Question

Was Hitler good and bad? Why? Why not?

Answer 1

Hint: Adolf Hitler was a German politician born in Austria who ruled Germany from 1933 until 1945. As the leader of the Nazi Party, Hitler rose to power, first as Chancellor in 1933 and then as Führer und Reichskanzler in 1934.

Complete answer:
Hitler's acts influenced the course of history—a statement that does not imply a positive judgment. Hitler was bad. Hitler climbed to power by exploiting the deepest fears of a desperate populace, murdering millions of his own citizens, attempting to exterminate Europe's Jewish and Gypsy populations, looting their property, waging Europe's worst conquest war, and saddling his country with an impossibly large war debt.

The devastation he caused to the globe in general and Europe in particular far outweighs whatever he did that could be classified as "good" (like anti-smoking programmes or keeping Communism at bay until 1945). I'm not sure how he could be considered anything other than one of the worst humans to ever walk the Earth, even in some odd value-neutral setting.

Although he is revered in some parts of the world for assassinating a large number of Russians, the number of parents naming their children "Adolph" has plummeted. The majority of the man's relatives have altered their surnames to "Hiller" or "Hiedler."

With time, historians may be able to see his "complex" legacy in a more nuanced light (as they have for Napoleon and Genghis Khan), but we aren't there yet.

Note: Hitler was the one who started World War II, which claimed the lives of over 50 million people. It also resulted in the Soviet Union's influence being extended in eastern, central, and Balkan Europe, allowing a communist movement to eventually gain control in China, and signaling a major shift of power away from Western Europe and toward the US and the Soviet Union.