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http://www.oilempire.us/reichstag-fire.html The Reichstag Fire and 9-11 Pretexts for Dictatorship and the Fourth Reich
http://truthout.org/docs_04/010904A.shtml The Bush Hitler Thing t r u t h o u t | Reader Submission
Friday 09 January 2004
Dear Sir,
My family was one of Hitler's victims. We lost a lot under the Nazi occupation, including an uncle who died in the camps and a cousin killed by a booby trap. I was terrified when my father went ballistic after finding my brother and me playing with a hand grenade. (I was only 12 at the time, and my brother insisted the grenade was safe.) I remember the rubble and the hardships of 'austerity' - and the bomb craters from Allied bombs. As late as the 1980s, I had to take detours while bombs were being removed - they litter the countryside, buried under parking lots,buildings, and in the canals and rivers to this day. Believe me, I learned a lot about Hitler while I was growing up, both in Europe and here in the US - both my parents were in the war and talked about it constantly, unlike most American families. I spent my earliest years with the second-hand fear that trickled down from their PTSD - undiagnosed and untreated in those days.
I'm no expert on WWII - but I learned a lot about what happened in Germany - and Europe - back in those days. I always wondered how the wonderful German people - so honest, decent, hard-working, friendly, and generous - could ever allow such a thing to happen. (There were camps near my family's home - they still talk about them only in hushed conspiratorial whispers.) I asked a lot of questions - we were only a few kilometers from the German border - and no one ever denied me. My relatives had obviously spent a lot of time thinking about the war - they still haven't forgotten - I don't think anyone can forget such a horrible nightmare. Among the questions I asked:
Why didn't you do anything about the people in the camps?
Everyone was terrified. People 'disappeared' into those camps. Sometimes the Nazis came and lined everyone up, walking behind them - even school children - with a cocked pistol. You never knew when they would just shoot someone in the back of the head. Everyone was terrified. Everyone was disarmed - guns were registered, so all the Nazis had to do was go from house to house and demand the guns.
Didn't you see what was happening?
We saw. There was nothing we could do. Our military had no modern weapons. The Nazis had technology and resources - they just invaded and took over - we were overwhelmed by their air power. They had spies everywhere - people spying on each other, just to have an 'ace in the hole' in case they were accused - and anyone who had a grudge against you could accuse you of something - just an accusation meant you'd disappear. Nobody dared ask where you had gone - anyone who returned was considered suspicious - what had they said, and who did they implicate? It was a climate of fear - there's nothing anyone can do when the government uses fear and imprisonment to intimidate people. The government was above the law - even in Germany, it became 'every man for himself'. Advancement was possible by exposing 'traitors' - anyone who questioned the government. It didn't matter if the people you accused were guilty or not - just the accusation was enough.
Did anyone know what was going on?
We all knew. We imagined the worst because the Nazis made 'examples' of a few people in every town and village. Public torture and execution. The most unspeakable atrocities were committed in full view of everyone. If this is what happened in public, can you imagine what might be going on in the camps? Nobody wanted to know.
Why didn't the German people stop the Nazis?
Life was better, at first, under the Nazis. The war machine invigorated the economy - men had jobs again, and enough money to take care of their family. New building projects were everywhere. The shops were full again - and people could afford good food, culture, and luxuries. Women could stay home in comfort. Crime was reduced. Health care improved. It was a rosy scenario - Hitler brought order and prosperity. His policies won widespread approval because life was better for most Germans, after the misery of reparations and inflation. The people liked the idea of removing the worst elements of society - the gypsies, the homosexuals, the petty criminals - it was easy to elicit support for prosecuting the corrupt 'evil' people poisoning society. Every family was proud of their hometown heroes - the sharply-dressed soldiers they contributed to his program - they were, after all,defending the Fatherland. Continuing a proud tradition that had been defeated and shamed after WWI, the soldiers gave the feeling of power and success to the proud families that showered them with praise and support. Their early victories were reason to celebrate - in spite of the fact that they faced poorly armed inferior forces - further proof that what they were doing was right, and the best thing for the country. The news was full of stories about their bravery and accomplishments against a vile enemy. They were 'liberating' these countries from their corrupt governments.
These are some of the answers I gleaned over the years. As a child, I was fascinated with the Nazis. I thought the German soldiers were really something - that's how strong an impression they made, even after the war. After all, they weren't the ones committing war crimes - they were the pride of their families and communities. It was just the SS and Gestapo that were 'bad'. Now I know better -but that pride in the military was a strong factor for many years, only adding to the mystique of military power - after all, my father had been a soldier too, but in the American army. It took a while to figure out the truth.
