#228 | Meth and Mayhem: How Rampant Drug Usage Influenced Hitler, Nazi Germany, and World War II
Quick SUMMARY:
Douglas Vigliotti explores "Blitzed: Drugs in the Third Reich” by Norman Ohler, a history book that reads like a novel and offers a unique and fresh perspective on World War II. Discover the hidden role of cocaine, opiates, and methamphetamines in Nazi Germany and on the German military strategy, blitzkrieg, propelling the Wehrmacht’s early successes of the war. Vigliotti also shares intriguing insights into Hitler's personal drug use and its outsized influence on world history.
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What’s Inside THE EPISODE?
Welcome back to another insightful episode of the "Books for Men" podcast, hosted by Douglas Vigliotti. In this episode, Douglas delves into the riveting historical account presented in "Blitzed: Drugs in the Third Reich" by Norman Ohler. Published in 2017, this book offers a unique perspective on World War II by exploring the extensive use of methamphetamines and other drugs by the German armed forces. Let's break down the key insights and takeaways from this episode, providing you with a comprehensive guide to understanding the hidden history of drug use in Nazi Germany.
Introduction to "Blitzed" and Its Author
Douglas Vigliotti kicks off the episode by introducing the featured book, "Blitzed: Drugs in the Third Reich," and its author, Norman Ohler. Ohler, a German writer with a background in both fiction and nonfiction, has garnered significant attention for his intriguing exploration of drug use in Nazi Germany. His previous works also delve into the history of Nazi Germany, but it is "Blitzed" that stands out for its shocking revelations and engaging narrative style.
The Core Theme: Drugs in the Third Reich
The subtitle of the book, "Drugs in the Third Reich," encapsulates its core theme. Ohler reveals how drugs like cocaine, opiates, and methamphetamines were not only prevalent but also widely accepted in German society. These substances were often disguised as legal pharmaceuticals, with some companies even incorporating meth into chocolates and promoting them as miracle cures. This normalization of drug use set the stage for their extensive application within the German armed forces, known as the Wehrmacht.
Key Insights from "Blitzed"
1. Methamphetamine and the Blitzkrieg
Historical Context: Douglas shares a striking quote from historian Peter Steenkamp, who asserts that "blitzkrieg was guided by methamphetamine." This statement highlights the pivotal role of meth in the rapid early successes of the German military during World War II.
Impact on Soldiers: The use of meth allowed soldiers to operate without sleep, contributing to their sense of invincibility and relentless advance through Europe. This drug-induced energy and confidence were further fueled by the propaganda they believed.
2. The Duality of Adolf Hitler's Persona
Public Image vs. Private Reality: Douglas touches on the irony of Adolf Hitler's public image as a teetotaler who condemned drug use while privately relying on a cocktail of narcotics to manage his health and stress.
Role of Theodor Morell: Hitler's personal physician, Theodor Morell, administered various drugs to him, including a substance called "uchitel," which was akin to a speedball. This private addiction influenced Hitler's decision-making and the course of history.
3. Normalization of Drug Use in Society
Pharmaceutical Disguise: Ohler discusses how drugs were often disguised as legal pharmaceuticals, making them widely accepted in society. Companies incorporated meth into everyday products, promoting them as miracle cures.
Cultural Acceptance: This cultural acceptance of drug use set the stage for their extensive application within the military, highlighting a lesser-known aspect of World War II history.
Key Takeaways from the Episode
Douglas Vigliotti appreciates "Blitzed" for shedding light on a lesser-known aspect of World War II, reminding listeners that there is always a new angle to explore in historical narratives. He praises Ohler's well-researched writing and engaging storytelling, which makes the book accessible and enjoyable to read.
Actionable Advice for Readers
Explore New Perspectives: When reading historical accounts, look for books that offer unique perspectives on well-explored topics. "Blitzed" is a prime example of how a fresh angle can provide new insights into familiar historical events.
Engage with Well-Researched Works: Choose books that are well-researched and written by credible authors. Norman Ohler's meticulous research and engaging narrative style make "Blitzed" a compelling read.
Reflect on Historical Narratives: Reflect on the duality of public personas and private realities in historical figures. Understanding these complexities can provide a deeper understanding of historical events and their impact.
Connect with Douglas Vigliotti
In closing, Douglas encourages listeners to subscribe to the podcast and consider rating it, as these actions help reach a wider audience and inspire more men to read. He also promotes his own book, "Aristotle for Novelists," which offers insights into storytelling principles, and invites listeners to connect with him through his website and Instagram.
Conclusion
This episode of "Books for Men" provides a compelling discussion of "Blitzed," highlighting its unique perspective on drug use in Nazi Germany and the engaging narrative style of its author, Norman Ohler. By exploring the hidden history of drug use in the Third Reich, Douglas Vigliotti offers listeners valuable insights and encourages them to delve deeper into historical narratives. Whether you're a history buff or simply looking for a captivating read, "Blitzed" is a book that promises to enlighten and entertain.
