PERVERTED INDOCTRINATION

Evening Star, Issue 23682, 16 September 1940, Page 7

PERVERTED INDOCTRINATION

HITLER VICTIMISING GERMAN YDUTH " NAZIDOM HAS EXISTED 2,000 YEARS " WORLD AFFAIRS ADDRESS BY MR F. MILNER Hitlerism and all that it incorporates formed the subject of an inspiring attack by -Mr Frank Milner, M.A., 0.M.G., rector of the VVaitaki Boys’ High School, at the anniversary smoke social of the Commercial Travellers’ Association on Saturday night. Getting down to fundamentals, the speaker traced the career of Nazidom through '2,000 years, illustrating how it had always boon present in the Gorman scheme,' but Hitler had come at the psychological moment to develop it. Ho justified British imperialism, issued a warning against the imperialism of Jqpan. with its increasing concurrence with the Axis Powers, stated that the most significant thing in the world today was the transference of 50 American destroyers; and finally gave a graphic outline of the reasons why Britain must win the war. To discuss the origin and philosophy of “ this insidious thing called Nazism,” and deal with world happenings and movements, and the situation of the Far East, or “ Near North,” as it affected New Zealand, was the intention expressed by Air Milner in his introductory remarks. He said he would give his philosophy on this fearful clasli in the world to-day. He said he had been asked the meaning of Nazism; then told how it came suddenly; worked in a,crescendo movement, and had acted so vitally in Europe. There it had been put on a pedestal of prestige without parallel in the world. Neither Bonaparte nor the Kaiser bad attained the heights Hitler had achieved.

“Nazism is no new thing: it has its roots embedded very far back in the past.” said Mr Milner. “ Anyone could trace its history in the past, and find that deification of brute force written. in the pages of history for 2,000 years. The German cultivation of Kultur, that has so often crossed the ißhinc, does not moan culture, but world domination, under the camouflage of withdrawal from contiguous peoples. Two thousand years ago, in Caesar’s time, the flag of truce was abused, and the Germans invaded under the excuse of the protection of the minority. “ Through 2,000 years the myth of the invincibility of German arms has been preached, and nourished. Until that is smashed we shall not bo rid of the scourge that has hold of the world to-day. It was true in Augustus’s time, and it was nourished in the Great War. The slogan came down over 2,000 years, and anyone can trace its career. “Is it any wonder Gorman youth is mesmerised by the myth of ‘ the invincible German arms? ’ ” asked Mr Milner. It was a talc that persisted through the armistice, he said. “ The Germans should have had their lesson brought homo to them after the Great War. The armistice was a mistake, as many have realised. The lessons of war should have been brought home to Germany, and the people shown that their array was not invincible, hut had been defeated. The Germans have used the armistice to illustrate their very' invincibility in war. and that story is what German youth is being told today.” Conscription, coercion, and regimentation had been accepted by the German youth for this reason, he continued. But Nazism was no new thing. Hitler had contributed only the passionate sincerity of a fanatic—a freak. “ But Hitler is more of a genius than a freak; he came at a psychological time, when the Germans recognised defeat. when they needed someone to draw them out of this attitude. “The German will throw men into concentration camps, but has a terrific amount of sentimentalism in his make-up—he is not stable, like the Dutch.*as wo believed. He lias terrific emotional instability. Hitler appealed to the German youth for this reason. He had the environment. “ The actual doctrine of Nazism is ‘ One race in Europe ’ —the Germans the primordial people, the only ones attuned to Nature. Religion to Nazis means nothing except the corporate consciousness of the Nazi people. Anything to further the Reich is good—anything against it wrong.” said Mr Milner. The Gormans believed they were the primordial people, hence anti-Semi-tism. Anything that could he done to humiliate the Jew was right—for the Reich. It was instilled into the German children, and had been for many years, but had only come to a head under Hitler. Germans believed in the sublimation of the Reich; that the State meant more than the mere men and women who composed it. Hence Hitler captured youth, to sweep it oif its feet hv the intoxication of madness. Hitler worshipped success; therefore there would he no cleavage in the German people by leaflets or any other means until Hitler was defeated. “ The cruellest thing to me is the victimisation of Hitler youth, to-day perverted and warped, with the perverted indoctrination of Nazidom,” continued Mr Milner. “It is a composite of many things, such as the army, with its satnnic twist from the sword. “ Victories are not to he won by parliamentary gasbags . . . but only by the power and force of men who know their ends.’ as Hitler himself had written in ‘ Mein Kampf.’ “ Hitler .Youth is nothing but a throw-back and a perversion—-f'ermans have to think as Hitler thinks, and have to do as Hitler wants. Newspapers must not publish anything political till the matter has been passed by Gocbbols. “ Here Germany is damming back the waters, whore man should advance in the faith of God. The Germans have openly and willingly perverted -id nulliified all that religion means to ns — all that we have been taught aud have believed. Hitler says no man must think nr speak for himself: the privileges arc handed over to special i ‘ Divine ’ men. and so lie throws the 1 Germans hack thousands of years to the tribal stage.

