Reflections on Adolph Hitler’s Form Of Socialism

Was Nazism a form of socialism? 
Private investigator PAUL HUEBL  recently summarized the rise of Adolph Hitler in his blog: CRIME, GUNS, AND VIDEOTAPE: Adolph Hitler’s Remarkable Success Can’t be Ignored:

He concludes:

Political leaders are hazardous for our health and safety. Politicians should be reduced to being simple servants hired to make roads, infrastructure and maintain national defense. 

Study every so-called great leader in the world and you will find a total corrupt tyrant behind their phony smiles. Trading liberty for wealth or security is always dangerous and foolhardy.

In the blog: Vote For Myself, you'll find some more questions about the NAZI party.

Why was the NAZI party called the National Socialist Democratic Workers Party and why do people want Socialism?

And some answers

Answer by Sarah J

It was actually called The National Socialist German Workers’ Party, but assuming that they were socialists because they have that word in their name is kind of like saying that the Chinese are Republicans because it’s called the People’s Republic of China. It doesn’t work that way, you have to look at their politics. 

The politics of the Nazi Party were extremely far to the right, and social democrats and communists were heavily persecuted in Nazi Germany.

Answer by David Philbin July 19, 2011 at 3:27 pm

The Nazis were “national socialists”, which is nothing whatever to do with “socialism”, the economic form usually identified with the left. And they were even further from being “social democrats”. Some of the world employs various forms of “socialist democracy”, and it actually works rather well. That is completely unrelated to your central point. 

Hitler was a pure right wing reactionary. And not a single scholar disagrees. “Reactionaries” are extreme conservatives. The Nazi Party, especially once in power, followed suit precisely. 

He did, in fact (see HITLER’S SPEECHES, 1953) encourage and enact smaller CIVILIAN government, and retracted most welfare policies. In point of fact, the German National Public Health was enacted first in 1871, eighteen years before Hitler was BORN. And the Nazis did consider revoking it, but Hess in particular lobbied against this, on the eve of a new war.

It appears wise to avoid conclusions based simply upon titles. Always examine the historical facts and the deeds of those who lead.

Nazism—Still Alive In The USA

The NAZI movement is not dead in the United States. Founded in 1974, the National Socialist Movement (NSM), is now a fast growing organization. Prior to World War II this movement was known as the German-American Bund, an outgrowth of German organizations reaching back into the 1920s. Bund membership nationwide was between 50 and 60 thousand, with three times that many auxiliary members. The Bund security force (OD—Ordnungsdienst—order division) consisted of between 5 and 6 thousand men nationwide. Chicago also had a unit of American SS.

ANP Seal - from the website

The Nazi movement went underground until the formation of the American Nazi Party (ANP) in the U.S. Organized by American naval veteran George Lincoln Rockwell in 1958, the ANP still exists, Rockwell was assassinated on August 25, 1967. The ANP states its purposes in this manner:

Although National Socialism encompasses many various issues of concern to Aryan Americans, including a healthy environment, children's welfare, and freedom of belief without fear of System persecution...the two main tenets of National Socialism embodies the Struggle for Aryan Racial survival, and Social Justice for White Working Class people throughout our land. 

As Aryan Revolutionaries, we recognize the fact that behaving in the manner of past activities, little progress has been achieved for our Cause. That is why we have taken a new direction. In the American Nazi Party, you will find no uniforms or ranks, we do not engage in publicly exposing our Comrades to undo publicity through pointless and dangerous Rallies or Marches. We instead stress Small Cell, and Individual Activism as the path for which to build our Movement, as securely and in a responsible manner as possible.

From the NSM Website

The NSM, however, continues to speak and publish openly, to rally and protest to promote its agenda. 

The NSM's core beliefs include: 

• defending the rights of white people everywhere 
• preservation of our European culture and heritage 
• strengthening family values 
• economic self-sufficiency 
• reform of illegal immigration policies 
• immediate withdrawal of our national military from an illegal Middle Eastern occupation 
• promotion of white separation 

Membership is open to non-Semitic heterosexuals of European descent.

The National Socialist Movement was founded in 1974 by Robert Brannen, former member of the American Nazi Party before its decline. The NSM is currently led by Jeff Schoep. 

The Southern Poverty Law Center says this about the NSM:

An organization that specializes in theatrical and provocative protests, the National Socialist Movement (NSM) is one of the largest and most prominent neo-Nazi groups in the United States. The group is notable for its violent anti-Jewish rhetoric, its racist views and its policy allowing members of other racist groups to join NSM while remaining members of other groups. Until 2007, NSM members protested in full Nazi uniforms, now traded in for black “Battle Dress Uniforms”. . .

Starting in 2004, the NSM began to overshadow all other American neo-Nazi groups, including two, White Revolution and National Vanguard, that emerged from the ashes of the National Alliance. The NSM made its presence felt through frequent theatrical street actions undertaken in Nazi garb. Unlike other neo-Nazi outfits, the NSM adopted an open-arms recruiting policy that allowed members of other white supremacist groups to participate in NSM actions and join the NSM.

