I speant the afternoon....

...writing back to a letter FWD from a friend of mine. It claimed to be from a college professor named Tim Woods. In it Woods explained that, if history was any indicator, we were headed for a big change. He claimed that the financial world was melting down, that people were protesting a ban on gay marriage, and that Obama has a "mandatory civilian defense force" that no one has heard of because the media is so complacent, and then finally moved to compare the rise of power of Hitler to that of Obama.

I won’t bother you with the sections regarding economic melt down, gay marriage and the “mandatory civilian defense force” because the first two don’t lead anywhere as arguments and the last is not cited and was impossible for me to find on the internet. However, the “Hitler is like Obama” argument really deserves its own space:


"In those times, the savior was a former smooth-talking rabble-rouser from the streets, about whom the average German knew next to nothing. What they did know was that he was associated with groups that shouted, shoved, and pushed around people with whom they disagreed. He edged his way onto the political stage through great oratory and promises. Economic times were tough, people were losing jobs, and he was a great speaker. And he smiled and waved a lot. And people, even newspapers, were afraid to speak out for fear that his “brown shirts” would bully them into submission. And then, he was duly elected to office as full-throttled economic crisis was at hand [the Great Depression]. Slowly but surely he seized the controls of government power, department-by-department, person-by-person, bureaucracy-by-bureaucracy. The kids joined a Youth Movement in his name, where they were taught what to think. How did he get the people on his side? He did it promising jobs to the jobless, money to the moneyless, and goodies for the military-industrial complex. He did it by indoctrinating the children, advocating gun control, health care for
all, better wages, better jobs, and promising to re-instill pride (in their nation)"


I have a hard time letting this stuff slide. Particularly when the letter ends, "'Some people scoff at me, others laugh, or think I am foolish, naive, or both. Perhaps I am. But I have never been afraid to look people in the eye and tell them exactly what I believe...." Because then if I just laugh at it, I am completely dismissible as one of those people, who "didn't listen when he had the chance".

So, I spend the afternoon checking facts and writing back to the thing. The first parts were kind of inconsequential so I wont bother you with it but I did managed to boil down the Hitler Obama argument to the passage below and, as you can see, when stated plainly it is almost amusing:


1.) Media was compliant to Hitler

Media is compliant to the current president

Ben: I can’t find anything about this “mandatory civilian defense force” other than this
letter. Do you have any idea where the author’s information on this comes from?


2.) The economy is bad

Hitler’s economy was bad


3.) No one knows anything about the current president

No one knew a lot about Hitler

Ben: Since what this author would like to know that they can’t find out is never stated and since there is tons of information about Obama, including two books, and months and months of interviews and media coverage, it seems silly to claim we know nothing without a specific thing that wants to be known.*

4.) Current president told people he would bring them: gun control, health care, better wages, better jobs, and pride once again in their country.

Hitler told people he would bring them: gun control, health care, better wages, better jobs, and pride once again in their country(... and that they were the master race…and that a semi-specific group was the cause of their problems : the terrorist…I mean the Jews. )


5.) Current president smiles and waves a lot

Hitler smiled and waved a lot


Ben: As for the “brown shirts” and “the seizure of government control” I don’t think there is a basis for comparison with our current president and none is suggested by the author.



As it turns out, the letter I received is not actually written by Tim Woods, and his name had just been attached to the essay. It was actually written by some person with the alias “TPS”. It was a pretty bizarre afternoon. I hope the other 25 or so people that my friend forwarded the message to had time to look at what was being said and write back too. I especially hope they don’t see Hitler every time a stranger smiles and waves to them. After all, the economy is bad, and if that stranger has a desire to have health care, a better job, to be safe from guns, and have pride in their country, and if the media doesn’t cover them, then you basically have all the key factors.



* this point is mentioned in a part I didn't include the quote for.