Can you defend the notion that Hitler was a leftist?

Ugh...I hate this topic. Look, the left-right paradigm traces it's roots to revolutionary France. The advocates of classical liberalism sat to the left of the King, and the conservators of the aristocracy sat to the right.

The problem is that what is left and what is right is VERY context specific. In Hitler's time and place, he was right wing. He was a fascist. The primary alternative in Weimar Germany were socialists. Clearly further left.

Fascism was a blending of socialism's love of central planning with the nationalism loved by Hitler and Moussilini with a private ownership underpinning (because it was politically convenient mostly...they had no particular respect for property rights).

So because he favored central planning you could argue that he has more in common with the modern left than the right in America. On the other hand, his nationalism was more right than left.

So you see, it's like the old story about the three blind men and the elephant. Depending on which part of the elephant you are touching, you describe something VERY different.

This is why I HATE the left-right paradigm. It's stupid and I wish it would be cast upon the trash heap of history.

The main problem he was fighting against is that NAZIism and Communism held very similar attractions for the masses of working folks. The two had many things in common so he had to struggle to win the hearts and minds of the people and prevent them from flipping the coin and perhaps pick communism.

He was socialist, communist . . .

@entropy, Bravo! I love when I don't have to answer the question because somebody else already got it right.