"As Hitler and World War II recede into history, the term “Nazi” has for too many Americans become a descriptive for someone, like President Obama for example, whose political views offend those employing the term. This is an insult to the president and a bigger insult to the many whose lives have been marred in some way by evil inflicted by those who wore the swastika."
- Excerpt from Not Just a Jewish issue, The Berkshire Beagle, December 28, 2010
I wonder how extremist Obama bashers defend their views when comparing Barack Obama, our President of the United States, to Hitler and to Nazis.
Note: I did write extremist Obama bashers; this is not a reference to Obama bashers in general.
Side note: I found an interesting place on the internet - I Hate Obama Bashers.
6 comments:
Roland, I would have to qualify myself as an "Obama basher." However, I am also a student of history, and I think almost any modern-day use of the terms "Nazi" and "Hitler" are excessive. It is a shame that such monumental evil can be trivialized over time to become a garden-variety insult. I suppose this is what the prophets meant when telling certain people/nations "You will become a byword."
The comparisons to Hitler and the practices of the Nazis have in fact occurred, but not in this country. Stalin, a committed opponent of Hitler might have qualified, as might Saloth Sar (better known as Pol Pot) of Cambodia. Both murdered millions of their own citizens without apparent qualm or guilt.
The term as applied to an American President should be condemned, whenever it occurs. We cannot limit our scorn for those debasing themselves by using the term with regards to President Obama however. We must also apply the same rigorous standard when speaking of those who did much the same with his predecessor, George Bush.
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/08/08/nancys_nazi_shock_did_she_forget_the_bush_years_97812.html
CWMartin,
You are so "on target."
Tim,
I respectfully disagree with your first sentence; I have personally heard people (and read statements from people in the print media and on the internet) comparing President Obama to Hitler and to the Nazis.
Roland,
I'm sorry for the misunderstanding in my comment. I did not mean to say that the comparison has not been used to the current president, but that the actions taken by all of the presidents (current and former) in this country bear no comparisons to that of the former Chancellor of Germany; only to examples of leaders like those I listed.
I know that there are those using the comparison currently and erroneously. I likewise know that there were those using it with the last president as well (and who knows how many before him).
This does nothing but prove that both sides of the ideological spectrum have their extremists and that both behave in ways that I do not approve.
Tim,
Thank you for the clarification. With that being said, it appears that we both share the same sentiments on the overall subject, which is not really all that unusual for the two of us, mi amigo.
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