Defending Anti-Nazi Principles

Today is the “Anniversary of the Liberation from National Socialism.” I stumbled upon Section 41 of the book Nietzsche and the Nazis^[1][2] by Stephen Hicks, Ph.D.

He identified five major principles of the Nazis:

• Collectivism
• Instinct, passion, “blood”
• War and zero-sum conflict
• Authoritarianism
• Socialism

We should remember that it wasn’t “evil” people, who were the reason for the war and its atrocities, but the collective acceptance and support for the five principles above.

It’s time to remind ourselves that the opposite of those values is the antidote to repeating the past. But unfortunately, we can observe the opposite is happening.

Everywhere collectivism is strengthened, not only with the COVID-19 crisis but before and continuing.

We have instinct and emotion in every discussion, thinking in black or white is growing.

• You are either for us or you’re a Nazi.
• You don’t think Trump is Hitler? You are a Nazi
• Musk bought Twitter and will allow free speech to everyone? That is the end of democracy!!

Rational discourse is nearly impossible these days.

We have support for war and zero-sum thinking everywhere. How did we come from we need to help Ukraine with humanitarian aid to we need to defeat Russia, that they can never attack anybody again, ever in two weeks? Figuring out a diplomatic way to let Putin end the war without losing his face would have been a better idea. But no, everything is a zero-sum game.

We have Authoritarianism everywhere. During COVID-19, we could see this accelerated dramatically. Do this, or else! The police used cars, horses, attack dogs, and batons against peaceful protesters. People were interned in camps or locked at home when they tested positive for a virus. People were forbidden to work, demonstrate, meet, travel, or go to a restaurant. We had daily propaganda and state-sponsored hate speech every day on television.

Politicians call for the expropriation of companies, the regulation of companies, and for the regulation of speech and basic rights. There is a discussion about restricting people for climate change to specific amounts of living space or energy, and money is printed like toilet paper, resulting in skyrocketing inflation. Socialism is getting stronger.

Hicks reminds us there are five Ani-Nazi Principles:

• Individualism
• Reason
• Production and win/win trade
• Liberalism
• Capitalism

We should remind ourselves that those five principles are the antidote to Nazi ideology. We need to fight against the principles of the Nazis and fight for Anti-Nazi Principles.

Footnotes