Mein Austerity
COMMENT: The state of Bavaria is going to re-publish Mein Kampf for German students. A number of questions suggest themselves in the context of this development:
- As noted in a recent comment by “Pterrafractyl,” there is a push among Eurozone voters (which may include German voters, eventually) to embrace growth, rather than “austerity.” If there should be a “democratic rejection” of the fascism inherent in “austerity,” might MK be the text for the next step?
- In this regard, we might mention that indications are that most German citizens do not harbor the Nazi visions that dominate that country’s power structure. Most Germans just want to survive, work and have a little fun. Most German workers have not shared in the boom that Corporate Germany has experienced. Might the re-publication of MK be a move toward “let ‘em eat fascism”?
- Before rejecting the first point out of hand, consider the extent to which the “new” Germany has embraced the agenda of the “Old Germany”–calling for a “Nuremberg II” to redress the crimes against the vertriebene groups. Consider also the remarkable development whereby Germany/EU installed the Greek Nazi party as part of the Greek provisional government, with no input from the Greeks.
- Will the Underground Reich and/or Bavaria profit from the publication? The announcement was made by the Bavarian finance minister.
- In the recent past, Germany has neutralized certain places–graves of Third Reich luminaries for example–that might have become neo-Nazi shrines. Re-publishing “Mein Kampf” seems diametrically opposed to this trend.
- Will the “annotations by historians” include input from the likes of Ernst Nolte?
EXCERPT: Mein Kampf: The hate-filled book has not been printed in Germany for 70 years. But Bavaria want to produce an annotated version before it loses ownership of its copyright in three years time.
While the book is not illegal in Germany, the state has not allowed it to be printed amid fears that it could promote Nazism.
Other countries have printed foreign-language editions since then, despite the restrictions but Germans have been unable to get a newly-printed version in their own language for 67 years.
But now Bavaria has now given permission for the rest of Germany to freely print the book, with includes diatribes against Jews and Slavs and the prophecy of a German war of conquest in the east.
‘The editions we plan will contain comments from experts that are clearly understandable to the young so they can clearly understand and therefore interpet the dangerous ideas within,’ announced Bavaria’s finance minister Markus Soeder in Nuremberg. . . .
To be honest Dave, I originally thought this might just be a good thing; after all, what better way to counter fascist propaganda than to present logical arguments against it?
That said, though, I am concerned that unscrupulous individuals like Ernst Nolte might end up taking advantage of this as well. Something we REALLY need to watch, IMO.
The human mind runs on a dual brain system, and books like Mein Kampf appeal to the emotional side. Putting this book in young people’s hands and promoting logical arguments about the book’s message is like taking young men to a strip club and promoting logical arguments about sexual ethics and morality. Continuing discussion about why we reject its hatemongering is the only way to counter that hatemongering. But it makes no sense to publish new copies of it “for educational purposes” than it does to include raw manure samples in organic chemistry textbooks “for educational purposes”.
[...] An Oldie but a Goodie: Bavaria to Republish “Mein Kampf” for German Students [...]
@Suchiibu: I can see your point, and it is quite valid and logical in my view: Unfortunately, there is indeed a possibility that any honest efforts to debunk Mein Kampf might either be hijacked, or backfire, or both.
I have personally read Hitler’s autobiography a couple of times, as part of a ‘Know Your Enemy’ exercise, and I certainly understand just how evil and deranged Hitler truly was. But the problem is, what do you think would happen when an emotionally disturbed nutjob or brain-dead dingus gets their hands on it? Sadly, there are still some pretty stupid people out there: whether it be today’s teabaggers, or those who voted for Wallace in ’68, or the hardcore Christian Right in the ‘80s, it doesn’t matter....they’re all idiots.