Every time I've gone back to Europe, someone has taken me to the 'gardens of stone' - the Allied cemeteries that dot the countryside. With great sadness, my relatives would stand in abject misery, remembering the nightmare, and asking 'Why?'. Maybe that's why they wouldn't support the US invasion of Iraq. They knew war. They knew occupation. And they knew resistance. I saw the building where British flyers hid on their way back to England - smuggled out by brave families that risked the lives of everyone to help the Allies. As a child, I had played in a basement, where the cow lived under the house, as is common there. The same place those flyers hid.
So why, now, when I hear GWB's speeches, do I think of Hitler? Why have I drawn a parallel between the Nazis and the present administration? Just one small reason -the phrase 'Never forget'. Never let this happen again. It is better to question our government - because it really can happen here - than to ignore the possibility.
So far, I've seen nothing to eliminate the possibility that Bush is on the same course as Hitler. And I've seen far too many analogies to dismiss the possibility. The propaganda. The lies. The rhetoric. The nationalism. The flag waving. The pretext of 'preventive war'. The flaunting of international law and international standards of justice. The disappearances of 'undesirable' aliens. The threats against protesters. The invasion of a non-threatening sovereign nation. The occupation of a hostile country. The promises of prosperity and security. The spying on ordinary citizens. The incitement to spy on one's neighbors - and report them to the government. The arrogant triumphant pride in military conquest. The honoring of soldiers. The tributes to 'fallen warriors. The diversion of money to the military. The demonization of government appointed 'enemies'. The establishment of 'Homeland Security'. The dehumanization of 'foreigners'. The total lack of interest in the victims of government policy. The incarceration of the poor and mentally ill. The growing prosperity from military ventures. The illusion of 'goodness' and primacy. The new einsatzgrupen forces. Assassination teams. Closed extralegal internment camps. The militarization of domestic police. Media blackout of non-approved issues. Blacklisting of protesters - including the no-fly lists and photographing dissenters at rallies.
There isn't much doubt in my mind - anyone who compares the history of Hitler's rise to power and the progression of recent events in the US cannot avoid the parallels. It's incontrovertible. Is Bush another Hitler? Maybe not, but with each incriminating event, the parallel grows -it certainly cannot be dismissed. There's too much evidence already. Just as Hitler used American tactics to plan and execute his reign, it looks as if Karl Rove is reading Hitler's playbook to plan world domination - and that is the stated intent of both. From the Reichstag fire to the landing at Nuremberg to the motto of "Gott Mit Uns" to the unprovoked invasion and occupation of Iraq to the insistence that peace was the ultimate goal, the line is unbroken and unwavering.
I'm afraid now, that what may still come to pass is a reign far more savage and barbaric than that of the Nazis. Already, appeasement has been fruitless - it only encourages the brazen to escalate their arrogance and braggadocio. Americans support Bush - by a generous majority - and mass media sings his praises while indicting his detractors - or silencing their opinions completely. The American people seem to care only about the domestic economic situation - and even in that, they are in complete denial. They don't want to hear about Iraq, and Afghanistan is already forgotten. Even the Democratic opposition supports the occupation of Iraq. Everyone seems to agree that Saddam Hussein deserves to be executed -with or without a trial. 'Visitors' are fingerprinted. Guilty until proven innocent. Snipers are on New York City rooftops. When do the Stryker teams start appearing on American streets? They're perfectly suited for 'Homeland Security' - and they've had a trial run in Iraq. The Constitution has been suspended - until further notice. Dick Cheney just mentioned it may be for decades - even a generation, as Rice asserts as well. Is this the start of the 1000 year reign of this new collection of thugs? So it would seem.
I can only hope that in the coming year there will be some sign - some hint - that we are not becoming that which we abhor. The Theory of the Grotesque fares all too well these days. It may not be Nazi Germany - it might be a lot worse.
