ETA, regarding the comparative sadism of Hitler and Stalin: while Stalin’s enjoyment of the suffering he inflicted is well-documented, Hitler’s is more notable for his indifference to it. He boasted about being “the hardest man in Europe.” In Speer’s memoir he had the shades of his railroad car shut when next to a trainload of wounded German soldiers. His orders right up to the end were “too bad, my worldview and the willpower it demands are all that matters,” be its victims Jews, enemies or Germans alike.
That brings me to the one detail that contradicts the indifference vs revelry to suffering: the piano wire hangings. I’ve read that Hitler played these films at his home for guests, and ordered it shown to the troops at the front, to their revulsion. This means multiple copies were made and disseminated. But for all the horrible videos on the internet, these never appeared on Ogrish or Rotten.com. etc.
We wouldn’t put it past the Nazi suck-ups from filming them, but Hitler was more likely to nod his assent to suggestions of atrocities and then not let it disturb his daily bucolic Alpine stroll, than to pore over them masturbatorily like Stalin over his interrogation reports and death lists.
Well, he is a Finn, so no surprise there. I think it’s what affected you our your ancestors more that is going to come in for dislike the most…and those in Finland suffered more under the Soviets than the Germans, both in terms of actual deaths and trauma as well as continued threat post-WWII.
I would say that neither was morally preferable…both were equally morally evil and bankrupt regimes. What is annoying is that the Soviets get a pass most times while the Germans, rightfully, are roasted over this issue. On the same level, Hitler is, again rightfully despised and hated for his acts, while Stalin again gets a pass for the most part…not just from Russians but from those in the west often as well. Both were monsters, and while Stalin did his (official) killing over a longer period of time and Hitler over a much shorter, Stalin and his regime were still number 3 on the all-time killer’s list…and, again, this is officially. Hitler only comes in 4th on this list. I’d have to say the suffering caused by Stalin et al was worse, more pervasive, and affected a lot more people over a longer period of time, but that’s simply because Hitler et al were only able to fuck up Europe for a relatively short time period.
No. Both were ruthless, killer authoritarian regimes that murdered millions and caused the suffering of millions more. I guess the only distinction is in duration…Stalin et al simply lasted longer to do evil, while thankfully Hitler and his minions fucked up fairly quickly and were destroyed. The world would have been far better off if both had gone down quickly.
Germany and Russia have no bearing on this question. This thread is a non-starter based on terminology alone.
There are no two things that cannot be compared. To compare something means to find similarities and/or differences. (Contrast means to only find differences).
Watch me compare Jesus with Hitler:
Jesus and Hitler are similar in that they were both said to be males. They were different in that one was said to have lived in the middle east, while the other was said to have lived in Europe.
I believe that there were a few more comparison points between Hitler and Stalin than that they were males. Were there differences? Sure…Stalin was a bank robbering murderer while Hitler was a failed artist murderer. But really, the similarities between them were far more than the similarities (they were both males) between Hitler and Jesus. At its core, sadly Hitler was a real historical figure, while…well, the jury is out on Jesus even being a real person. I think male is really the only comparison point there, unless you want to say they were both human as well and perhaps they were both animal (as opposed to vegetable or mineral)…
Were there differences? Sure…Stalin was a bank robbering murderer while Hitler was a failed artist murderer. But really, the similarities between them were far more than the similarities (they were both males) between Hitler and Jesus. At its core, sadly Hitler was a real historical figure, while…well, the jury is out on Jesus even being a real person. I think male is really the only comparison point there, unless you want to say they were both human as well and perhaps they were both animal (as opposed to vegetable or mineral)…