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5 The Folkish State
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5 The Folklsh State It is the duty of the State to cultivate harmony between the political and private life of the people-neither more nor less. -Germany Speaks The National Socialist Student Union Association put university students into brown uniforms and taught them to sing such old party songs as: Sharpen the long knives on the pavements, so they'll cut the bodies of priests more easily! And when the hour of retribution strikes, we'll be ready for every sort of mass murder. -The Hitler File In promoting the idea of the folkish state, Nazi ideology aspired to build up an ideal state form that would maximize the people's chances to actualize the full potential of their inner folkish spirit. A precondition for a lasting future success of this endeavor was for the folkish state to integrate the people into a united community of folk comrades or kindred souls who share a common racial awareness. For that lofty purpose to be accomplished, it was necessary to implement the leadership principle throughout the folkish state. Hitler's reasoning had been that since this principle rejected the democratic mass idea in favor of the idea of personality, it virtually guaranteed that the best minds in the so-called Volksgemeinschaft or folkish community would rise to 138 The Roots of Nazi Psychology leading and influential positions. Hitler's statement in this regard speaks for itself: The best state constitution and stateform is that which, with the most unquestioned certainty, raises the best minds in the national community to leading position and leading influence. . . . From the smallest community cell to the highest leadership of the entire Reich, the state must have the personality principle anchored in its organization. There must be no majority decisions, but only responsible persons, and the word "council" must be restored to its original meaning. Surely every man will have advisers by his side, but the decision will be made by one man. (Hitler 1943,449) This rejection ofthe supposed failed ways of democracy coupled with a return to the imaginary older tribal method requiring that the decision within a council be made by one man was presumed to uphold a supposed humanistic promise. Democracy deserved to be rejected since for Hitler it was as dirty and as false as the Jew. "Democracy" could, however , hold a true humanistic promise ifit were redefined in proper folkish terms. Thus, in his speech of November 8, 1938,Hitler redefmed "democracy " in this clever bit of verbal fancy-foot dancing: In our opinion, democracy implies a regime supported by the will of a people. I became Chancellor of Germany once in compliance with the rules of parliamentary democracy ... and today I received the complete approval of the German Yolk-let Mr. Churchill doubt this if he pleases. I did not eliminate two democracies this year, rather, I destroyed, as the epitome of a true democrat, two dictatorships! Namely, the dictatorship of Herr Schuschnigg and the dictatorship of Herr Benes.... I am merely the advocate of my Yolk! ... Besides that, I am not a head of state in the sense that a dictator or monarch is, I am a leader of the German Yolk! ... Mr. Churchill and these gentlemen are delegates of the [44.197.114.92] Project MUSE (2024-03-28 17:44 GMT) The Folkish State 139 English people, and I am a delegate of the German Volk. The only difference here is that Mr. Churchill received only a fraction of his people's votes while, I may confidently say, I represent the entire German Volk! (Domarus 1992, 1238-39) In this briefsample ofOrwellian "newspeak," the sarcastic Hitler is "the epitome of a true democrat" while democratic Austria and, even more so, Czechoslovakia are each a "dictatorship," which deserved to be destroyed by him. But he was dead serious when he pitted himself against Churchill to judge who was a more authentic ·delegate of his people. Churchill represented but a fraction of the people, while Hitler imagined that he represented the entire folk. In these statements it can be readily seen that the racial ideal of what a true democracy would be is based on some mystical notion of representing the will of the entire people. And in Hitler's ideology, this expression cannot take place unless society is ordered and led by the force ofpersonality to begin with. Then, and only then, is a human community "redeemed from the curse of Mechanism and becomes a living thing" (Hitler...