It amazes me how often people misuse Hitler's image

The show "The Family Guy" used a clip of Hitler at a Nuremberg rally to draw a connection from Fox News to Hitler, implying that conservatives are ideological relatives of Nazis. Of course, anyone who has read in depth about Nazism knows that to be false.

Nazism was a capitalist/socialist hybred. The 25 point Party Program has several openly socialist policies. Nazism always talked about Germans as a monolith.They had aid programs like the Winter Aid, had a managed economic plans like the 5 year plan under Schacht and then the 4 year plan under Goering which was aimed to prepare Germany for total war.The Nazis sought to destroy individualism as well as organized religion.

Those are not American conservative beliefs.

That isn't to say Nazism was left wing. It wasn't.Its extreme form of nationalism and racist views place it firmly in its own category.Nazism was unlike any other political group the world was yet seen. Thus the continued fascination with it.

The picture put out there by mainstream media today of Hitler and the Nazis is a warped one that I find to be reprehensible.

Americans need to be taught what Nazism really was. It wasn't conservative or liberal. It wasn't right or left. It was its own category.

 

Oh I thought this was going to be a thread on imagery.

I think you're taking a short gag too seriously. I wouldn't seriously make the connection you suggest, and anyone who might is an idiot. They were an idiot both before and after making that connection, so it's more about the idiocy than the media.

Personally I really enjoy the humourous use of the image of Hitler. It continues a long tradition which started during the war, and saw us to victory and beyond... The famous "Lambeth Walk" newsreel infuriated Goebbels, and comedians, cartoonists and other have made some crackingly funny stuff at the old dead nazi bastids expense ever since.

Thing is we won, and so we're free to use his image in any disrespectful way we choose, it's much better than the alternative of having to salute it every day eh?


p.s. The roots of the NSDAP were socialist, but evolved towards capitalism to secure funding from German industrialists, which is how the Night of the Long Knives came about, to remove the socialist element in one fell swoop. Winter Aid was a charity which existed before the NSDAP took power, but it was soon hijacked.

 

Most young liberals that grew up during the Bush Administration were shaped by constant exposure to a certain type of biased media. They also watch Family guy..

I feel kind of lucky that I grew up during the Clinton era. I didn't suffer from all this so I had a better chance of figuring out these things on my own.

 

Personally, I find it unsettling in a political context, which is what this was. Yes, it was meant in humour, but I do not take lightly to comparing a political opponent to one of histories worst mass murderers.

Hitler and the Nazis have no place in modern politics, jokingly or not.JMO.

 

Well if that's the case it's effluent valley lacking the correct means of propulsion...

How sure are you of that though? I mean Family Guy has a talking dog too, are these same fools seen trying to strike up canine conversations?

Aren't you just attributing growing voter apathy though?

 

Oh yes they do, have you ever heard the phrase "Fourth Reich"? It is of political origin and is used to draw the line between Capitalism and Hardcore socialism. Its the same way with Marxism.

 

I've missed the link here, how is Fox News anyone's political opponent?

 

The Downfall to me is the most impactful, realistic look at the Third Reich. Anyone on this forum who has not seen that film is missing out.

 

Slamming family guy for use of these images negates the long history that has associated Nazi and Hitler imagery with various ideas to serve the means of that particular ideological campaign. I saw the episode to which you are referring and the more recent one that showed rally images with Hitler smoking pot as a fake anti-weed campaign. These sorts of ideas in the cartoon poke fun at these sorts of associations. Calling our attention to what bringing hot button issues like Nazism does, using scare tactics to ensure people don't think critically about issues and leaving them repulsed based on this association. I applaud shows like family guy for pushing boundaries and bringing humor to issues that are constrained by the emotional connotation that surrounds them.

 

For what it's worth, the extent most of my generation's (I'm 18 in 10 days) knowledge on the subject is that 'Hitler was that guy that killed all the Jews'. Family Guy has done nothing to change that, and I doubt very little to reinforce it. Ignorance in this setting is a choice, and you cannot fault (not saying you are) a cartoon for the original idiocy.

 

haven seen that one, will go check it out.

 

i thought the "cold war russia government foruth rench" was actually the twin sister to hitler third rench!

 

I think totenkopf was referring the fourth reich to the last eight years of the Bush administration.

 

It's possibly shallow humour in a fairly shallow programme, but you have to remember laughing at the powerful is almost as old as time, certainly in the middle ages there was the court fool, part of his duty was to do what others were forbiden to do, make fun of the powerful -the king or ruler. Fox news is powerful and it is debatable whether such power is unconstitutional as it concentrates the right of free speech in the hands(mouth) of a powerful minority-media owners -which is an arguement that was made in the 19th century about Newspaper barons so is nothing new.

Humour is good, for most people it discharges tensions. While I am the first to agree that calling some-one Hitler, Nazi or Stalinist etc is the sign of a poor debater, laughing at Hilter has gone on since the 1930s, examples Charlie Chaplin, George Formbie. If you want see how enjoyable it can be look at the Thread "Springtime for Hitler ...in Berlin" and then get the 1968 movie DVD. of the Producers

As for a misuse of Hitlers image has anyone told Robert Mugarbee his facial hair is inappropiate.

Ok explain "Paris Hiltons new best friend" to me I'm at a loss

~Steve