Schoep was only 21 years old when he took control of the group in 1994, and his relatively young age has helped him attract a younger generation of neo-Nazis. In fact, under Schoep’s leadership, the NSM set up a unit specifically focused on recruiting teens that it called its Viking Youth Corps. It also launched a Women’s Division and a Skinhead Division. It bolstered its online presence with a revamped website featuring the group’s newsletter, downloadable leaflets for printing and distribution, and field reports from NSM chapters around the country. The group created its own hate rock music label, NSM88 Records, and in April 2007 purchased the now-popular white supremacist social networking site New Saxon.

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Christians who base their faith upon the Christ revealed in Holy Scriptures, rejoice in a Savior who had these words nailed upon His cross: "The King of the Jews" (Luke 23:38; John 19:19).

They also rejoice to proclaim: "As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him." - Jhn 3:14-17 ESV

The Power of Nazi Propaganda

An online exhibition: Propaganda by the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. explores the Nazis' sophisticated propaganda campaigns and their legacy. Visit the museum's special exhibition, State of Deception: The Power of Nazi Propaganda. Both demonstrate how the Nazis used advertising, carefully crafted messages, design, radio, TV and film to sway millions with their vision of a new Germany. 

A heavily illustrated large format book on the history of Nazi propaganda is for sale online: State of Deception: The Power of Nazi Propaganda. It features never-before-published posters, rare photographs, and historical artifacts from the Museum's exhibition. 

What is propaganda? "Propaganda, simply put, is the manipulation of public opinion. It is generally carried out through media that is capable of reaching a large amount of people and effectively persuading them for or against a cause. The exact meaning of propaganda is constantly debated, however, and no specific definition is completely true."

The millions of us on the internet or watching television are constantly bombarded by propaganda. Buy this car, go on this vacation, vote for this candidate. Its coming at us constantly. The purpose, obviously, is to influence our decisions in the direction chosen by the propagandists. That's why it is so important to see behind the message to understand what is really going on.

A You Tube podcast, What is Propaganda, takes a look at three of the most common techniques used by advertising in the media. It offers examples from popular culture to help explain the tactics.

The Holocaust Memorial Museum shares the following view of Nazi propaganda:

After World War I, propaganda became a subject of considerable debate and study throughout the western world, but particularly in the United States and Germany. The term came to be perceived in a negative light and identified in many circles with lies, manipu-lation, and falsehood. Some American opinion leaders feared that unregulated propaganda would destroy the foundations of democracy by creating a nation of obedient slaves marching in lockstep to the government’s orders. Others believed that the democratic marketplace of ideas would counter any potential threats from propaganda. Still others believed that propaganda, when employed for the public good, could create a more educated, healthier, and progressive citizenry. 

In Germany, like the United States, propaganda became the subject of serious discussion and intellectual study. It was commonly held that Germany had lost World War I, not on the battlefield, but because Allied propaganda had sapped the fighting spirit of German troops and weakened morale at home by encouraging demands for peace. In contrast, Imperial Germany’s propaganda efforts were widely criticized for failing to explain why the nation needed to continue to wage war and painted non-threatening images of the enemy. Some politicians and scholars of propaganda urged Germans to learn from the victors. Among these was Adolf Hitler, a former German soldier and leader of an obscure right-wing extremist party in Bavaria. "Propaganda," he wrote five years after the war, "is a truly terrible weapon in the hands of an expert." 

Nazi propagandists drew upon the successful techniques and strategies used by the Allies, Socialists, Communists, and Italian Fascists to advance their political campaigns, win public support, and to wage war. Once in power, the Nazis eliminated the "marketplace of ideas" through terror and media manipulation and mobilized propaganda as a weapon to unite the German people around a "leader" and to facilitate aggression, mass murder, and genocide.

It is critical that we learn these lessons today when similar techniques continue to be used. We dare not allow propaganda messages to turn us into thoughtless cyborgs. 

Definitions Matter

Review various articles about what is the left and what is the right in politics and in religion and you quickly discover that definitions matter. As is so often said, "The devil is in the details." One example can quickly be found in the history of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) in Germany prior to the rise of National Socialism (Nazis). Wikipedia offers an adequate summary. Both parties claimed to be social, but came to radically different conclusions.

History of the Social Democratic Party of Germany - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: Era of national socialism / SoPaDe (1933–1945)

Being the only party in the Reichstag to have voted against the Enabling Act (with the Communist Party of Germany prevented from voting), the SPD was banned in the summer of 1933 by the new Nazi government. Many of its members were jailed or sent to Nazi concentration camps. An exile organization, known as SoPaDe, was established, initially in Prague. Others left the areas where they had been politically active and moved to other towns where they were not known.
Between 1936 and 1939 some SPD members fought in Spain for the Republic against Franco and the German Condor Legion. 

