Not my usual genre of choice, but this was recommended by a German friend of mine. I’m a great believer in looking into the past to examine how sociopaths manage to get elected into high office. Successive German governments follow a similar path, which is why The Wave is required reading in German schools.
The Wave is a true story and tells of a … well, let’s call it a learning experiment carried out by a history teacher in a US school. The teacher – perhaps foolishly – wanted to show Naziism managed to sweep, apparently unopposed, across Germany.
To this end, the teacher came up with a club for the children, which offered success through discipline, preparedness, and hard work. The ‘club’ had strict rules and promoted equality for all (and that’s a deviation from Naziism right there).
The problem was that the experiment soon got out of hand, with pupils being threatened if they refused to join, and being assaulted if they dared to criticise it. Inevitably, members started using it persecute people who didn’t seem to fit (Jews).
A real eye-opener. After spending a few hours listening, I thought, “So that’s how that happens.” What’s more troubling is seeing it happen again. …
The most troubling aspect of the whole experiment is realising that as human beings, we possess an inherent flaw in our makeup: a self-destructive desire to be enslaved by anyone with a loud voice.