No, OP, you don’t understand. Your conversation partner is saying that **you, specifically** would have been a nazi.
​
This person I made up is kind of a jerk.
Vana92 on
The simple fact is that unfortunately most people take the path of least resistance and with the massive propaganda going on, and initially the massive diplomatic victories, and what looked like an improving economy alongside pride being restored, that path was the Nazi party.
Most people went along. Especially young people who never even really knew anything else. We would all like to believe that given the circumstances we would be brave enough to resist, to stand up against Hitler and the Nazis, but most of us just wouldn’t. Especially not between 1938 to 1941.
FakeElectionMaker on
Also the Swingjugend, a joke youth group which served as a peaceful form of resistance to Nazism and its policies.
I am sorry but the majority of people would fall to Nazi ideology most of these groups were relatively small. The circumstances that lead to the Nazis and the massive propaganda made sure that almost all the citizens would fall to it. Also of course if you are a minority you wouldn’t join them that doesn’t really need to be said
Quark-Lepton on
Resistance in Germany itself was actually extremely uncommon. Sure, you name a few examples here, but it’s still considerably less compared to other resistance movements.
So, if you weren’t part of one of their target groups, you would have most likely been at least complicit. Because if you weren’t, then you would’ve fled Germany or probably died.
The_Iron_Gunfighter on
A majority of people would still choose to be Nazis though. Most people don’t really do things because they have morals and are principled. They do it because they just love the satisfaction from praise, clout, and possible material benefits from doing stuff society at large deems good. And when a society deems it acceptable to brutalize a group of people and that you are a good person for doing so most people will jump on board with little regard to if it’s right or makes sense. That’s why so many old people in Germany refuse to talk about what they were up to in the war. And it’s not even shame because a lot are to immoral to even feel that, it’s because they’d be put in jail as they have no societal cover, reason, and excuse anymore for their behavior.
These groups are just examples of the rare people who see through the BS and actually think critically about themselves and others. But compared to the amount to people that loved the Nazis stuff they are microscopic.
Nearby_Design_123 on
If situations were different then we wouldn’t be who we are now. We can never know what we would be like or do.
TheState304 on
Don’t forget Dietrich Bonhoeffer
BalloonsVsF22s on
Yeah no. Most would’ve followed the Nazis. The people who didn’t were the exception, not the rule.
Unless the policies and rules they’re implementing are going to directly threaten your life, you’re not going to stand up unless you’re the 1%.
The people who think they would have done something are the same people who think they would “definitely charge the active shooter and take him out with a frying pan” type.
BrandonLart on
A good way to check if you would oppose Nazis is to check if you oppose authoritarian conservatism irl. At the time nobody knew what Fascism really was, but authoritarian conservatism was well studied. Do you push against it in real life? If you don’t then you likely wouldn’t have in Germany.
LePhoenixFires on
Bystander effect was always a thing and always will be. You can’t punish every idle civilian for every heinous crime they didn’t try to stop, but you should encourage them to stop being idle and passive to injustice, condemning the behavior of “Let everyone else die, I look out for myself”
12 Comments
No, OP, you don’t understand. Your conversation partner is saying that **you, specifically** would have been a nazi.
​
This person I made up is kind of a jerk.
The simple fact is that unfortunately most people take the path of least resistance and with the massive propaganda going on, and initially the massive diplomatic victories, and what looked like an improving economy alongside pride being restored, that path was the Nazi party.
Most people went along. Especially young people who never even really knew anything else. We would all like to believe that given the circumstances we would be brave enough to resist, to stand up against Hitler and the Nazis, but most of us just wouldn’t. Especially not between 1938 to 1941.
Also the Swingjugend, a joke youth group which served as a peaceful form of resistance to Nazism and its policies.
More examples:
[1](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Orchestra_(espionage))
[2](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catholic_resistance_to_Nazi_Germany#Within_Germany)
[3](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Th%C3%A4lmann_Battalion)
I am sorry but the majority of people would fall to Nazi ideology most of these groups were relatively small. The circumstances that lead to the Nazis and the massive propaganda made sure that almost all the citizens would fall to it. Also of course if you are a minority you wouldn’t join them that doesn’t really need to be said
Resistance in Germany itself was actually extremely uncommon. Sure, you name a few examples here, but it’s still considerably less compared to other resistance movements.
So, if you weren’t part of one of their target groups, you would have most likely been at least complicit. Because if you weren’t, then you would’ve fled Germany or probably died.
A majority of people would still choose to be Nazis though. Most people don’t really do things because they have morals and are principled. They do it because they just love the satisfaction from praise, clout, and possible material benefits from doing stuff society at large deems good. And when a society deems it acceptable to brutalize a group of people and that you are a good person for doing so most people will jump on board with little regard to if it’s right or makes sense. That’s why so many old people in Germany refuse to talk about what they were up to in the war. And it’s not even shame because a lot are to immoral to even feel that, it’s because they’d be put in jail as they have no societal cover, reason, and excuse anymore for their behavior.
These groups are just examples of the rare people who see through the BS and actually think critically about themselves and others. But compared to the amount to people that loved the Nazis stuff they are microscopic.
If situations were different then we wouldn’t be who we are now. We can never know what we would be like or do.
Don’t forget Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Yeah no. Most would’ve followed the Nazis. The people who didn’t were the exception, not the rule.
Unless the policies and rules they’re implementing are going to directly threaten your life, you’re not going to stand up unless you’re the 1%.
The people who think they would have done something are the same people who think they would “definitely charge the active shooter and take him out with a frying pan” type.
A good way to check if you would oppose Nazis is to check if you oppose authoritarian conservatism irl. At the time nobody knew what Fascism really was, but authoritarian conservatism was well studied. Do you push against it in real life? If you don’t then you likely wouldn’t have in Germany.
Bystander effect was always a thing and always will be. You can’t punish every idle civilian for every heinous crime they didn’t try to stop, but you should encourage them to stop being idle and passive to injustice, condemning the behavior of “Let everyone else die, I look out for myself”