HIST 410N Week 3 Case Study 3, The Democrat and the Dictator

Week 3 The Democrat and the Dictator Case Study HIST-410N Week 3 The Democrat and the Dictator Case Study According to Roosevelt, the nation’s biggest problem is dealing with the devastating economy. His inaugural speech explicitly targets banks and money changers as the cause leading up to the financial crisis. Roosevelt states, “practices of the unscrupulous money changers stand indicted in the court of public opinion, rejected by the hearts and minds of men” (para 4, 1933). Because of their money lending and self-seeking nature, the economy has reached its lowest point. Hitler’s address, on the other hand, seems to suggest that the nation’s problems are more social rather than economic. He blames communism for the lack of unity, spirit, and will in the German people. In his proclamation he states, “communism, with its method of madness, is making a powerful and insidious attack upon our dismayed and shattered nation. It seeks to poison and disrupt in order to hurl us into an epoch of chaos” (Hitler, 1933). For Hitler, communism is so devastating that his initial task as chancellor is to overcome “the destroying menace of communism in Germany” (Hitler, 1933). Roosevelt stresses the importance of employing the population, whether it be through industry or agriculture. He goes onto say that the federal government will be “treating the task as [they] would treat the emergency of a war… to stimulate and reorganize the use of our natural resources” (para 10, 1933). In order to help with unemployment, he aims to improve communications, transportation, and other utilities while focusing on redistribution of employees. Hitler aims to eliminate unemployment through his four year plan consisting of “reorganizing business life, a reorganization of the administrative and fiscal systems of the Reich, of the Federal States, and the Communes” (Hitler, 1933). He also intends to instill policies of forced labor to combat unemployment. To deal with the failing banks, Roosevelt intends to supervise the nation’s banks and restrict the speculation of money. During his presidency, he would go onto “launch a program for recovery that he called the ‘New Deal’... to save the collapsing banking system and to revive the economy (Brower & Sanders, 2013). Hitler’s plans for reviving the economy involves eliminating communism in order to dismantle class madness and class struggle. He also states that any experiments with the nation’s currency should be avoided as it has the potential to worsen. Franklin D. Roosevelt’s plan with agriculture includes reducing the cost of owning farmland, increasing the value of agricultural products, and smarter location planning of farmland. Hitler’s four year plan aims to rescue the German farmer “in order that the nation may be supplied with the necessities of life” (Hitler, 1933). He intends to do this by instilling the back-to-the-land policy of farming where farmers would grow crop on any available patch of land in order to sustain the life of the nation. With foreign policy, Roosevelt states “I shall spare no effort to restore world trade by international economic readjustment, but the emergency at home cannot wait on that accomplishment” (par 14, 1933). He intends to put off foreign trade until the nation’s own economic problems are dealt with. Hitler states that, under his foreign policy, Germany will have equal footing with its surrounding neighbors. He wants the nation to have equal rights and peace as a European country. Both Roosevelt and Hitler face similar challenges in the midst of financial crisis. They also share similar goals of fixing unemployment, making farms more sustainable, and dealing with the poor economy. As chancellor of Germany, Hitler would go onto become a dictator, gaining the power to control every aspect of the nation. Roosevelt does not have the same level of authority. In their addresses to the public, Roosevelt focuses more on ensuring the prosperity of the nation whereas Hitler focuses on the prosperity of the German people and culture.   References American Psychological Association. (2010). Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (6th ed.). Washington, DC: Author Berlin: Proclamation to the German Nation. (1933, February 1). Retrieved from Brower, D & Sanders, T. The World in the Twentieth Century, 7th Edition. (07/2013). Pearson Learning Solutions. [Bookshelf Online]. Retrieved from Franklin D. Roosevelt: First Inaugural Address. (1933, March 4). Retrieved from