Nazi analogies

thumb|right|165px|Argumentum ad Laroucheum Hitlerum.
Nazi analogies are fallacies that use the extremely negative perception that Hitler and National Socialism (Nazism) have in the modern world to boost someone's opinions.
*Reductio ad Hitlerum is, basically, the premise that "everything Hitler supported must be bad and everything Hitler was against must be good". Hitler's opinions serve as the sole parameter to judge something's desirability or morality. The reason this is idiotic is because Hitler wore clothes, so by this logic wearing clothes makes one a Nazi. He was also a strong supporter of animal rights making everybody who DOESN'T abuse their pets Nazis as well.
*Godwin’s Law, itself a response to reductio ad Hitlerum, asserts that the longer an online discussion grows, the greater are the odds of someone mentioning Hitler or the Nazis. It is something one can verify by oneself and that demonstrates how common such analogies are. Godwin only heard of Leo Strauss' coining of the fallacy 4 decades after he himself had proposed it.Yes, it’s okay to compare Trump to Hitler. Don’t let me stop you. by Mike Godwin (December 20, 2023 at 2:57 p.m. EST) The Washington Post.
Those are also known by other names, such as argumentum ad Nazium (a pun on argumentum ad nauseam) or "playing the Hitler/Nazi Card".
==Origins==
Reductio ad Hitlerum was coined in 1951 by neoconservative progenitor Leo Strauss,"The Social Science of Max Weber" by Leo Strauss" (1951) Measure: A Critical Journal 2(2):204-230.Natural Right and History by Leo Strauss (1953) University of Chicago Press.
Godwin's Law was formulated by attorney Mike Godwin, former general counsel for the Wikimedia Foundation, in the 1990s, and states:Meme, Counter-meme by Mike Godwin (10.01.94; 12:00 pm) Wired.
==How it works==
When a Hitler or Nazi comparison is made, it may be an extended analogy fallacy.Extended Analogy Logically Fallacious.
Or it could be an ad hominem attack such as saying, "You are just like Hitler and therefore whatever you are arguing for is wrong," without having any reasoning behind how this conclusion was reached. 
With the increase in the number of media for online discussion, Godwin's Law is now applied to any online discussion — be they mailing lists, message boards, forums, chat rooms, blog comment threads, or wiki talk pages.
Traditionally in many Internet discussion forums, it is the rule that once such a comparison is made, the discussion is effectively finished and whoever mentioned Hitler or the Nazis has automatically lost the debate, though it is considered sort-of acceptable if one immediately says "Pardon me for invoking Godwin's Law." The blogosphere has only heightened the prevalence of Godwin's Law, with Nazi references being dropped across the political spectrum, such as the liberal Daily Kos,House Republicans now own Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s antisemitism (July 18, 2023 at 1:58:04p PDT) Daily Kos. The article makes the stretch from RFK Jr. making an antisemitic remark to him being a Nazi. right-wing religious strongholds such as Bill Donohue's Catholic League,"Mother F—king Teresa" Courtesy of Viacom (May 25, 2005) Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights (archived from June 11, 2005). Regarding Penn & Teller, "This is no comedy — it is Nazi propaganda right out of the Leni Riefenstahl school of filmmaking." and intelligent design advocates like the Discovery Institute.The wages of whining by David Klinghoffer (Jan 29, 2009 14:05 | Updated Jan 31, 2009 0:51) The Jerusalem Post (archived from January 31, 2009). Klinghoffer, a senior fellow at the Discovery Institute, "In Mein Kampf, an influential best-seller, he relied on the language of Darwinian biology to declare a race war against the Jews."
Compared to other known blog-based laws, namely Poe's Law, Godwin's Law is quite well known in more mainstream areas.Is it ever OK to call someone a Nazi? by Andrew McFarlane (14 July 2010) BBC News. Just to prove it, the law even has its In 2012, it was added to the Oxford Dictionary,Godwin's law "Oxford Dictionaries (archived from July 30, 2014). which means that in 500 years' time, it will be reviewed by completely mystified college arts majors.
==When the analogy is applicable==
Godwin's Law does not dispute the validity or otherwise of references or comparison to Hitler or the Nazis. As such a comparison or reference may sometimes be appropriate in a discussion, Godwin has argued that overuse of the Nazi comparison should be avoided as it waters down the impact of any valid usage. In its purest sense, the rule has more to do with completely losing one's sense of proportion rather than just mentioning Nazis specifically.As Nyysiopas, luku 3 Nyysietiketti, Mitä ei pidä tehdä: Hitler-kortin käyttö by Jukka Korpela, Tampere University of Technology (archived from November 2, 2021). "Joka tapauksessa useimmat fiksut ihmiset luultavasti pitävät Hitler-kortin pelannutta automaattisesti häviäjänä. Syynä on, että Hitler-kortin käyttö osoittaa niin vakavaa suhteellisuudentajun häiriötä, että mitään sen pelanneen aiemminkaan esittämää ei pidä ottaa vakavasti. Sama koskee Stalin-korttia ja muita vastaavia." 
