and how do you measure it, and do you avoid it. I wonder how much anyone care about not going in to war, deep in one's heart, to not let crazy type be in control, especially nowadays politicians. I believe democracy and moderate, boring, slobbish politics are still the key in having a peaceful civilization. If the CIA is conspiring to assassinate potential war-mongerers, I would feel fine about it. Conspiracists have a point that peaceful and consented exploitation is a sad situation to be in, but it's far better than the many past horrors of conflict. The more WW2 gets old, the more people don't realize what war really is. Short conflicts in the middle east or vietnam are not the same than when a conflict comes at your doorstep.
deleted 12y ago
[deleted]
danmaz74 12y ago
I remember from reading a biography that he got some training in public speaking when he was a drifter in Munich. If I recall correctly, it was from some organization of the State tasked with organizing the anti-communist forces. I remember distinctly that the biographer wrote that it was then that Hitler discovered that he had a "gift" for public speaking - and that this changed his life (and the fate of the World).
deleted 12y ago
[deleted]

by jokoon 12y ago

prawn 12y ago

I don't think we're safe from politicians exploiting fear and selfishness to push dangerous policy at all.

jokoon 12y ago
well I guess we're more wary
- efuquen 12y ago
  It depends what you mean by "we". Russians seems pretty ok with accepting it's strong man in Putin with propaganda and media control. And they're a large nation with immense resources and a huge nuclear arsenal, not very comforting in my book.
- prawn 12y ago
  I don't think we are. I bet that a modern Hitler could slowly exploit the same reactions in the general population and have the same arguments against opponents as used before. It already happens where I live where we have what I'd consider a mean government in power, winning the vote based on fears over financial position and terrorists and Muslims and whatever else. I think the belief that we're more wary and would "see it coming next time" is quite dangerous.

sytelus 12y ago

Hitler used very simple formula that had been often repeated: You have a nation of people defeated and stripped of wealth and pride. A leader comes up with a extremely strongly held view that these people are the greatest thing on the Earth and they will rise from the ashes. He quickly gains followers, boldly breaks rules and obtains initial victories that fuels his next moves in self-feeding way. Mein Kampf actually does not have any plans or even hints for the atrocities that Hitler's regime performed later on. There are few words of Hitler's dislike for jews here and there where he basically complains that they are not as sophisticated as Germans, they smell, have unusual rituals, they look different etc. He then complains about they controlling major outlets of newspapers and art. Finally he discloses his real reason for dislike: He believed that jews supported socialist party that Hitler hated truly bottom of his heart, perhelps far more than jews. One should not underestimate frustration of German people in those days. After WW-I, the peace treaty essentially put Germany in the dumpter. They can't have their army, Austria was broken apart, country needed to pay huge sums as part of the treaty and entire nation was under extreme financial depression. It was difficult to get a loaf of bread during that time for an average person. German people though their nation was sold off to winners of World War by their monarch. They thought they had been forever relegated as defeated people from who winners of the war stole everything. This was quite opposite to their belief of Germany as the greatest nation before the WW-I started. Hitler promised to make bold moves including breaking the post WW-I treaty and payments all together. He promised to throw away monarch and socialist party which were favoring the status-quo. It was little surprise that he won hands down in elections. The interesting part of Mein Kamf is that Hitler was rather regular guy without any political connections and even desires during the early years. He had bad experiences with members of socialist party which combined with his belief that nation was being sold by them and monarchs, lead him to rebel without caring about consequences including going to prison. This gave him publicity and outlet to write articles in newspapers as well as his autobiography. This in turn earned him strong supporters and even more exposure. Rest is the history.

jokoon 12y ago
I still wonder if the more a country is in a financial depression, the more it's vulnerable to extremism, and how do you measure it, and do you avoid it. I wonder how much anyone care about not going in to war, deep in one's heart, to not let crazy type be in control, especially nowadays politicians. I believe democracy and moderate, boring, slobbish politics are still the key in having a peaceful civilization. If the CIA is conspiring to assassinate potential war-mongerers, I would feel fine about it. Conspiracists have a point that peaceful and consented exploitation is a sad situation to be in, but it's far better than the many past horrors of conflict. The more WW2 gets old, the more people don't realize what war really is. Short conflicts in the middle east or vietnam are not the same than when a conflict comes at your doorstep.

deleted 12y ago

[deleted]

danmaz74 12y ago

I remember from reading a biography that he got some training in public speaking when he was a drifter in Munich. If I recall correctly, it was from some organization of the State tasked with organizing the anti-communist forces. I remember distinctly that the biographer wrote that it was then that Hitler discovered that he had a "gift" for public speaking - and that this changed his life (and the fate of the World).

deleted 12y ago

[deleted]