Re: Rights

 L&J Welch wrote:

> 
> "Al" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote in message
> news:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>> L&J Welch wrote:
>>
>> >
>> > "Al" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote in message
>> > news:[EMAIL PROTECTED]

>> >> The above might lead one to conclude that Germany 1939-1945 was a
>> > democracy.
>> >> It wasn't, though the German people themselves were arguably
>> >> democratic
>> > but
>> >> oppressed.
>> >
>> > History shows that Hitler was democratically elected.
>>
>> Urban legend, I'm afraid.
>>
>> AH became Chancellor in Jan 1933 because he was appointed to the post by
>> Hindenburg to whom he had narrowly lost the Presidency. Human rights were
>> suspended Feb 1933 following a fire at the Reichstag, and that suspension
>> was used to supress the Communists and others. At elections in Mar 1933,
>> the Nazis failed to obtain an outright majority and returned to power
> based
>> on a coalition with the DNVP. Dictatorial authority was obtained a few
>> weeks later with the 'Enabling Act'. Office of Chancellor and President
>> were merged on the death of Hindenburg the following year.
>>
>> So, history shows that Hitler was *not* democratically elected even by
>> the standards of the time, never mind the standards of ours.
> 
> Wasn't he democratically elected by his party (NAZI) who then was the
> party
> who could form a government (as recognized by Hindenburg?).  

No. In July 1921, he was far and away the NSDAP's (as they were then known)
brightest star but they were going nowhere. He resigned as propaganda
chief: the move threatened to split the party between the more moderate
leadership and the more extreme membership AH was responsible for building.
His terms for rejoining the party included an 'election' to a Chairmanship
that carried dictatorial powers; anyone voting against was to be expelled.
543 voted yes, 1 voted no. I can't find any references to any subsequent
party elections, so I assume the above makes the best case.

Does it count as "democratically elected"? No. Democracy is about
representation of all views, not expulsion of minority rules. Democracy is
about free elections; this duress could not make the election democratic.
Democracy is about dualism -- but who stood against him? Democracy requires
periodically free elections. I can't find any other elections, free or
otherwise. This all has more in common with accession to the throne -- a
coronation -- than it does democratic election.

So AH was not democratically elected by the German People nor democratically
elected by his own party. 

Perhaps he was democratically elected to be prom Queen at school.

> In that case
> could one not argue he was as democratically elected as Blair?

I'm not familiar with how Blair came to be elected. How do the two compare?
-- 
Al
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