Translation:"In any case, most smart people will probably automatically consider someone who played the Hitler card to be a loser. The reason is that the use of the Hitler card shows such a serious disturbance in the sense of proportion that nothing presented by the person who played it before should be taken seriously. The same goes for the Stalin card and the like." No Nazi comparisons? Sounds like something Hitler would say! The strange history of Godwin's Law, and what it means for our own duties to … by Nate Anderson (9/1/2011, 5:05 AM) Ars Technica. The law was initiated as a counter-meme to flippant comparisons to the Nazis, rather than to invoke a complete ban on comparisons. As Godwin himself wrote in 2008:I Seem To Be A Verb: 18 Years of Godwin's Law by Mike Godwin (April 30, 2008) Jewcy.
Additionally, Godwin made an appearance in Glenn Greenwald's Salon comments section in 2010 to confirm, as Greenwald put it in a column titled The odiousness of the distorted Godwin's Law:Letters to the Editor: The odiousness of the distorted Godwin's Law by Glenn Greenwald (July 1, 2010 10:27 AM ET) Salon (archived from September 18, 2011).
Godwin said in 2017 that it's OK to call the alt-right Nazis, because many of them use Nazi symbols and express support for Nazi ideology.Mike Godwin: Man who devised internet Hitler law says, 'Call these Charlottesville s***heads Nazis': 'By all means, compare these s***heads to the Nazis. Again and again. I'm with you.' by Andrew Griffin (August 14, 2017) The Independent. He wrote in 2016:
In 2023, Godwin also said Trump is acting like Hitler:
Historian Timothy Snyder goes further, writing that when there is a taboo on comparing someone to Hitler who is actually acting like Hitler (Trump and J. D. Vance), it becomes a shield for the perpetrator, such that "…the more Trump resembles Hitler, the safer the man is from criticism on this point."Trump's Hitlerian Month: A September to Remember by Timothy Snyder (Sep 29, 2024) Substack.
==Schizofascism==
Snyder has coined the word 'schizofascism' to refer to actual fascists who make Nazi analogies or fascist accusations against other people.The Road to Unfreedom: Russia, Europe, America by Timothy Snyder (2018) Tim Duggan Books. ISBN 0525574468. As an example, fascist Russian politician Aleksandr Dugin has blamed Ukrainian Jews for the Holocaust, which is just literally adding insult to injury.
Russian propaganda has used schizofascism extensively since the 2014 invasion of Crimea, the Russian-sponsored coup attempts in Ukraine, and the Russian-backed insurrection in eastern Ukraine. During this time, Russian President Vladimir Putin, head of a regime labeled as crypto-fascist,Putinism: The Slow Rise of a Radical Right Regime in Russia by Marcel Van Herpen (2013) Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 1137282800. Page 107: "Putin is too shrewd to let himself and his regime be labeled 'fascist,' but this does not mean that his regime is not developing traits of a fascist regime. […] In this case a regime must be labeled crypto-fascist […]." defined Ukrainian opponents of Russian incursions as fascists. In February 2022, Putin called for the "de-nazification" of Ukraine,Putin says he will ‘denazify’ Ukraine. Here’s the history behind that claim. by Miriam Berger (February 24, 2022; Updated February 25, 2022 at 1:44 p.m. EST) The Washington Post. just prior to the full-scale invasion of Ukraine (euphemistically-called "special military operation") in March 2022, in which Putin gave de-nazification as a justification for his war of aggression, despite Ukraine's democratically-elected president (Volodymyr Zelenskyy) being ethnically Jewish.Putin's claim of fighting against Ukraine 'neo-Nazis' distorts history, scholars say by Rachel Treisman (March 1, 20223:02 PM ET) NPR. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov went further stating, "I could be wrong, but Hitler also had Jewish blood. [That Zelensky is Jewish] means absolutely nothing. Wise Jewish people say that the most ardent anti-Semites are usually Jews."Israel outrage at Sergei Lavrov's claim that Hitler was part Jewish (May 2, 2022) BBC News.
