Originally posted by 96RedSE5Sp:
...Comparing Iraq and Saddam to Germany and Hitler shows a naive and shockingly ingnorant awareness of recent world history.



LMAO! Some people really need to learn to read more carefully. Never did I (nor would I) compare Iraq and Nazi Germany as political entities. Quit putting words in my mouth.

What I DID do, though, is to compare the actions of both dictators to each other.

School is now in session...

Rose from modest beginnings:
Saddam, yes. Hitler, yes.

Dark-haired, moustached, married:
Saddam, yes. Hitler, yes.

Plotted to overthrow current government in younger years:
Saddam, yes. Hitler, yes.

Jailed for doing so:
Saddam, yes. Hitler, yes.

Started out as a low-ranking party member:
Saddam, yes. Hitler, yes.

Touted socialist nationalism in their early years:
Saddam, yes. Hitler, yes.

Staged coups that ultimately elevated them to power:
Saddam, yes. Hitler, yes.

Nationalized industries in order to expand power base:
Saddam, yes. Hitler, yes.

Betrayed and killed allies who would ultimately be rivals in their climb to power:
Saddam, yes ('78 Election, I belive). Hitler, yes (Night of Long Knives).

Ethnic/religious hatred towards one or more groups:
Saddam, yes. Hitler, yes.

Genocide of those same groups:
Saddam, yes. Hitler, yes.

Belligerent and aggressive foreign policy that lead to annexations and ultimately armed conflict with neighbors:
Saddam, yes. Hitler, yes.

Engaged in chemical warfare:
Saddam, yes. Hitler, yes.

Admired by the US at one point in time:
Saddam, yes. Hitler, yes (Time's Man of the Year in 1938).

Controlled press, speech and assembly during dictatorship:
Saddam, yes. Hitler, yes.

Established elite guard unit fanatical to their wishes:
Saddam, yes. Hitler, yes.

Held one of the top 5 military forces in terms of size at height of power:

Saddam, yes. Hitler, yes.

Made horrible strategic miscalculations during war:
Saddam, yes. Hitler, yes.

Got their asses handed to them by US and British troops:
Saddam, yes. Hitler, yes.

Had supporters in France during the war:
Saddam, yes. Hitler, yes (Petain Govt.)

Finally, Hitler didn't inherit a blank slate: he took posession of a smoldering WRECK. Germany was reeling from the terms of the Versailles treaty and the Great Depresion sunk her further into the dregs of uncontrolled bankruptcies, mass unemployment and national despair. Any history book, if you care to crack it open, will tell you this in VOLUMNOUS detail...

Thanks for playing!

JaTo e-Tough Guy Missouri City, TX 99 Contour SVT #143/2760 00 Corvette Coupe