SL | Wisconsin
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http://www.oilempire.us/moveon.html#30seconds
http://www.counterpunch.org/lindorff01062004.html January 6, 2004 RNC Plays the Hitler Card MoveOn Shouldn't Apologize for Those Ads By DAVE LINDORFF You can tell that the Republican Party is more worried than it lets on about the upcoming November election. Today's shrill attack on the MoveOn.org organization, which the Republican National Committee is accusing--incorrectly and dishonestly--of endorsing two sample political ads which draw comparisons between Hitler and George Bush, demonstrates how much the Bush brain trust fears this remarkably successful populist internet-based organization. The two ads were actually among some 1000 that were submitted as part of a contest established by MoveOn to come up with strong ads for the 2004 Democratic campaign. They, along with over 1000 others, were submitted to Move.On for consideration. The organization put them all on its website and allowed members to vote for the best. A group of 15 30-second submissions which received the most votes were then posted as finalists. Neither of the controversial Hitler/Bush ads made that cut, but the RNC went ahead and issued press releases, as well as sending RNC Chairman Ed Gillespie rushing over to Fox TV, to denounce MoveOn for presumably insulting Bush and American Jews. MoveOn's Eli Pariser has responded to this GOP assault explaining that clearly the organization never endorsed those ads, and that its membership obviously rejected them. Further, he says MoveOn "regrets the appearance" of the two ads on the MoveOn website, where they were briefly available for viewing along with all the other submissions initially (they've been removed now). Interestingly, now that those ads have been pulled by MoveOn, the only place the scripts can be read is on the RNC website (http://www.rnc.org/moveonvideo.htm). But Pariser shouldn't be so quick to express his regrets. The truth is that the two ads are pretty darned good. The first shows Hitler in a parade and speaking, followed by scenes of German troops attacking, planes bombing, tanks firing, and victorious troops goose-stepping into occupied territory, as a voiceover says "A nation warped by lies--lies fuel fear--fear fuels aggression--invasion--occupation." As the scene fades from Hitler giving a raised arm salute to Bush with his hand raised at his inauguration, the voiceover says, "What were war crimes in 1945 is foreign policy in 2003." And the truth: The Bush administration deliberately stoked public fears after 9/11--just as the Nazi's used the Reichstag Fire--to win support for an illegal, unprovoked invasion of Iraq, an act of aggression which, at the Nuremberg Trials, was specifically determined to be a war crime. The ad might have added that the "shock and awe" terror campaign that was the centerpiece of the U.S. invasion of Iraq, was also by definition a war crime, since its target was the Iraqi public. As for the second controversial ad, it features first a picture of Hitler, speaking in German, with a voiceover translating the lines as "We have taken new measures to protect our homeland - I believe I am acting in accordance with the will of the Almighty Creator." Then, as Hitler continues to speak, the voiceover says, "God told me to strike Al-Qaeda, and I struck him." As the picture morphs into George Bush, the voiceover continues, "and then He instructed me to strike at Saddam, which I did." With a picture of cheering Germans in the background, the voiceover concludes, "Sound familiar?" And the truth here? President Bush did in fact publicly claim divine instruction to have been behind his decisions to invade Afghanistan and later Iraq--a rather scary example, if he is being sincere, of the very kind of megalomania that characterized Hitler. Were these two ads unfair to either Bush or to the memory of the Holocaust? Hardly. They were legitimate warnings that the American public is being manipulated by demagoguery, jingoism and the worst kind of lies. Are they saying that Bush is Hitler? Only to the most simplistic or willfully unimaginative of viewers--that is to say the RNC poobahs. What they are saying is that the same technique used by Hitler and his National Socialist brownshirts to whip up nationalist fervor in Germany in the early and mid 1930s is being employed today by the Bush Administration and the Republican Party, and to the same end--to get the American public to acquiesce in surrendering its democratic rights, to accept one-party rule, and to agree to a national policy of permanent war in the name of American global hegemony. Obviously the MoveOn crowd was repelled by the bluntness of the two ads, and rejected them, but Pariser needn't apologize for inspiring their creation. Both, in their way, are sadly prophetic. Pariser and MoveOn should be proud that they were produced, happy that the RNC is helping to circulate them, and encouraged that the Republicans are making such a fuss about the whole thing. Dave Lindorff is the author of Killing Time: an Investigation into the Death Row Case of Mumia Abu-Jamal. A collection of Lindorff's stories can be found here: http://www.nwuphilly.org/dave.html
Move On Backs Down Moveon.org made a huge mistake by disavowing the Hitler-Bush comparison ads. They should have RUN with the comparison, and put the Republicans on the defensive, and used this as a lever to insert little-known historical information about Prescott Bush's Nazi involvement, etc., rather than backing away! Always ATTACK!!! ATTACK! ATTACK! ATTACK! But Moveon is a mediocre, middle-of-the-road, mealy-mouthed, rear-guard activist group, not a LEADER. I would have told the media that the comparison was apt, defended it, and backed it up with historical information and parallels, such as Bush's own acknowledgement that he wanted to be a dictator, such as his own nationalist rhetoric, his use of war to frighten the public, and the like. Michael Rectenwald CLG www.legitgov.org Date: Wed, 7 Jan 2004
