Mitch
Major General
- Joined
- May 1, 2010
- Messages
- 13,519
I have read this book and I would not buy or read it if you think its going to explain clearly if Hitler was mad etc. The narrative placed on Hitler's mental competence is put in place to ease people's thinking and ability to try and understand what happened. Its easier to say he was mad or the devil, or evil as it allows us or some to comprehend and assimilate what went on.
Simple fact was he was probably no madder or sane than many other leaders in many other countries across time. History is littered with human disasters like the final solution from many countries whose leaders are looked upon as sane and it would be seen as unacceptable to say they were mad.
If Hitler was mad for the line of thought he believed that would right Germany then all the Germans who followed that thought by definition must be mad. Its rather simplistic, naïve and uneducated to assume such a thing (of course these words are not aimed at anyone on here). Any small amount of reading of this era clearly shows that a number of socio economic and political events occurred in an almost chain of causation to end Germany where it did and had nothing to do with a leader who had psychological illness.
These events to a lesser extent have re-occurred in many countries including Britain in recent years with Immigration (among many issues) and the manner in which certain parties and media whip up totally unrealistic and untrue labels for these caught under this grouping. We have seen how easy it is for physical attacks on property and people to occur in such circumstances once this sensationalism is set in motion. This is exactly what happened in Germany in the 1920's and 1930's and, it makes full sense when addressing this era correctly to see how simple it was for Germany to end with the death camps.
Its also been shown clearly that Hitler did not design the camps or the means to eradicate the peoples of Europe (in the same way he took a pivotal role with speer for designing new Cities like Berlin) the architects were ordinary Germans in industry working on plans from SS and other agencies. The Use of Gas was almost accidental in terms of Zyklon B and, to get to that point one has to address all the other techniques used each getting more efficient in terms of number it could dispose of and, in ever shorter lengths of time.
I guess everyone has an opinion but, for me, I would not say he was mad as even if there was any proof definitions and diagnosis of what is or is not are problematic even today let alone then with far less refined knowledge of psychological illness
Mitch
Simple fact was he was probably no madder or sane than many other leaders in many other countries across time. History is littered with human disasters like the final solution from many countries whose leaders are looked upon as sane and it would be seen as unacceptable to say they were mad.
If Hitler was mad for the line of thought he believed that would right Germany then all the Germans who followed that thought by definition must be mad. Its rather simplistic, naïve and uneducated to assume such a thing (of course these words are not aimed at anyone on here). Any small amount of reading of this era clearly shows that a number of socio economic and political events occurred in an almost chain of causation to end Germany where it did and had nothing to do with a leader who had psychological illness.
These events to a lesser extent have re-occurred in many countries including Britain in recent years with Immigration (among many issues) and the manner in which certain parties and media whip up totally unrealistic and untrue labels for these caught under this grouping. We have seen how easy it is for physical attacks on property and people to occur in such circumstances once this sensationalism is set in motion. This is exactly what happened in Germany in the 1920's and 1930's and, it makes full sense when addressing this era correctly to see how simple it was for Germany to end with the death camps.
Its also been shown clearly that Hitler did not design the camps or the means to eradicate the peoples of Europe (in the same way he took a pivotal role with speer for designing new Cities like Berlin) the architects were ordinary Germans in industry working on plans from SS and other agencies. The Use of Gas was almost accidental in terms of Zyklon B and, to get to that point one has to address all the other techniques used each getting more efficient in terms of number it could dispose of and, in ever shorter lengths of time.
I guess everyone has an opinion but, for me, I would not say he was mad as even if there was any proof definitions and diagnosis of what is or is not are problematic even today let alone then with far less refined knowledge of psychological illness
Mitch
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