Arnie And Adolf

There has been much made lately of Arnold Schwarzenegger's supposed admiration of Adolf Hitler. I've kind of stayed away from the issue because I thought it was nothing more than a diversionary tactic being used by the anti-recall camp to deflect attention from the fact that they were losing. But now I've found two articles that make me want to post a little quick something on the matter.

First off, reading the original comments by Arnie, it would appear that he has a view of Hitler that is not too far out of line with that of most normal people who know anything about the history of the Third Reich: Hitler was an absolute monster - as close to pure evil as you could come, but he did achieve some good, like the autobahn or the Volkswagen. It is also fascinating to study how he figured out how to manipulate the German people through extremely charismatic public speaking and a great deal of pomp and circumstance. It is entirely possible to be fascinated with the man while still being revolted by his actions.

But even so, look at the reaction of the Jews in Arnie's hometown of Graz. They knew him during his formative years. They knew him before he ever would have really cared about his public persona. If he was at all a Hitlerite, the Jews of Graz would know. Yet they are dismissing the whole Hitler affair as "election propaganda."

And what of that Democratic demi-god Bill Clinton? He, too"...had a deep fascination for Adolf Hitler and his book 'Mein Kampf'..." Does this mean that Clinton, too, was an anti-Semite? Is in interest in how Hitler came to power an indication of Jew-hatred? Not in and of itself.

Arnold is handling himself pretty well throughout the campaign. He has managed to stay focused, even as others tried to degenerate the contest into a bout of ad hominem attacks. Arnie seems to be concentrating on what is best for the state of California and is not involving himself in national or foreign policy matters whenever he can avoid them (much to the chagrin of CAIR, who is upset because he won't talk to them).

Tomorrow is the day of decision. Here's hoping Schwazenegger does well.