Socialism?

Ok, I am completely aware that this post is going to come off as a wierdo type of blog, but here it is none-the-less.

I recently read a book on Hitler before he rose to power. I was dumb-founded. I thought he would've been raised in a well-educated, well-to-do family, but just the opposite is true. He was born in Austria (not Germany), and he lost his father (who he wasn't very fond of anyhow) at age 12. He hated school and wanted to be an artist. After finishing school at 16, he spent 2 years reading, painting, drawing and going to the opera while his mom and sister cooked and cleaned for him. He tried to get into art school a couple times, but was rejected and told he should look into becoming an architect. He didn't work. While his good friend found odd jobs, he didn't do anything to earn money and didn't seem to care to. His mom died when he was 18, and he recieved a small inheritance and an orphan pension from the government and that is what he lived on. (Around this time, he started learning about a far-fetched idea of a "master race" in a cheap, trashy magazine sold at a nearby kiosk.) At age 20, he had so little money, he lived on the streets of Vienna with drunkards scavenging for food from trash cans. He eventually ended up in a soup-kitchen type of hostel where he had his first bath in months and spent his days painting. His friend offered to sell the paintings in local bars to make some money for them both.

On he goes to Germany in hopes of an art career... He was turned down and ends up fighting in WWI for Germany and the greater good of mankind (to make Germany a World Power). He got angry at the Jews who seemed to be taking all the "good" jobs instead of fighting. After losing the war, and feeling betrayed by both communists and Jews who were said to be behind the revolution toward peace, he was discovered as a great orator. His speaking ability took him to higher and higher levels of politics (along with some time and manipulation). Mind you, the guy never worked a real job, yet he was put in charge of a nation!!

Ok, all that to say two things:

1. All this time, I thought Hitler was a Communist, but there were two groups of people that he distained more than others... Communists and Jews. Hitler was a Socialist. (Which makes complete sense when you discover that he didn't work. Instead he lived off society and the government.)

2. He rose to power, not because he was well-accomplished or had been established as a great political leader, but because he was a great speaker. Certain groups needed his smooth talking to get them ahead politically.

Can you draw some similarities to certain persons here in the US? Hmmm, something to chew on...