After the annexation of Czechoslovakia in 1938 the exile party resettled in Paris and after the defeat of France in 1940 in London. Only a few days after the outbreak of World War II in September 1939 the exiled SPD in Paris declared its support for the Allies and for the military removal from power of the Nazi government.

The terms 'right' and 'left' are still bantered around in the U.S., currently under the guise of Republican (read 'right') and Democratic (read 'left') by some definitions. See typical answers to the question, Is Democratic Party left or right wing? Communication and cooperation depend heavily on agreement. How can I tell that you and I are really talking about the same thing? We have to talk about what we mean by the words we use. As always, the demons that divide and destroy us hide in the details.

The same holds true as well in any discussion of religion.

Linbergh Was Not Nazi Lover

Many have said that Charles Lindbergh was a Nazi lover. My research does not indicate so.

CHARLES AUGUSTUS LINDBERGH was born Feb. 4, 1902, in Detroit and died of cancer on Aug. 26,1974, in Maui, Hawaii, only thirty years ago. He is one of the best-known figures in aeronautical history, remembered primarily for the first nonstop solo flight across the Atlantic, from New York to Paris, on May 20-21, 1927 in the Spirit of St. Louis.

Lindbergh's early years were spent chiefly in Little Falls, Minn., where you can still find the Charles A. Lindbergh house. In his youth he also lived in Washington, D.C., where his father represented the 6th district of Minnesota in the Congress for 10 years . His formal education ended during his second year at the University of Wisconsin, in Madison. His growing interest in aviation led to enrollment in a flying school in Lincoln, Neb., and the purchase of a World War I Curtiss Jenny, with which he made stunt-flying tours through Southern and Midwestern states. 


Lindbergh won a $25,000 prize, offered for the first nonstop flight between New York and Paris, in the monoplane,The Spirit of St. Louis. His solo flight lasted 33 1/2 hours. Overnight Lindbergh became a folk hero on both sides of the Atlantic. In recognition of his accomplishments President Calvin Coolidge presented Lindbergh with the Congressional Medal of Honor and the Distinguished Flying Cross on March 21,1929.

In 1929 he married Anne Morrow, daughter of the United States ambassador, Dwight Morrow. She accompanied him on his many goodwill flights around the world. In March, 1932, the Lindberghs' two-year-old son, Charles Augustus, Jr., was kidnapped from their home near Hopewell, N.J., and murdered. Partly because of Lindbergh's worldwide popularity, this became the most celebrated crime of the 1930s, and it was a major subject of newspaper attention until April 1936, when Bruno Richard Hauptmann was executed after being convicted of the kidnap-murder. The publicity was so distasteful to the Lindberghs that they took refuge in Europe.

After 1936, when he visited German centres of aviation, Lindbergh repeatedly warned against the growing air power of Nazi Germany. He toured Nazi Lufwaffe plants and training facilities, saying that they were superior to all others. In 1938 he accepted a German Medal of Honor. This outraged the people in England and America and led to considerable criticism.

In 1941, Lindbergh became a member of the America First Committee, which opposed the United States willingly entering World War II, and became publicly critical of President F.D. Roosevelt's foreign policies. He also charged that certain ethnic and politically affiliated groups were goading America into the war. Lindbergh publicly opposed it. He said there was no need for America to get involved. 

Criticism of his public statements by President Franklin D. Roosevelt led Lindbergh to resign his Air Corps Reserve commission in April, 1941. When Pearl Harbor was bombed, he swiftly asked to rejoin the Air Reserve, but due to his reputation of “Nazi loving,” President Roosevelt wouldn’t allow it. When the United States entered the war, however, Lindbergh, as a civilian, threw himself into the war effort, serving as a consultant to the Ford Motor Company and to the United Aircraft Corporation. In the latter capacity he flew 50 combat missions during a tour of duty in the Pacific; and later, after the end of the war in Europe, he accompanied a navy technical mission in Europe investigating German aviation developments.In 1954, he was named a Brigadier General in the Air Force Reserve because of his longtime service to government agencies.

Charles Lindbergh won a Pulitzer prize in 1954 for his autobiographical book The Spirit of St. Louis. He also published The Wartime Journals of Charles A. Lindbergh. Commenting on the diary, Eric Goldman writes, 

"The diary show that Lindbergh had considerable compassion for the German Jews. But much more than his public charge, it attacks the "Jewish influence" in bringing war to the United States, particularly as a result of Jewish "control" of "huge part" of the mass media. A good deal of space is given to describing brutalities by U.S. troops against Japanese soldiers; the atrocities of individual Americans are equated with the official policy of the Third Reich. Not a sentence excoriates Nazism as a general credo or poses it as a menace to civilization in any tenable definition of the word, including Lindbergh's own. Entry after entry bespeaks a preoccupation, almost an obsession, with the "race problem," those "northern peoples" versus all others."

Obviously the final word about Linbergh remains yet to be written.