Politics Theory Other #14 Adam Tooze on Nazi ideology and the German war economy
Jun 25, 2018
Adam Tooze, author of 'The Wages of Destruction: The Making and Breaking of the Nazi Economy', discusses the entwinement of Nazi ideology and economics, the apparent irrationality of German military strategy, the comparative backwardness of the German economy, and 1930s parallels in the post-financial crash era.
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Ideological Western Front
- The Western Front of WWII was also an ideological war for Hitler.
- He believed the US, the perceived center of a Jewish conspiracy, influenced Britain's resistance to Nazism.
Shifting Historical Focus
- Historians' focus has shifted from the Western to the Eastern Front over time.
- This shift reflects increased awareness of Eastern Front casualties and the Holocaust's moral significance.
Lebensraum's Economic Logic
- Nazi ideology and economic considerations were intertwined, exemplified by Lebensraum.
- Hitler's Lebensraum concept linked Eastern expansion to achieving an American-style standard of living.