Further, writer and antisemite compared Russia's failed 2014 coup in Odessa, Ukraine to the Holocaust. leader of the motorcycle-gang, made similar pronouncements at the same rally as Prokhanov. who has been in leadership positions in self-declared fascistic puppet-states within Moldova (Transnistria, founded in 1990/1991) and within Ukraine (Donetsk People's Republic, founded in 2014), claimed that Russia was at war with fascists who were aligned with an international Freemason conspiracy.
 wife of US Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, while herself plotting to overturn a democratic election,Ginni Thomas emails show she urged Wisconsin lawmakers to oveturn 2020 election by Scott Bauer (Sep 1, 2022 2:49 PM EST) Associated Press via PBS. referred to the "fascist left" and "transsexual fascists".Is Ginni Thomas a Threat to the Supreme Court? Behind closed doors, Justice Clarence Thomas’s wife is working with many groups directly involved in controversial cases before the Court. by Jane Mayer (January 21, 2022) The Washington Post.
Trump has also utilized schizofascism multiple times, referring to his political opponents as fascists despite being a fascist himself by his actions and rhetoric (including cozying up to actual fascists).Trump calls political enemies ‘vermin,’ echoing dictators Hitler, Mussolini by Marianne LeVine (Updated November 13, 2023 at 10:54 a.m. EST; Published November 12, 2023 at 5:45 p.m. EST) The Washington Post. Another level of irony is that he has claimed that the far-right is not a major issue (yet fascism is far-right by its very nature) and instead refers to leftists as fascists.The MAGA Movement’s Links With The Global Far Right Were On Full Display At Trump’s Latest Party by Hunter Walker (December 13, 2023 12:18 p.m.) Talking Points Memo.
"Schizofascism is an example of what philosopher Jason Stanley calls 'undermining propaganda': using a concept to destroy that concept. Here anti-fascism is being used to destroy anti-fascism."How Propaganda Works by Jason Stanley (2015), Princeton University Press. ISBN 0691164428. The intent of the undermining propaganda is generally in the furtherance of fake news,Fake News and Propaganda: A Critical Discourse Research Perspective by Iulian Vamanu (2019) Open Information Science 3:197–208. doi:0.1515/opis-2019-0014. including but not limited to attempts to stain the credibility of one's opponents and maintaining the ideological purity of one's followers.
==Stormfront and other corollaries==
A number of corollaries have been proposed since the introduction of Godwin's Law.
In a hilarious instance of cosmic symmetry, a similar law applies to neo-Nazi boards such as Stormfront: as the discussion grows longer, the probability of someone calling their opponent a Jew approaches one. (For another version, replace Stormfront with Conservapedia and Jew with liberal.)
Another example of a corollary, and an early example, is called "Sircar's Corollary," which is: "If the Usenet discussion touches on homosexuality or Heinlein, Nazis or Hitler are mentioned within three days.”'
Another corollary was proposed by "Buddy Larson" in the comments to a post by the libertarian Volokh Conspiracy blog (alleging that gun control caused Kristallnacht) in November 2010:Nazism, Firearm Registration, and the Night of the Broken Glass by David Kopel (November 9, 2010 6:12 pm) The Volokh Conspiracy. Caveat lector.
A corollary for feminists is:
==Other versions==
A number of different Internet laws have been proposed which basically mirror Godwin. Arken's Law states:Arken's Law (October 31, 2004) Urban Dictionary.
The exact history of Arken's Law is debatable, but it is claimed that Arken's Law has its roots in the days of Web 1.0 and earlier (such as Usenet). Any accusations of Big Brotherism, utilizing newspeak, practicing doublethink, thought policing, sending updates down the memory hole, or belonging to the Anti-Sex League would all be invocations of Arken's Law.
Researchers from the University College London attempted to formulate reductio ad Hitlerum into a Bayesian framework, presenting evidence that this is pretty much exactly how people processed the argument:Because Hitler did it! Quantitative tests of Bayesian argumentation using ad hominem by Adam J. L. Harris, Anne S. Hsu & Jens K. Madsen (2012) Thinking & Reasoning 18(3):311-343. doi:10.1080/13546783.2012.670753.
P(good|Hitler)=\frac{P(good)P(Hitler|good)}{P(Hitler)}
===Pre-Nazism===
Before Hitler was a thing, the typical point of comparison for worst person in the world appears to have been the Pharaoh of the Biblical book of Exodus (the pharaoh's identity is uncertain, and he may be fictional, which makes it a weaker rhetorical comparison), although the likes of Judas Iscariot, Pontius Pilate, Oliver Cromwell (for the Irish), Napoleon Bonaparte, and King George III (for Americans), were occasional references.Before Hitler, Who Was the Stand-In for Pure Evil? by Brian Palmer (Oct 04, 20115:51 PM) Slate. Calling something medieval also seemed to work. However, those don't seem to have been used in an earlier version of Godwin's Law, possibly because the internet did not exist.
