In his book, Bush also wrote that he was shocked and furious in 2002 when he was compared to Adolf Hitler by the German Justice Minister Herta Däubler-Gmelin due to his Iraq policies. He wrote that it was difficult to imagine anything more insulting than to be compared to Hitler by a German official.
Gmelin was forced to resign over the comments.
This is what happens when you compare someone to Hitler in Germany.
(via idoitcounterclockwise)
I can see why he was forced to resign. As recently as yesterday I was discussing with someone why comparisons to Hitler (regarding Wilders) are offensive and insulting to the victims of the Holocaust. However, there is a danger that I am not sure how we (collectively) can successfully navigate: the fetishization of Hitler as untouchable. Sure, there is no point of comparison in modern history (perhaps with the exception of the Rwanda genocide) to Hitler’s doing. However, the fact that his book is banned (at least in most of Northern Europe, with the exception of controlled and annotated editions that should be read under supervision) also makes him and his ideas attractive, alluring in the “forbidden fruit” sense.
So while I agree that comparing someone like Wilders to Hitler is disingenuous, on the other hand, unless we allow those comparisons, we cannot open the door to more meaningful discussions (i.e. how to draw parallels between the current sociopolitical climate and the popular sentiment during the Weimar Republic, for instance).
My point is, sometimes ignorant and misinformed statements can kick start important debates. If we do not allow that, the danger is twofold: 1) the disenfranchised who do identify with extremist ideas feel even more silenced and justified in their dogmas and 2) when we deem a figure representative of “evil” (I would dare say Hitler is the modern paradigm of evil human) to be untouchable, he also becomes attractive to a segment of the population. An attraction that can never end well…
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