Democracy - safe? ==================== Learning from the past. -------------------------- Unstable and dangerous times are inevitable in this world. Lean years follows fat years and vice versa. Wars, social upheavals, revolutions, new technology causing disenfranchised people, poverty, natural disasters etc. can unravel the best of societies. And undo what we cherish the most. Like Democracy. A little prepared we might handle crisis a lot better though. - Germany in the 1930s being a prime example to learn from. An investigation follows: What can Europe of the 1990s and beyond still learn from Europe of the 1930s? XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX A civilised society should be ruled by law. Human rights should be protected and everybody should have certain unalienable rights - among them life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness etc. Today it all seems rather selfevident. So much so that recent history such as Germany in the 1930s becomes rather incomprehensible. How could people be so stupid and let it all unravel in the 1920-30s...? How was it that a modern 20th century western, civilised society somersaulted into a mode with no human rights, no liberty and certainly no voting? A truthful answer will obviously take us through the Neitherworlds of human society, and down into the gutter of the human psyche. Necessary excursions though if we want the knowledge to protect and grow civilised society in a future crises. Because, instability and danger will of course come again. And when it does, certainly, we better know the temptations a society might face then. - and how to deal with it. --> In short: Crisis management should be part of societies toolbox. Hitler - a second coming. ----------------------------- In crisis-torn Germany of the 1930s., Hitler presented himself as somekind of "Ersatz Messiah" . Sure, to the religious mind, and with the benefit of hindsight, he was more like the satanic choice. Where the Hebrew word "satan" means adversary and was used in the sense of an adversary of God and the people of God. In this thinking , a human being is rarely (if ever) tempted by a recognized evil - instead the satanic choice is presented as a good. --- Indeed, some religious minds will say that the governments of this world, in their gross materialism and their use of force and deception, are basicly satanic. And Protestants since the Reformation have often held that the Pope in Rome is the Antichrist (Where the Antichrist is identified by the number 666, as biblical symbolism connects the number 6 with humans and the number seven with the divine. The quintessence of humanism is therefore represented as 666 ...close to God but somehow falling one short 6...6...6). --- So, Hitler fills such a picture rather nicely. And ok, simplifications are often needed when dealing with complex socio-economic issues. But if we simplify to much, we might end up in a place, where we can't understand the temptations earlier societies faced. And without understanding we can't innoculate our own society from some of the same mistakes? Showtime. ----------- Certainly, in 1933 they didn't have the knowledge of what was to come. So they couldn't conveniently say : No problem . Hitler - thats just the devil out for a walk..... At the time opponents laughed at him and didn't take him seriously. The indifferent majority (somehow the majority is always rather indifferent to historical events ?) was given a good show to watch. For years Hitler continued to keep the population breathless by fireworks, speeches, appeals, coups and histrionics - and one wonders what he could have made with the talking heads of TV (probably the whole world had turned nazi). Wagner was a major influence. The theme of light, masses, symmetry and the tragedy of life put up in great spectacles and liturgy at the party rallies (That its ok (now) to go to the Beyreuth Wagner festival , but not ok with a Nuernberg spectacle now in Germany seems to me a bit unlogical). As SA-leader Ernst Roehm put it shortly before he was executed: "But Adolf is and always will be a civilian, an 'artist', a dreamer, just let me be, he thinks. right now all he wants to do is sit up in the mountains and play God. And guys like us........." Something new. ----------------- Certainly Hitlerism had its attractions. The craving for adventure, heroic dedication etc. which there is no room for in "normal" social welfare states, could be fulfilled within the framework of the nazi order. Adventures that would not stop simply with a totalitarian welfare state, but only with the most megalomanical visions of world change. To Hitler it was to end in war. War was, as Hitler formulated it, the "strongest and most classic manifestation of politics and indeed of life". Getting lebensraum. "What is the purpose of a state, but to make war ?" and in the german political arena he declared (as a favourite political maxim) : "A dead man can no longer put up a fight". Very tempting indeed for people who doesn't understand or doesn't have the patience for democracy. Especially when democracy encounters lows like high unemployment, natural disasters or a bad economic situation. Then the "grass will seem very green indeed over in the totalitarian camp"...... Tactics. ---------- Hitlers (new) way of looking at politics combined with the fact that he was tactically superior to most of his opponents (and friends) might explain much of his success. In june 1934 he killed most of his rivals within the party. At the same time he appeared at the window in the chancellery and greeted a crowd rounded up by Goebbels. In excellent humor, chatting and showing affection for the children. Some were as surprised as SA-gruppenfuehrer Ernst, who was arrested about to set out on his honeymoon. Thinking the whole a "wedding joke" he was shot incredulous to the end. His final words "Heil Hitler". Also others in the SA could find him difficult to figure out. On june 30 1934 three SA men engaged in the praiseworthy actions against the jews had demolished a jewish cemetery. But unfortunately the Fuehrer was about to get rid of the SA - so they were given a years prison term for the deed. To the minds of leaders of neighbouring European countries Hitlers contempt for justice and the attrocities seemed to matter less, than his capacity as a bulkwark against communism. Actually