Bush / Hitler Comparisons

Byron Williams, who I've quoted a couple of times recently, is apparently in hot water because of his opinion that comparing President Bush to Hitler is not accurate. So his article today explains his position.

"My reluctance to make the Hitler analogy was due in part to my own experience at the childrenÂ’s portion of the Yad Vashem museum in Jerusalem. Although the experience dates back 14 years, the memory still reverberates in my soul. The childrenÂ’s portion is, very simply, a 100-yard corridor surrounded by darkness with the exception of a few lights and mirrors that give one the impression of being beneath the stars. There are no photos, artifacts, or words, just a voice that echoes the names of children who died under the Nazi regime. Upon completion, one is left only with the futile attempt to understand what would prompt such evil.

Everything that Hitler did in 1933 was geared to the end product in 1945. We must never forget that among HitlerÂ’s sadistic objectives was the elimination an entire group of people from the face of the earth. By 1945, he had reached 66 percent of goal.

I am not an apologist for the antics of the Bush Administration, but as a theologian as well as a writer I cannot allow loose, insensitive historical analogies to go by without a response. If the comparison is based on the consolidation of power and the rollback of civil liberties, then history has provided myriad individuals who fall into that category, including Franklin Roosevelt and the treatment of Japanese Americans post-Pearl Harbor. There are many applicable analogies between this president and those who sought to rollback freedom more appropriate than the mass murderer of millions upon millions of innocent people."

I have to say that I find myself in complete agreement with Mr. Williams. Also I think it's fair to ask who benefits from an extended discussion in the Democratic party of whether or not President Bush is a lot like Hitler? This is an election year; perhaps one of the more important election years of our lifetimes. diluteute our message with this discussion is, in my mind, not the wisest course of action.