Your party is now claiming free speech was a major contributor of the Holocaust. Dems are now going to great lengths to justify trampling our first amendment rights. What a scary time for our democracy when a major political party not only advocating abolishing free speech but using a false narrative for the same .
Hitler's vitriolic beer hall speeches began attracting regular audiences. A
demagogue,
[106] he became adept at using populist themes, including the use of
scapegoats, who were blamed for his listeners' economic hardships.
[107][108][109] Hitler used personal magnetism and an understanding of
crowd psychology to his advantage while engaged in public speaking.
[110][111] Historians have noted the hypnotic effect of his rhetoric on large audiences, and of his eyes in small groups.
[112] Alfons Heck, a former member of the Hitler Youth, recalled:
We erupted into a frenzy of nationalistic pride that bordered on hysteria. For minutes on end, we shouted at the top of our lungs, with tears streaming down our faces:
Sieg Heil, Sieg Heil, Sieg Heil! From that moment on, I belonged to Adolf Hitler body and soul.
[113]
(after attempting to overthrow the government in the Beer Hall Putsch) Hitler was sentenced to five years' imprisonment at
Landsberg Prison.
[125] There, he received friendly treatment from the guards, and was allowed mail from supporters and regular visits by party comrades. Pardoned by the Bavarian Supreme Court, he was released from jail on 20 December 1924, against the state prosecutor's objections.
While at Landsberg, Hitler dictated most of the first volume of
Mein Kampf (lit. 'My Struggle'; originally titled
Four and a Half Years of Struggle against Lies, Stupidity, and Cowardice) at first to his chauffeur,
Emil Maurice, and then to his deputy,
Rudolf Hess.
[127][128] The book, dedicated to Thule Society member Dietrich Eckart, was an autobiography and exposition of his ideology. The book laid out Hitler's plans for transforming German society into one based on race. Throughout the book, Jews are equated with "germs" and presented as the "international poisoners" of society. According to Hitler's ideology, the only solution was their extermination. While Hitler did not describe exactly how this was to be accomplished, his "inherent genocidal thrust is undeniable", according to
Ian Kershaw.
[129]
Published in two volumes in 1925 and 1926,
Mein Kampf sold 228,000 copies between 1925 and 1932.
At the time of Hitler's release from prison, politics in Germany had become less combative and the economy had improved, limiting Hitler's opportunities for political agitation. As a result of the failed Beer Hall Putsch, the Nazi Party and its affiliated organisations were banned in Bavaria. In a meeting with the Prime Minister of Bavaria,
Heinrich Held, on 4 January 1925, Hitler agreed to respect the state's authority and promised that he would seek political power only through the democratic process. The meeting paved the way for the ban on the Nazi Party to be lifted on 16 February.
[133]
However, after an inflammatory speech he gave on 27 February, Hitler was barred from public speaking by the Bavarian authorities, a ban that remained in place until 1927.[134][135] To advance his political ambitions in spite of the ban, Hitler appointed
Gregor Strasser,
Otto Strasser, and
Joseph Goebbels to organise and enlarge the Nazi Party in northern Germany. Gregor Strasser steered a more independent political course, emphasising the socialist elements of the party's programme.