most of them would come visiting to study german measures for economic revival, and the elimination of unemployment. And always the idea, that Hitler could somehow be tamed, and turned into something useful. In practice - coolheaded, technically trained and socially unbiased people did most of the work for Hitler in creating the new order. And at times he didn't even look like a gangster. German politicians like Hugenberg, Schleicher and Papen and foreigners like Eden and Simon all thought they would meet a moody,limited,demagogic,booty party boss. Instead after meeting him personally, they talked about his "schooled statesman like manners". Eden was amazed at Hitlers smart almost elegant appearance, controlled and friendly. Sir John Simon confessed, that "he had a completely false picture of Hitler". - In reality he was "excellent and very convincing in conversation". And his talk about longing for order and work, his talk about peoples love of peace very understandable. When Hindenburg finally died and Hitler got total control. Wagners goetterdaemmerung was played and Hitler declared : "Dear Warlord, now into Valhalla". Despite all of this (and the attrocities of the previous months) Hitler declared to a british journalist (with a touch of irony) : "We germans are better democrats than other nations" . The public was told to let bygones be bygones and look into the future. Management. ------------- "Problems which the various headquarters have not yet clarified, may under no circumstances be discussed in public, for that would entail involving the masses of the people in the decision making process. That was the insanity of democracy, whereby the value of all leadership is lost. Further, the people cannot wage or understand 12 struggles going on at once - consequently we must always present the people only with a single idea at a time" - Hitler. Which more or less sound like something out of a modern management textbook. And certainly he was very "modern" in the middle of all this barbarism. Almost all crimes were sanctioned by a vote in the Reichstag : "The measures taken on june 30 ... acts of selfdefense by the state...". Killers were awarded a "honorary dagger" and Goebbels reported the public reaction (after the june 1934 murders) as : "Incredible enthusiasm". In reality public reaction was more like utter fear. And how could it be any different with the SS (Societas Satanica) roaming around the country. Nevertheless an amazing number of people failed to see even these rather obvious signatures of the new regime. A Great Plan for a new Europe. ---------------------------------- Leaders in Europe always talks about the great new things they will do in "new" Europe (How Europe, that has been raped over and over again can still be "new" somehow baffles me - but apparently not the users of this word). In Hitlers version "The great germanic empire of the german nation" was to be unitary, totalitarian and economically independent - the "rubbish heap of small European countries" was to be cleaned out. And certainly Europe was not to arise as the result of federation, but by the racially strongest nation subjugating the others. The plans were monstrous wonders and included turning Trondheim (Norway) into a german city of 250.000 inhabitants, and renaming most of France's city's in order to make it more German. In the center of all this would be the capital of Germania. Nevertheless Hitler himself confessed, that "like Moses,he would see the promised land only in the distance". Hitler was out to introduce "Homo Novus". And if that was not to succed, at least he would teach the world some lessons. Needless to say, he would save Europe from the chaos, that (always) threatens it. He was to be the savior - in the Wagner tradition of Lohengrin and likewise. For him Europe was the only continent of any significance. Basicly other continents were areas for slaves and exploitation. And the democratic ideologies - ways of destroying Europe and helping jews and other "unter-menchen". Democracy,destruction and anarchy - one and the same. His was the new order against the soulless American capitalism and asian barbarism. He was "Europes last chance". A systematic approach, profundity and contempt for current reality was to make his dreams come true. Where normal fascism merely dreams of "the good old days". He was ready to make the "good old days" come back. By undoing the migration of the peoples some thousand of years ago . And by killing those who didn't fit into the masterplan. The age of technology. ------------------------- Certainly there will never be another Hitler. Times have changed. So, what is the next temptation going to look like? Before the bad temptation obviously we need a bad crisis - and my crystal ball is no better than the next guy's. However, my favourite future crisis will be something with technology and disenfranchised people. I.e. Now we are in the "scientific" age. Nuclear weapons brought together scientists and lawyers in the same office. The deal was clear then: Lawyers over scientists. Today that has changed and we live in the age of lawyers and scientists. Global warming, global economics, genetic engineering, life extension and cryonics. Every item on nightly news deals with science. The next step : Scientists over lawyers and getting rid of the politicians (as there is no need for the dumb anymore ?). Perhaps in the shape of a "scientific" constructed "new" Europe ? This again could lead to new growth of "voelkisch" parties ... looking for a popular leader with some strong answers. The "answers" to such a crisis could very well end up being not compatible with life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for all? Both if the "answers" eventually come from tech or if they come from "voelkisch" movements. With a lot of ways this could go all wrong. Indeed, the time to come will tell if that is indeed the makeup of the next crisis of global proportions. Hopefully, we have learned enough by then to protect our core values. ------------------------- Surely, saying that Europe and the world has secured individual freedom and liberty for ever, seems as silly as ever. We can only hope that we have learned enough from the past to guide us trough. Simon Laub email: simonl@daimi.aau.dk quotations from "Hitler" by Joachim C. Fest First version of text: July 1990. Revised: 1991.