“NO CLASH OF IMPERIALISMS.” Some said this war was the clash of two imperialisms, Germany standing for anti-Semitism, concentration camps, the Gestapo, and Iho Satanic devilry shown in Poland. Some people looked at the superficial accomplishments of Hitlerism—the marvellous efficiency of the nrmv and the Gorman youth movement. and saidi they had the accomplishments to lead the world. “ Don’t he blind. There is no hope for humanity if Hitler rules. He wants us to live the life of ants, of bees. He wants to destroy the whole consummation of life—liberty, and the right to rule our own destinies. He will not tolerate that for a moment. There is no clash of imperialisms; it ja clash of the basic and fundamental psychologies.

“ Nazidom has taken away all that mankind has endowed through years and years of painful progress, so that men may feel the right to make their own contributions to life, and not bo dancing as puppets on a string,” continued the speaker. All the liberties come through the blood of martyrdom —and now comes this fellow with his conspiracy to make us all robots. “ Britain has been the guardian of the portals of liberty through this life —even now she is .allowing Communists a quixotic freedom. She has not even succumbed to the thought advisable in Australia and New Zealand.

“ Now comes Hitler to throw us back to the herd days of the past. That is the gravest danger in the world to-day. “ What actuates the autonomy of the British Empire? It is the spirit of liberty. We are under no compulsion to Britain. We settle our own destinies. But wo owe everything to Britain. the same as all the other countries of the Empire. Doesn’t that mean the justification of British imperialism? New Zealand has derived all the heritages of freedom from Great Britain; without her protection wo would bo nothing. What annoys is to hear people say that New Zealand is used by Great Britain as if she was a vampire.” In America when he was there, especially in Wisconsin (where there was a strong German holding), people would talk of India under the yoke of British tyranny and control. What about the Bed Indians in America? asked Mr Milner. They have almost vanished. But New Zealand has looked after the Maori. “The Americans admit they have failed miserably in their trusteeship of the Indians. 'I his leads to the fact that as soon as India settles her own destiny she will he given homo rule, and will have the same rights and privileges as the autonomy of the other dominions. Britain looks forward to the harmonising of these differences,” he said. “ There is no other country in the world that has to stand under the criticism Britain takes over her 54 colonics. to which she is gradually giving self-government,” continued the speaker. “ What Britain is doing is standing as the champion of freedom and liberty.”

Many people; said what a terrible tiling it would be it there was a merger of the “ have-not ” Powers. This was happening among the Axis Powers, and Britain was lacing them without an ally in the world, he said. “ Do not jet ns be down-hearted. Think of Napoleon. It took 20 years to bring him down. Whim Napoleon stood in all his military harness, surveying all his flat-bottomed transports. he said : ‘ ("live mo control of the Cliaiun'l lor six hours, and Britain is mine.’ Ho

did not have the Channel six minutes at this time when it was ‘ victory or death ’ for Britain. Nelson frustrated his scheme at the Battle of Trafalgar. Napoleon turned his arms against every country in Europe. England stood against him, and finally fought her way over the Pyrenees. “ Remember this, and take heart from what the people of Britain did in 20 years of warfare; what they did against the greatest military genius the world has known.” JAPANESE PROBLEM. Mr Milner went on to speak of the Japanese problem. “ The concurrence of the Japanese and the Axis Powers is increasing, and it is a grave thing,” he said. “ This totalitarian state, adopting the ‘ Monroe Doctrine ’ of power in the East, wants only to lead the people of Indo-China to the ‘heights’ of those in Mancluikuo; with self-sacrificing altruism sho is willing to include New Zealand in this system. Hitler has not said ‘go ’ yet; it looks as though he realises Indo-China and the dominions are rich, and wants them for himself.

“ The Japanese arc experts in puppetry,” he continued. “ Britain cannot take on all tflie world together, so she has offered appeasement. She cannot take on Japanese imperialism, too, so she had to hack out on the concessions. "We cannot light Japan at the present time. “ America,” lie said. “ has no base nearer Japan than Pearl Harbour. She will have to be given a base at Singapore. The swapping of those 50 destroyers is the most significant thing in the world to-day. America will be in this war more and more as on. “ 1 am optimistic in iny beliefs because we know there is nothing in Hitler’s regime that is in accord with God's law,” concluded Mr Milner. “All spiritual forces are on our side. Britain has mi epic spirit, ns voiced by Mr Churchill; it lias sea power, blockading Germany from its resources; there is the approaching air parity, wliich will lead to the shattering of her industrial centres. No Power that had the command of the sea has ever been beaten Uemomhor these things in these dark days—they arc on our side, and wo must win! ” Prolonged anplau.se greeted the closing of Mr Milner's address.