Matthew DOWD: Germans who voted for HITLER feared inflation. And lost their democracy.

[UTUSN]

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https://www.mediaite.com/tv/matthew-dowd-says-germans-who-elected-hitler-were-also-scared-of-inflation-they-lost-their-democracy/

Matthew Dowd Says Germans Who Elected Hitler Were Also Scared of Inflation: ‘They Lost Their Democracy’

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[kimbutgar]

1. After watching that Ken Burns Holocaust documentary it's scary seeing the parallels to what's

Going on today with the Republican Party rhetoric.

[Kaleva]

2. Hyperinflation was well under control by the time the Nazi Party began its rise.

Hyperinflation ended around 1924. The Nazis got a little over 2% of the vote in 1928. It wasn't until the Great Depression began in 1929 that the Nazi Party began its rise .

[The Magistrate]

3. Thank You, Sir

[UTUSN]

4. DOWD cites 1933 - "fear" can be retroactive

*****QUOTE*******

Dowd noted a plurality of votes got Hitler democratically elected in post-World War I Germany, which in 1933 was struggling economically. He connected their concerns about inflation to those of voters today:

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[Kaleva]

5. Hitler was defeated in a landslide in 1932 when he ran for President

Hitler got a little over 30% of the vote.

Inflation wasn't the issue in the early 30s. Unemployment because of the Great Depression was.

[triron]

11. So economic issues gave Hitler an 'in'.

Also fear.

[UTUSN]

13. Thank you.

[Kaleva]

15. Yes, if you are referring to the depression, along with the fear of the communists.

[triron]

17. I am.

[UTUSN]

18. DOWD should be made aware of your contention. And the Mediate headline writer.

[Kaleva]

20. Dowd says Hitler was elected which isn't true. He lost badly

Later, Hitler was appointed Chancellor by President Hindenburg .

[UTUSN]

21. Fine, but the larger issue is the underlying *fear* that lost democracy.

I can't speak for DOWD.

[Kaleva]

24. I see many here expressing fear

Fear and anger does seem to be a major motivation so I'd agree with you there.

[UTUSN]

25. *Our* fear/anger doesn't lead to supporting the wingnuts. Fear there supported HITLER.

"My* fear is of wingnuts taking over, RESISTING not supporting them. The end point is the loss of democracy.

[UTUSN]

27. Granted. DOWD's point of losing democracy more accurately "SUPPORTED Hitler" not *voted* for him.

The eventual and growing support being more powerful than the original voting.

[localroger]

6. It was, but the Depression was beginning and people had long memories

Everyone knew the Republic had deliberately used hyperinflation to wipe out its reparations debt in the early 20's, which also wiped out everyone's individual savings too. This was a thing that had happened within recent memory and the fear that they would pull the same stunt again after people had managed to somewhat recover from it drove a lot of the voters. In our case no US government of either party has ever deliberately done anything so extreme, although if a future Republican administration really does abolish Social Security that might quality as being comparable.

[Kaleva]

8. It was the Great Depression that wiped out the reperations

In 1931, the Allies suspended the payments for a year and then in 1932, they cancelled them all together

[localroger]

14. The Depression was just the final nail.

Most of the value of the reparations had been inflated away by the mid 1920's, which is why the hyperinflation was finally ended and the German economy was able to significantly improve. Ending the payments was a formality that didn't have much actual economic effect, although it was a political coup for certain parties.

[Kaleva]

22. After WWII, West Germany agreed to resume payments

It was agreed that West Germany would pay 50% of the remaining balance which was completed in 2010.

Reperations couldn't have been wiped out by hyperinflation as you say as it took West Germany decades to pay off 50% of the balance .

[localroger]

26. After WWII the balance was a formality.

The whole problem was that the original value of the reparations sucked so much out of the German economy that it was impossible for them to have a normal existence. The value of the reparations was measured in WWI marks so nearly all but its symbolic value was wiped out by the hyperinflation, which was a deliberate strategy of the Wiemar Republic to try to make the economy viable again. And everyone knew this. After WWII paying the rest of the reparations was like paying a parking ticket. It allowed the German government to symbolically close the window on that era in German history.

[Kaleva]

28. By 1933, Germany had paid only 21 billion out of the original 130 billion plus owed

Last edited Wed Oct 26, 2022, 07:34 AM - Edit history (2)

I think in the late 20s, well after hyperinflation ended, the amount was reduced to around 110 billion . So, hyperinflation did not wipe out the debt.

I think you are confusing the Weimer Republic using hyperinflation and the state of the economy as an excuse to not being able to make payments with hyperinflation wiping out the debt.

Edit: I'll have to check but I think the reperations was accessed in gold marks, the currency of the German Empire , and not the currency used by the Weimer Republic.

[FakeNoose]

7. Germany was experiencing hyper-inflation in the 1920's and early 30's

There were no credit cards then, people had to carry cash and prices for everything were going up almost overnight. So yeah, inflation was a real problem. But their real fear in Germany during that time was a communist takeover. The wealthy and powerful Germans allowed Hitler to come in because they knew he'd keep the communists out.

So Hitler was never elected to office in Germany, he actually lost to Hindenburg in the 1932 presidential election. (Hitler had been elected Leader of the Nazi Party, but it was still a minority party in '32.) In '33 Hitler formed a 3-way coalition under their parliamentary system, and Hindenburg reluctantly named him Chancellor. Then in '34 martial law was declared after the Reichstag fire. That's when Hitler did away with democratic elections.

It was all very round-about the way Hitler came to power, but once he was there he never left. That's the takeaway, Hitler consolidated his power by hook and by crook. There were credible rumors that the Nazi Party started the Reichstag fire, but of course it was never proved.

(link) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adolf_Hitler

[Kaleva]

10. Hyperinflation ended about 1924

The economy in Germany was actually doing rather well in the latter 1920s until the Great Depression hit in 1929.

I agree with everything else you said.

[triron]

12. So justice failed or was too slow. Like US today.

[CatWoman]

9. K; R

[Meowmee]

16. They were also tons

Of nazis & antisemites etc. who agreed with him too.

[Just A Box Of Rain]

19. The Communists waged war on the liberal Social Democrats in Germany. Literally.

The KDP (and their sub-group Antifaschistische Aktion aka "Antifa" ) declared the liberals to be "social fascists."

The liberal democratic SPD was the main KDP/Antifa target, not the Nazis. The KDP leadership, and particularly Ernst Thälmann concluded that the Communist's path to power necessitated the destruction of the liberal impediment, the SPD, who they branded as "fascist" while accepting that the rise of the Nazis would be the result.

"Hitler First, Then Us" was their explicit strategy. The Nazis would help "bring on the revolution."

So they started a shit-show. It got to the point where there were machine gun battles in the streets of Berlin.

Many of those voting for the Nazi Party were not voting against inflation, but rather against social chaos and street violence, believing (wrongly) that the Nazis would bring order.

Too few people understand the actual history of the period. Unfortunately.

[Kaleva]

23. +1