I saw the two controversial ads (among the ~300 I saw) during the voting, and they got very high marks from me. The message of the two ads is closer to the truth of our current political situation than most have courage to see. I'm hope we can contact the creators of these ads so we can circulate copies of them and show them at events. I think MoveOn is wimpy for not standing strong for freedom of expression, and instead caving to the RNC. Their apology approached groveling ... Plus, if MoveOn is blind to the truth of the Bush/Hitler comparisons (which are numerous), then maybe some of the negative things some folks have been saying about them are true. At best, they are just playing safe, being mediocre, middle of the road. Others have harsher words. If the RNC is so scared of these ads that they have to launch a major offensive, that's a good sign. The RNC offensive is really more to discredit and disempower MoveOn. The irony is that the only place these scripts are posted is the RNC website! Below are the scripts for the two ads. Judge for yourself. Ken Jenkins
Script 1: IMAGES ON SCREEN: Nazi Flags In A Parade IMAGES ON SCREEN: Hitler AUDIO: Hitler (Speaking In German) TEXT ON SCREEN: A NATION WARPED BY LIES IMAGES ON SCREEN: German Troops Marching IMAGES ON SCREEN: Hitler In Car In Parade IMAGES ON SCREEN: German Troops Marching TEXT ON SCREEN: LIES THAT FUEL FEAR IMAGES ON SCREEN: German Tanks TEXT ON SCREEN: FEAR FUELS AGGRESSION IMAGES ON SCREEN: German Artillery Firing IMAGES ON SCREEN: German Planes Dropping Bombs IMAGES ON SCREEN: German Tanks Firing TEXT ON SCREEN: INVASION IMAGES ON SCREEN: German Tanks Rolling Down Street TEXT ON SCREEN: OCCUPATION IMAGES ON SCREEN: Hitler With Hand Raised BACKGROUND AUDIO: Sig Heil! Sig Heil! TEXT ON SCREEN: WHAT WERE WAR CRIMES IN 1945 IMAGES ON SCREEN: President Bush With Hand Raised At Inauguration BACKGROUND AUDIO: Sig Heil! Sig Heil! TEXT ON SCREEN: IS FOREIGN POLICY IN 2003
Script 2: IMAGES ON SCREEN: Pictures Of Hitler AUDIO: Hitler (Speaking In German) TEXT ON SCREEN: We have taken new measures to protect our homeland, IMAGES ON SCREEN: Pictures Of Hitler AUDIO: Hitler (Speaking In German) TEXT ON SCREEN: I believe I am acting in accordance with the will of the Almighty Creator, IMAGES ON SCREEN: Pictures Of Hitler AUDIO: Hitler (Speaking In German) TEXT ON SCREEN: God told me to strike at al-Qaida and I struck them, IMAGES ON SCREEN: Pictures of President Bush AUDIO: Hitler (Speaking In German) TEXT ON SCREEN: and then He instructed me to strike at Saddam, which I did. TEXT ON SCREEN: SOUND FAMILIAR? BACKGROUND AUDIO: Cheering German Crowd
from David Orr: Of course MoveOn would show the world how big a weenie they are by running away from an ad that they undeniably had on their website, and then criticizing the RNC for criticizing them for it. This is the kind of whining that many Democrats are known for, and it doesn't surprise me a bit that they would try to weasel out of taking responsibility for something that they should be proud of. It was one of the few things I've seen from MoveOn that really impressed me, and now they are disavowing it. If they didn't like it they should not have put it on their website.
Our international network of more than 2,000,000 online activists is one of the most effective and responsive outlets for democratic participation available today. MoveOn "Frequently Asked Questions" http://www.moveon.org/about/
This incident is proof that being a "member" of a group like Move On confers zero rights to participate in the organization's decision making, even if one makes a donation and is called a "member" in outreach material. Many organizations like this present the illusion of participation in decision making, but on core issues of what the organization stands for they do not permit members to determine anything. One of the best references on the decline of non-profits is
"Environmentalism in the 21st Century: Where did we go wrong?" http://www.mapcruzin.com/environment21/index.html
http://www.mapcruzin.com/review_losing_ground.htm
REVIEW - Losing Ground: American Environmentalism at the Close of the Twentieth Century by Mark Dowie.
Dowie is an award-winning journalist with a penchant for radical inquiry. He has tackled the American environmental movement out of frustration, believing that it should have accomplished much more than it has. Why environmentalism has failed to live up to its potential occupies much of Dowie's rigorous analysis. ..... The problem with mainstream environmental groups stems from their decisions in the 1980s to focus energies on power plays in Washington, D.C., instead of reaching out to state and community organizations. Had the focus remained on "reaching out to state, local and regional organizations," he writes, "the American environmental movement today would be much stronger and more consequential than it is. An explosive critical mass of national activism could have been formed. Instead, a relatively harmless and effete new club appeared."
This criticism applies to the Move On organization and the constellation of liberal appendages of the Democratic Party that it is closely affiliated. Undoing the Bush / Cheney coup and restraining the empire is going to take much more spine than these groups seem capable of showing.
www.ctrl.org DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply.
Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at:
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