Spartacus and whoever else: my concern with this video (and only this video - the whole series has been spectacular), and I would love to hear thoughts about it - I believe that Hitler was a product of his time, and the whole “if you go back in time and kill Hitler” thing actually happened, there would still be many of the same evil actions. This video instead seems to support the what I consider dangerous “Hitler tricked everyone into the holocaust/WW2” line of thought.
Churches throughout Germany have had jundensaus carved on their facades for centuries. Imagine going to work, school, church, the market, etc., and seeing this depiction constantly. It will affect you in negative ways. We are seeing now just how much people will disassociate with reality after losing something, and an election is nothing compared to a four year war with such horrendous losses.
I am concerned that this video supports (and maybe not on purpose) what I believe to be a comforting fallacy - that Hitler and his few henchmen tricked Germany into what happened. Instead, I strongly believe the German people were in a place where they were ready and happy to be tricked, and if it wasn’t Hitler it would have been someone else. Hitler was a product of his time, not the controller of it. I believe this difference is very important for our understanding of how societies, groups, and individuals function, and that we must be careful of how we view people and the world.
Just one question- did anyone else write anything like Mein Kamf?
This is an honest question- as I don’t know who else in the time period was fanning the flames like Adolf was. Mostly because I don’t really know my German history of the era.
The idea that the situation was ripe for something to happen, I agree with. But who else besides Hitler would have been able to pull it off?
Unfortunately, the systematic destruction of Jews had been going on for years - not in Germany, but various pogroms further east often slaughtered Jewish people. Hitler’s first plan was one of relocation - much like the Edict of Expulsion in England. However, as his policies made enemies everywhere that became impossible, forcing him to look to other methods. As the crew have demonstrated brilliantly, the Holocaust came by steps, not as one big massive plan that had always been. And the people went along with these steps, as others have in others places throughout human history.
[quote=“eric.schubert, post:1, topic:6994”],
I am concerned that this video supports (and maybe not on purpose) what I believe to be a comforting fallacy - that Hitler and his few henchmen tricked Germany into what happened. Instead, I strongly believe the German people were in a place where they were ready and happy to be tricked, and if it wasn’t Hitler it would have been someone else. Hitler was a product of his time, not the controller of it. I believe this difference is very important for our understanding of how societies, groups, and individuals function, and that we must be careful of how we view people and the world.
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Very good points, like Fischer wrote “Hitler war Kevin betriebsunfall” (he was no accidents). After rewatching the video I do get the idea it that while it takes Hitler as the big example it also makes it clear that he tapped into whatever was convenient. The history made the people more receptive too many had the willingness to accept. Also after the war, when politician virtue signalled but don’t actually do something about the stolen art, safety of Jews or indeed the antisemitic “Juudensau”. I didn’t realize it still was there.
I do think that the power to assign opinion by controlling the media and what is history is a real thing. There is just way to many info and in psychology class we had the assignment to find positive news. (Negativity attracts as well as red which is the color of blood which biologically should worry us).
If all your history books tell x and that the Luther story nailing a pamphlet to a church door is undeniably true and his antisemitic ranting too? My historical training doubts the first claim. His pamphlet nailing makes excellent propaganda as it still is a very vivid description of someone hammering away to make his point. But is that really true or would he have been killed by an angry mostly illiterate mob for vandalising a holy place.
I just took this as an example of powerful propaganda being assigned to countless millions. Vivid narratives can even be scary.
That’s exactly why I wonder if there was an alternate cult of personality out there that could have gone as deep as Hitler did. With the anti-semitism so prevalent in the world, Hitler was the only one who managed to acquire parts of countries with the view, the only one who started a war with the views, and the only one who ended up starting a mass murder with the views.
The only other leader that murdered on that scale was Stalin- which was more paranoia than racism.
Who else in the era would have taken the the antisemitism to the extent that Hitler did? Who else published his plans so that we would know that? There was plenty of views out there in the world where it could have happened, but somehow it was reigned in “enough”.
Thank you two for your thoughtful replies. I guess for me the problem is that people renounce their own responsibilities and lay it all at the feet of some master manipulator. Instead, we all have to be thoughtful about who we are putting in a “they” camp - people we are able to dismiss, people who don’t deserve what we do, people who because of their political beliefs, religion, nationality, etc., we can make less than us. This existed in Gerrmany (as it did in Turkey toward the Armenians, in Turkey and Greece toward each other, in France toward the Algerians, in the early Soviet Union toward anyone associated with the monarchy, in the U.S.A. toward black people or Native Americans, in Cambodia toward whoever, etc.) (Martin Luther wrote in a treatise “On the Jews and Their Lies” that “it is wrong not to kill them”) and was something Hitler was able to cash in on, but not something he created. Others were looking to cash in on it as well - or escape their own issues, so they started the Stab in the Back theory. When these understandings of people as “other” are so deeply a part of a person’s society, the step to violence is an extremely small and easy step. I don’t believe that step would have happened without WW1, but with it, it was not just Hitler who would have made the step. Someone else would have done it, because that is what they were brought up to head toward. And this is why we need to be very thoughtful about what we are being brought up to think and what we are training others to think.
Maybe ther should be more basic education on how stereotypes work. Everyone has them and the are vital for the quick friend or foe decision, they are like limbs, smell and other standard evolutionary stuff. However people should learn that those are stereotypes and by meeting and talking to people they disappear.
A good training is to write these down whenever they pop into your head when seeing people or as 1 of my uni assignments reread a history books and evaluate your thoughts that pop. Hard to explain but for me this was enlightening. I am biased too, not just the rest of humanity .
But seriously this would be a great way to stop people from dividing us.
which biologically should worry us).
ther should be more basic education on how stereotypes work. Everyone has them and the are vital for the quick friend or foe decision, they are like limbs, smell and other standard evolutionary stuff. However people should learn that those are stereotypes and by meeting and talking to people they disappear.
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