Joined May 2018
1,781 Posts | 833+
Michigan
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Napoleon and Hitler fanboys alike are experts at cognitive dissonance, irrational hero worship, and cult-like followings similar to those of Julius Caesar's contemporaries and Donald ..... or Bernie Sanders today.
Napoleon Fanboys
1. Absolve Napoleon's failures (ie: Russia, Waterloo) by placing all blame upon his subordinate or luck on the part of his opponents. In no way did Napoleon's genius fail him: it was always subordinates who failed or circumstances beyond his control.
2. Ignore or downplay negative aspects of his personality. Even pro-Napoleon historians acknowledge he was an ego-maniac. The term "Napoleon Complex" is not merely a product of British propaganda. Obessed with power, he was famous for saying "Power is my mistress. I've done too much for her conquest to let anyone abduct or even covet her." Respected writer George Orwell did not name the power-hungry delusional pig in Animal Farm Napoleon for no reason.
3. Ignore or downplay the truly horrific things he was responsible for. From the slave revolution in the West Indies to the unforgivable war crimes of the French Army directly under Napoleon's command, his fanboys feebly make limp-.... attempts to absolve Napoleon of responsibility for the conduct of his forces. While armies of the era were rarely kind to local populations, and the British Army under Wellington was famous for its humane treatment to civilians, the French Army under Napoleon was particularly cruel: in Portugal, the French Army hung women and children upside down and burned them alive. This was in addition to the standard "take your food and .... your women." Similar instances also happened in armies under Napoleon's direct command. In fact, the quick strategic movement of Napoleon's army was due to his encouragement of war crimes: living off the land provided a strategic mobility unavailable to some of his opponents. And yes, Napoleon did bring the practice back from the Middle Ages.
4. His fanboys absolve him of his crimes against the Jews. Not quite the case.
5. He left France in a horrible position. When Napoleon abdicated in 1815, France was a defeated, economically devastated nation. As an Emperor with legal absolute power, he takes the lion's share of the blame.
Hitler's Fanboys
1. Absolve Hitler's failures. Neo-Nazis attempt to shift blame for Hitler's failures to subordinates, or the actions of the Allies.
2. Ignore or downplay negative aspects of his personality. No explanation needed, many (but not all) racists in the 21st century love the guy.
3. Ignore or downplay truly horrific things he did. Holocaust deniers either deny the whole affair outright, or claim that "only" 100,000 Jews perished.
4. His fanboys absolve him for his crimes against the Jews. Sometimes, his fanboys can't decide if he did or did not do the Holocaust. On the right day of the week, they will admit the Holocaust but claim the Jews deserved it due to some banking conspiracy or cabal of evil Jewish wizards plotting to take over the world.
5. Germany was in a horrible position when he left power. For all his nationalism, Germany was split asunder, with one side under Communism. East Germany lived through a nightmare thank's to Hitler breaking the Soviet non-aggression pact. Yet his fanboys hold him as some great nationalist. Nationalist, he may have been. But the good ones don't blue falcon half their country.
This post is sure to provoke a storm from the Napoleon fanboys, and maybe even some Hitler fanboys. Yet each post they make trying to explain away the crimes of either merely serves to prove the point: they will do, or say, anything, even untrue things (well, especially untrue things) to defend the personality cult of Napoleon or Hitler.
I don't even hate Napoleon: he had a military talent the way Mozart or Beethoven had musical talent. Their genius was an eccentric miracle not possessed by their opponents like Salieri or Wellington. I even like Napoleon, I simply refuse to defend horrendous campaigns (like Russia), the deplorable conduct of his army and his power hungry arrogance. And even Beethoven himself, once a huge fanboy of Napoleon, rejected the evil he did and wrote a symphony in honor of Wellington's victory at Vitoria.
Napoleon Fanboys
1. Absolve Napoleon's failures (ie: Russia, Waterloo) by placing all blame upon his subordinate or luck on the part of his opponents. In no way did Napoleon's genius fail him: it was always subordinates who failed or circumstances beyond his control.
2. Ignore or downplay negative aspects of his personality. Even pro-Napoleon historians acknowledge he was an ego-maniac. The term "Napoleon Complex" is not merely a product of British propaganda. Obessed with power, he was famous for saying "Power is my mistress. I've done too much for her conquest to let anyone abduct or even covet her." Respected writer George Orwell did not name the power-hungry delusional pig in Animal Farm Napoleon for no reason.
3. Ignore or downplay the truly horrific things he was responsible for. From the slave revolution in the West Indies to the unforgivable war crimes of the French Army directly under Napoleon's command, his fanboys feebly make limp-.... attempts to absolve Napoleon of responsibility for the conduct of his forces. While armies of the era were rarely kind to local populations, and the British Army under Wellington was famous for its humane treatment to civilians, the French Army under Napoleon was particularly cruel: in Portugal, the French Army hung women and children upside down and burned them alive. This was in addition to the standard "take your food and .... your women." Similar instances also happened in armies under Napoleon's direct command. In fact, the quick strategic movement of Napoleon's army was due to his encouragement of war crimes: living off the land provided a strategic mobility unavailable to some of his opponents. And yes, Napoleon did bring the practice back from the Middle Ages.
4. His fanboys absolve him of his crimes against the Jews. Not quite the case.
5. He left France in a horrible position. When Napoleon abdicated in 1815, France was a defeated, economically devastated nation. As an Emperor with legal absolute power, he takes the lion's share of the blame.
Hitler's Fanboys
1. Absolve Hitler's failures. Neo-Nazis attempt to shift blame for Hitler's failures to subordinates, or the actions of the Allies.
2. Ignore or downplay negative aspects of his personality. No explanation needed, many (but not all) racists in the 21st century love the guy.
3. Ignore or downplay truly horrific things he did. Holocaust deniers either deny the whole affair outright, or claim that "only" 100,000 Jews perished.
4. His fanboys absolve him for his crimes against the Jews. Sometimes, his fanboys can't decide if he did or did not do the Holocaust. On the right day of the week, they will admit the Holocaust but claim the Jews deserved it due to some banking conspiracy or cabal of evil Jewish wizards plotting to take over the world.
5. Germany was in a horrible position when he left power. For all his nationalism, Germany was split asunder, with one side under Communism. East Germany lived through a nightmare thank's to Hitler breaking the Soviet non-aggression pact. Yet his fanboys hold him as some great nationalist. Nationalist, he may have been. But the good ones don't blue falcon half their country.
This post is sure to provoke a storm from the Napoleon fanboys, and maybe even some Hitler fanboys. Yet each post they make trying to explain away the crimes of either merely serves to prove the point: they will do, or say, anything, even untrue things (well, especially untrue things) to defend the personality cult of Napoleon or Hitler.
I don't even hate Napoleon: he had a military talent the way Mozart or Beethoven had musical talent. Their genius was an eccentric miracle not possessed by their opponents like Salieri or Wellington. I even like Napoleon, I simply refuse to defend horrendous campaigns (like Russia), the deplorable conduct of his army and his power hungry arrogance. And even Beethoven himself, once a huge fanboy of Napoleon, rejected the evil he did and wrote a symphony in honor of Wellington's victory at Vitoria.
