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re: You're convincing.
ER — (archived)

I'm starting to regret I submitted this, I certainly didn't mean to ambush anyone. The item itself was written several years ago as an exercise; I wanted to get into the mind of extreme conservatives (believe me, I don't think all conservatives can be represented by this article) and I wanted to explore the difficulties of writing convincingly in favor of a point I did not necessarily agree with. It's very difficult walking the line between parody and cynicism. I've always been fascinated by propaganda, even if I do loath it (even the kind I agree with).

What inspired me to write this was a novel by SF writer Norman Spinrad called "The Iron Dream". "Dream" is a novel within a novel, the inner book is called "Lord of the Swastika", and purports to have been written by Adolf Hitler. The conceit of the book is an alternative history in which Hitler emigrated to the US after the Beer Hall Putsch, learned English, and became an illustrator for pulp science fiction magazines in the 30's, 40's and 50's. He never made it to power in Germany. He evenually writes "Lord" as a thinly disguised sword-and-sorcery fantasy
detailing his racial and political theories. "Lord" is presented verbatim, along with critical reviews and biographical material which give one a glimpse of what the world might have been like if Hitler had never risen to power in Germany.

It's an outrageous premise, but it is also the most effective psychological biography of Adolf Hitler I have ever read. I recommend it,
but it's not an easy book to get through.

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