My first thoughts after reading the two mega-books Rise and Fall of the Third Reich and Postwar in the span of a year:
In the 73 years since Hitler's death and the end of World War 2, Germany went from being an ultra-nationalist European threat, to the powerhouse of a socialized European Union that redistributes the wealth of its richer nations to poorer ones. Germany, while having the strongest European economy for many decades, has been by far the most pivotal country in keeping the EU alive by relinquishing their nationalist urges in favor of allowing a more unified continent. After the war(s), many Europeans- Germans above all- became so disenchanted by the consequences of rabid nationalism that they sought to dismantle it by incorporating neighboring countries into social schemes that blunted any single country's drive for power and expansion. The guilt syndrome caused by Germany's bullying through both world wars is so unique that for the first time it resulted a geographical entity that didn't act as a single nation or empire, yet supplied the social benefits of one.
Let's not ignore the fact that the EU served to keep the German economy on top of the others by devaluing its former currency. Given the history of their attempted domination on the continent we can't be surprised if they've traded physical control for a monetary one. However, it doesn't dismiss the fact that much of the German GNP is redistributed to poorer countries and the social programs that keep the EU going. How strange then, that Hitler's ambition of conquering Europe ended with his country being the greatest force behind keeping it together. His quest for domination resulted in a backlash that enforced his beloved Rhineland into supporting weaker neighbors instead of occupying them. I wonder what he'd think if he were alive today.
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