Hitler's Attachment

Adolf Hitler is one of the most interesting people in history to me. Not for the evil acts he did, but for his use as a labeling tool. His history is twisted and turned to be used in ways to attach him to people or groups as a labeling tool. If his history has any truth or myth that can be had in common with you then you are also a mass murderer.

His name is again a topic as the murderer of a guard at the Holocaust Museum was a white supremacist. The attachment of Hitler though is used in so many other ways. His National Socialism is used to target Liberals as socialist and the same. His supposed vegetarianism is attached to vegetarians and liberals. He is also made out as an atheist and used to assume all atheist assume to be like him. there are many more, but let's start with this so far.

National Socialist/Liberal
This one is based more on the name and less on any policies. National is the key word here as he wanted people of the state to assume a socialist view of owning the state. This would make them a much more energized group and feel a larger part of the group. Nothing the state did to control businesses was socialist, which involves the workers owning everything. He also closed all trade unions, which is most definitely not a socialist view. You can read more of this myth here.

Vegetarian/Liberals and Animal Rights
His Vegetarianism was based on propaganda by the state that he neither drank, nor smoked, nor ate meat, and was devoted above all to his people. The smoking is true, but he was known to drink and also had a mistress. Regardless the vegetarianism is also believed to be from a doctors advice to avoid excessive flatulence and sweating. Either way it was common knowledge that Hitler enjoyed sausages, liver and caviar. That is definitely not a vegetarian, but he might have been trying to be one. Slate had a good article on an author out to disprove this one.

Atheist
This one has no basis in any fact except the leap of faith that Hitler's open uses of God were for appearance only and to cover his true beliefs. Using the sources from this Wikipedia page you can see he was raised Roman Catholic, but had been in and out of the church during his later years. There are many unknowns in this as many people "lose faith" from time to time, but even his quoting from Mein Kampf shows some religious feelings.

"What we must fight for is to safeguard the existence and the reproduction
of our race...so that our people may mature for the fulfillment of the mission
allotted it by the creator of the universe...Peoples that bastardize themselves,
or let themselves be bastardized, sin against the will of eternal
Providence."

"The folkish-minded man, in particular, has the sacred duty, each in his own denomination, of making people stop just talking superficially of God's will, and actually fulfill God's will, and not let God's word be desecrated. For God's will gave men their form, their essence and their abilities. Anyone who destroys His work is declaring war on the Lord's creation, the divine will."

Some other signs of religious belief include the belt buckles of the soldiers saying Gott Mit Uns or God is with us. Here is a through list of religious quotes from Hitler.

Hitler is a strong label as his attachment causes a reaction of disgust and repulsion from all. Regardless of disproving these myths they will still be used to attach him to different groups, but knowing it isn't true can help confront the label no matter who it is used on.