Claude 3 On Nazism

By Leo Gura - March 28, 2024

I asked the Claude 3 Sonnet AI about whether Nazism was a liberal or conservative ideology. Here’s what it said:

“Nazism, also known as National Socialism, was a far-right, ultranationalist, racist, and anti-Semitic ideology that was promoted by the Nazi Party in Germany. It was a totalitarian and authoritarian form of government that strictly controlled nearly all aspects of society.

Nazism is generally considered to be on the extreme far-right of the political spectrum, opposite of liberal ideologies. Some of the core tenets and practices of Nazism that place it firmly in opposition to liberal values include:

  • Extreme nationalism and militarism
  • Belief in racial hierarchy and racial supremacy (Aryan master race)
  • Extreme antisemitism and persecution of Jewish people
  • Suppression of democracy, civil liberties and political opposition
  • Totalitarian control of society, economy and culture
  • Promotion of traditionalist gender roles and opposition to feminism
  • Hostility towards liberalism, socialism, and communism

While the Nazis did implement some socialistic economic policies early on, these were outweighed by their staunchly anti-democratic, anti-egalitarian, and racist principles that were in direct conflict with liberal values of individual rights, equality, and democratic pluralism.

Most mainstream historians, political scientists, and other experts agree that Nazism was an extreme far-right reactionary ideology that arose in opposition to liberal democracy, egalitarianism, and civil rights. It represented a totalitarian form of conservative racial-nationalism focused on purification of the Aryan race.

So in summary, while the Nazis adopted some superficial socialist-style policies, Nazism as a whole is considered an illiberal, conservative, far-right, and brutally totalitarian ideology that was antithetical to liberal democratic values. It was not a liberal political ideology by any measure.”

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I asked a further question:

But why did Nazis call themselves socialist if they were conservative and hated socialists?

Claude 3’s Response:

“You raise a good point. The reason the Nazis labeled themselves as ‘National Socialists’ was misleading and did not reflect the actual socialist ideology they opposed.

There are a few reasons why the Nazis employed the term ‘socialist’ despite being fundamentally anti-socialist:

  • Propaganda and co-opting terminology: The Nazis wanted to appeal to the German working class, many of whom were attracted to socialist concepts of economic equality and workers’ rights. By calling themselves ‘socialists’, it allowed the Nazis to redefine socialism based on ethnic nationalist terms rather than class terms.
  • Distinguishing from Marxism: While opposing mainstream socialist ideologies like Marxism, the Nazis wanted to differentiate themselves from their leftwing rivals. Calling themselves ‘National Socialists’ helped distinguish their particular brand of racial nationalist socialism from other socialist ideologies.
  • Economic policies: The Nazis did initially implement some policies like nationalization of industries and infrastructure projects to reduce unemployment. However, these were in service of the nationalist agenda rather than worker ownership/control of means of production.
  • Rejection of class conflict: Nazism rejected the fundamental basis of socialist ideology – the struggle between the working class and capitalists. Instead, they espoused national solidarity and placed emphasis on racial nationalism over class divides.

So in practice, despite the misnomer, Nazism was violently anti-Marxist, anti-liberal, anti-democratic and opposed to the core tenets of socialist theory and movements. Their use of the term ‘socialist’ was an exercise in disinformation and propaganda. The only true throughline was a rejection of free market capitalism in favor of a state-controlled economy – but not for egalitarian reasons. Rather, as a means to an authoritarian nationalist end.”

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I asked a further question:

According to the Spiral Dynamics model, what color stage were Nazis and Hitler?

Claude 3’s Response:

“According to the Spiral Dynamics model, the Nazis and Hitler would be classified as being in the Blue/Authoritarian stage.

The Spiral Dynamics is a psychological model that describes different “value memes” or stages of human psychological and cultural evolution, color-coded from Beige to Yellow.

The Blue/Authoritarian stage, represented by the color blue, is characterized by:

  • Absolute adherence to an established order, rules and collective truth
  • Strong ethnocentric viewpoints
  • Rigid social hierarchies and clearly defined roles
  • Obedience to authority figures is highly valued
  • Low tolerance for deviation from the norm
  • “Us vs Them” mentality towards outsider groups

The extreme German nationalism, racial ideology, militaristic culture and totalitarian system of control established by Hitler and the Nazis align closely with the Blue value meme. Their Aryan race doctrine, anti-Semitism, hyper-patriotism and Führer personality cult worship are quintessential expressions of Blue/Authoritarian values.

Specifically, the Nazis rejected the pluralistic values of the previous Orange/Achievist stage and the coming Green/Egalitarian stage in favor of a repressive collectivism unified around their racist Völkisch ideology and the established Adolf Hitler’s Führer Principle system of total authority.

So while capable of organized achievement aligned with the Orange level when beneficial to their cause, the Nazis are considered an archetypical example of destructive Blue/Authoritarian values run amok by most scholars who study Spiral Dynamics. Their worldview was rooted in an absolutist “Black or White” us-vs-them ethnocentric mentality.”

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Isn’t it funny how this chat-bot is more accurate, unbiased, and educated than any conservative pundit? I dare you to find any conservative pundit who can explain this issue to you as well as Claude 3 just did. This is how you assess the quality of someone’s worldview. You can already use AI to cut through a lot of bullshit, and we’re only two years into the AI revolution. Amazing! How is this thing so good?

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