PrintAugust 25, 2007
An important and rewarding essay
John J. Ray has written a stunning essay entitled "Hitler was a Socialist" that is the best treatment of the subject I have ever seen. This goes well beyond the usual talking points noting that "Nazi" meant "National Socialist" into detailed exhumation of strands of Hitler's influences, practices, writings, and relationships of which I had heard little or nothing.
Like many people, I have read and pondered much in order to understand the rise of Hitler, and from where his thinking and mass appeal arose. But Dr. Ray (an extensively published Australian scholar) has pulled together a tremendous amount of material, including extensive original sources, to make a convincing case that Hitler was not just a dabbler in socialism (but primarily a racist/nationalist). He makes the opposite case: that Hitler began, came to power, and remained a leftist revolutionary.
Even better, Dr. Ray demonstrates the linkages between contemporary leftism and Hitler's beliefs and practices in greater detail than I have previously seen assembled. Other notables are at work on tracing the linkages between the rise of communism, progressivism, and fascism on the one hand, and today's left wing movements ont he other. But Ray's work is an important building block in that emerging intellectual enterprise, one that I believe is very important in understanding where we are today, and where we may be headed.
The essay is long and detailed, but highly readable. I recommend downloading and saving this remarkable piece of work. Two very brief excerpts:
Hitler fell squarely within that stream of political thought that is usually called Leftist.... It is commonly said that Nazism and Communism were both "authoritarian" or "totalitarian" -- which is undoubtedly true -- but what I show here is that there were far greater affinities than that. Basic doctrines, ideas and preachments of Nazis and Communists were similar as well as their method of government. [....]
The political content of Leftism varies greatly from time to time. The sudden about-turn of the Left on antisemitism in recent times is vivid proof of that. And what the political content of Leftism is depends on the Zeitgeist -- the conventional wisdom of the day. Leftists take whatever is commonly believed and push it to extremes in order to draw attention to themselves as being the good guys -- the courageous champions of popular causes. So when the superiority of certain races was commonly accepted, Leftists were champions of racism. So when eugenics was commonly accepted as wise, Leftists were champions of eugenics -- etc. In recent times they have come to see more righteousness to be had from championing the Palestinian Arabs than from championing the Jews so we have seen their rapid transition from excoriating antisemitism to becoming "Antizionist".
Hat tip: Larwyn
