Ominous Overtones: the Reichstag Fire and January 6th with Rick Green

Off The Bench with Heidi St. John

On February 27 1933, as Hitler’s campaign moved into its final, frantic days, the Reichstag, the German Parliament building, was set on fire and burnt down. An atmosphere of panic and terror followed the event. This continued when a young Dutch communist, Van der Lubbe was arrested for the crime. Though the event had been wildly exaggerated, the Nazi Party used the atmosphere of panic to their advantage, using it to sway political sentiment towards their movement. This hysteria helped to turn the public against the communists, one of the Nazis main opponents, and 4000 people were imprisoned.

On the 28 February 1933, President Hindenburg signed the Emergency Decree for the Protection of the German People. This decree suspended the democratic aspects of the Weimar Republic and declared a state of emergency. This decree gave the Nazis a legal basis for the persecution and oppression of any opponents, who were be framed as traitors to the republic. People could be imprisoned for any or no reason.

The decree also removed basic personal freedoms, such as the freedom of speech, the right to own property, and the right to trial before imprisonment.

Today, we see the same thing happening from the left as it relates to the “insurrection” of January 6th. Join Rick Green as we discuss the frightening similarities between the 1930’s and 2022.
Turtle Twins | Find the show notes here INCLUDING Giveaway Instructions!

--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/heidistjohn/message