Hitler and Obama

[captainwalrus]

Hitler didn't become Chancellor in 1933 because he was charismatic but because people feared him. The conservative Franz von Papen assured that the aggressive Hitler could better be controlled within the legal boundaries of Chancellor but even weeks after his assignment he changed the law to put aside his political competitors. He needed to do this because even with all the propaganda and political plays his party (NSDAP) wasn't able to gain a majority of votes: they landed at 43%.

So Hitler or his party never gained political power by the vote of the people, and definitely not because he was charismatic, but by political corruption and backstabbing. Much unlike Obama.

I disagree. Fear and violence may have been a tactics used by Hitler and the Nazi Party, but it was not the primary strategy they used to gain, or ultimately maintain, power. Charisma, organization and propaganda were the prime movers behind Hitler's dramatic rise to power. Look at the Reichstag electoral results from the 1920s to 1932. In 1928, the Nazis only had 2% of the vote. In 1930, the Nazi party was the second largest party. By 1932, the Nazi party was the largest political party in Germany.

The perfect example of how Hitler was able to use his charisma and propaganda machine was how he was able to exploit the Reichstag Fire. He appealed to a latent distrust of Communists within the nation, and used it to eliminate his opponents and consolidate power. You could cite this as an example of "fear" politics, but the fact is that he was able to sell this to the people so easily. He was able to persuade the people that he was truly doing what was best for Germany.

In essence, "fear" - fear of Jews, fear of Communists, etc. - played a large role in the Nazi rhetoric. The trick isn't in the fear, it's in how the Nazis were able to propagandize and sell that fear through Hitler and using a massive personality cult.

Now, I'm not comparing Obama and Hitler based on this. They used different approaches toward winning over the populace. However, they both successfully used their rhetoric to sway the people. Obama, instead of tapping into latent hatreds, tapped into the national desire for "Change", for "Hope", for something different.

 

[Woem]

Hitler didn't become Chancellor in 1933 because he was charismatic but because people feared him. The conservative Franz von Papen assured that the aggressive Hitler could better be controlled within the legal boundaries of Chancellor but even weeks after his assignment he changed the law to put aside his political competitors. He needed to do this because even with all the propaganda and political plays his party (NSDAP) wasn't able to gain a majority of votes: they landed at 43%.

So Hitler or his party never gained political power by the vote of the people, and definitely not because he was charismatic, but by political corruption and backstabbing. Much unlike Obama.

I disagree. Fear and violence may have been a tactics used by Hitler and the Nazi Party, but it was not the primary strategy they used to gain, or ultimately maintain, power. Charisma, organization and propaganda were the prime movers behind Hitler's dramatic rise to power. Look at the Reichstag electoral results from the 1920s to 1932. In 1928, the Nazis only had 2% of the vote. In 1930, the Nazi party was the second largest party. By 1932, the Nazi party was the largest political party in Germany.

The perfect example of how Hitler was able to use his charisma and propaganda machine was how he was able to exploit the Reichstag Fire. He appealed to a latent distrust of Communists within the nation, and used it to eliminate his opponents and consolidate power. You could cite this as an example of "fear" politics, but the fact is that he was able to sell this to the people so easily. He was able to persuade the people that he was truly doing what was best for Germany.

In essence, "fear" - fear of Jews, fear of Communists, etc. - played a large role in the Nazi rhetoric. The trick isn't in the fear, it's in how the Nazis were able to propagandize and sell that fear through Hitler and using a massive personality cult.

I have to agree that his persuasion and propaganda worked, since his party did manage to get 42% of the votes on the last election, which is nothing to scorn about. What happened afterward however was less charismatic: he seized power, it was never given to him. Obama however got a legit 52.9% of all votes.

 

[Shaoken]

First off, Hitler was not a Socialist. Second there is no meaningful comparison to be made. Don't heed anyone who tells you otherwise.

Yeah, he was. The term Nazi is derived from the German for National Socialist Party.

You have much to learn about the way the world works Magnus. Your lesson for today is to count how many dictatorships have the word "Democratic" or "People's" in their country name.

 

[A random person]

Representative Barney Frank (who is Jewish, mind you) was asked in a town hall meeting why he was supporting the clearly Nazi policies of Barak Obama. He responded, and I quote, "What planet are you from?"

He immediately became my favorite politician of all time.

With you here. I, like many here, dislike it when politicians give soft, fluffy speeches. Snark shows that they have a strong mind and actual ideology, not to mention that it makes them more entertaining to listen to.

Also, as depressing as the stupidity with healthcare is, I find an odd satisfaction in being 15 and smarter than the people protesting at town hall meetings.

 

[Low Key]

The only time I see Obama=Hitler is when I come on the internet. I think people with too much time on their hand are making way too big of deal out of the whole thing.

I came in contact with it on the evening news, when people were protesting against the healthcare reform and they had these protest signs comparing Obama with Hitler. But perhaps us Europeans are making too big of a deal of this.

America swoons over Obama with the rest of the world. It's more than likely me who is used to seeing him plastered on TV and magazine covers. Maybe I just don't notice anymore. Our government is so screwed, it's hard to keep track of the sensationalism. If it's not one party, it's the other.

 

[Woem]

Aha I'm glad I got this on tape:
At 1:57 and 5:52 there's two bright minds comparing Obama to Hitler again.

Bonus points: at 1:17 there's a guy with a book called the U.S.S. Constitution.

This is really, really sad.