==Evil Nazi things: Reductio ad Hitlerum exempla==
The Nazis were eclectic and often self-contradictory (e.g. some were pro-fraktur font and some were anti-fraktur font). What follows is a list of things which, by the logic of reductio ad Hitlerum, at least some Nazis were in favor of and which someone later thought was therefore evil (or the converse things that Hitler hated which therefore someone thought was good):
Jonah Goldberg (yes, that Jonah Goldberg) in his book Liberal Fascism likely reached maximum reductio ad Hitlerum in a single paragraph, hitting so many topics at once that one could call him "Der Führer" of reductio ad Hitlerum (but one shouldn't):Liberal Fascism: The Secret History of the American Left, From Mussolini to the Politics of Change by Jonah Goldberg (2009)‎ Forum Books. ISBN 0767917189.
==Overlap with Holocaust denial==
Inappropriate Nazi analogies can have the effect of downplaying the Holocaust and other crimes against humanity of the Third Reich. This is particularly the case when the thing being compared to the Holocaust is not only less bad than the Holocaust but entirely unobjectionable.
For example, during the COVID-19 pandemic, many anti-vaccine protesters took to wearing yellow stars to protest vaccine mandates. Antivaxx leader Del Bigtree started doing this before the pandemic.Anti-Vaccine Protesters Misappropriate Holocaust-Era Symbol to Promote Their Cause (April 5, 2019) ADL. As international relations scholar Nicholas Grossman has pointed out, “This is a warped form of Holocaust denial. … [T]he core point, charitably interpreted, is that the Holocaust was public pressure in response to a voluntary choice, when it was actually the industrialized mass murder of millions just for who they were.”This is a warped form of Holocaust denial. Might not seem like it at first, but the core point, charitably interpreted, is that the Holocaust was public pressure in response to a voluntary choice, when it actually was industrialized mass murder of millions just for who they were. by Nicholas Grossman (4:50 PM - 12 Nov 2021) Twitter (archived from 4 Feb 2022 19:37:36 UTC).
==Criticisms==
Some, such as author Robert J. Sawyer, have criticized Godwin's Law for implying the Holocaust was sui generis, a unique event that can never happen again. Consequently, he argues, people will be reluctant to issue comparisons for future situations until it is too late, and even if they try, Godwin's Law will be used to falsely shoot them down.Authoritarians: An existential threat by Robert J. Sawyer (December 18th, 2015) Science Fiction Writer.
==Similar analogies==
Hitler comparisons are not the only kind of default association with negative and infamous historical figures; other people make comparisons with various other dictators such as Mussolini,Trump on tweeting Mussolini quote: 'It's a very interesting quote' by Evan Hoffmeyer (November 27, 2017) WTHR. Stalin,TIL that there’s a communist version of “reductio ad Hitlerum” called “reductio ad Stalinum”, where the person who commits the fallacy dismisses his or her opponent as a socialist, marxist or communist by TARDIS40TT (c. 2017) Reddit. and many others.
==The opposite==
A reverse effect happens when people's views or actions are compared to those of well-known sages or heroes, such as Einstein, Lincoln, etc. The basic idea is that "if you think or do like them, you will be like them". And just like Hitler, they are often promoted as the authors of false quotes or the subjects of spurious stories.
While both HitlerHitler: A Study in Tyranny by Alan Bullock (1962) Penguin Books. ISBN 0140135642.Adolf Hitler by John Toland (1976) Ballantine Books. ISBN 0345258991. and EinsteinAlbert Einstein (1879-1955) International Vegetarian Union.The Ultimate Quotable Einstein, edited by Alice Calaprice (2011) Princeton University Press. ISBN 0691207291. adopted a vegetarian diet at some point of their lives, two distinct pieces of information that are conveniently brought up by both proponents and critics of vegetarianism in separate occasions when they see fit, this hardly means that one would be as bad as Hitler or as intelligent as Einstein only because one does not eat meat. Citing historical examples (when backed up by proper historical evidence) can be an important part of supporting a cause, but are far from being a sufficient argument by themselves.
==See also==
===Want to read this in another language?===
تقلیل_به_هیتلر in Farsi
==External links==
* 
*Ad Nazium, Fallacy Files
*Meme, Counter Meme, Wired
*How to post about Nazis and get away with it — the Godwin's Law FAQ
*Before Hitler, who did people compare their political enemies to? (Mostly this guy.)
*Greatest. Godwin. Ever., Dispatches from the Culture Wars
*/r/godwinslaw/ Godwin's law on reddit. The site of bad historical analogies.
*How Godwin's law demeans Hitler, hehe. (Albeit using both Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay as examples...)
==Notes==
==References==
Category:Ad hominem
Category:Fallacious arguments
Category:Informal fallacies
Category:Nazism
Category:Pseudo-Latin phrases