By breaking down the key insights and takeaways from "Blitzed," this blog post aims to provide a comprehensive guide for listeners of the "Books for Men" podcast. With actionable advice and detailed explanations, readers can gain a deeper understanding of the hidden history of drug use in Nazi Germany and appreciate the unique perspective offered by Norman Ohler's work.
READ THE TRANSCRIPT:
Welcome back to Books for Men, a podcast to inspire more men to read and bring together men who do. So this week I have a crazy book to share with you. One that was a lot of fun to read and was shocking, I guess in many ways. It is called “Blitzed” by Norman Ohler, and it came out in 2017. It is around 300 pages or so. It is a nonfiction book. It's a history book, and I will share more about it and some of my larger takeaways and all of that good stuff in just a moment. First, I wanted to remind you that I have a new book out called “Aristotle for Novelists: 14 Timeless Principles on the Art of Story”. If you'd like to find out more about that, you can by visiting the website AristotleforNovelists.com. Also on that website, there is a ten-question assessment that one could take to determine if they have a working story based on Aristotelian principles. It is designed to be yes or no and easy to answer.
01:15 - And again, all of that is available on the website AristotleforNovelists.com. And the link for that will be in the show notes. I don't know if you could hear it in my voice, but I am just getting over a sickness, so I apologize if I'm a bit nasally or sound a little congested today, but we will do our best to record this episode with clarity. On that note, let's turn to the author at hand Norman Ohler. Who is he? So he's a German author of seven books, four novels, actually, of which his debut was in 1998, and his more recent three are nonfiction books all centered around the history of Nazi Germany. Like last year's titled “Tripped”, which talks about the origination of psychedelic usage in Nazi Germany and how it intertwined with the CIA and American culture today. But he rose to widespread popularity or prominence, I guess, with the book that I am sharing with you today, and in my estimation, for good reason, because it is truly unique.
02:19 - So, as the subtitle of this book suggests, it is a historical account of drugs in the Third Reich. That's the actual subtitle of the book, “Blitzed: Drugs in the Third Reich”. It does show that, without a doubt, but it also shows the widespread saturation of drugs like cocaine, opiates, and methamphetamines, often under the disguise of sanctioned pharmaceuticals. So legal drugs in the German culture, things like Pervitin, I don't know how you pronounce it. That's one of the big ones, which was essentially meth. It was such an accepted thing that certain companies even put this into chocolates and all kinds of stuff under the guise, really, that it was like a panacea, almost something like caffeine, except better. Or as the author sort of jokingly, or I should say sarcastically writes “Pervitin allowed the individual to function in the dictatorship. National socialism in pill form.” And of course, this was a natural introduction to the usage of these drugs for the German armed forces or the Wehrmacht is what they were called.
03:29 - But because they were not viewed as harmful or illegal, they were widely accepted and utilized heavily to help propel the Wehrmacht to its early success in World War Two through Poland and France. As the historian Dr. Peter Steenkamp says in the book, “Blitzkrieg was guided by methamphetamine. If not to say that blitzkrieg was founded on methamphetamine.” And Ohler doubles down on that by writing, “The blitzkrieg by the Germans who no longer had to sleep. Had breached all boundaries. The seed was sown for future orgies of violence. There was an impression that these soldiers could be stopped by nothing and no one. And they gradually appeared to believe their own propaganda, which claimed they were truly superior.” And even documents in the book that I think it was something like 35 million tablets were ordered of this stuff for the armed forces or something like that, something crazy. And if we just stop and think about this for a minute, it's literally the German army hopped up on meth, marching through Europe on no sleep, commanded by their generals to not sleep for days and days.
04:56 - And all this is documented. It's literally the craziest scenario that you can possibly imagine. Murderous meth out Nazis Is running through Germany, not being able to feel bullets and pain and all kinds of stuff that meth is known to invoke in a human being. But there was a kind of willful ignorance. At least that's how it's painted in the book. Everyone has their own reasons for why they are turning their head in some fashion, all based on self-interest and power and all these political reasons. None. Probably larger than what the second part of the book documents, and that is the two-faced narcissism of Hitler, who presents himself as a teetotaler, this squeaky clean leader who actually vilified the use of drugs. And this was actually part of his delusional vision for the German people to be this pure culture that is above everything and everyone, and they always do the right thing. Their way is the right way, and all that stuff that we have come to read about and learn about Hitler over the years. It's like the author writes in the book, “The myth of Hitler as an anti-drug teetotaler who made his own needs secondary, was an essential part of Nazi ideology and was presented again and again by the mass media.”
06:29 - Of course, what makes this super interesting and outright evil is that this couldn't have been farther from the truth. He may have started out like a teetotaler, but as the pressure increased, and health problems started to persist. He, just like all of the other Germans, turned to drugs. He basically had his own personal doctor administering him, among many other treatments, daily. Eukodal, which is essentially a speedball. William Burroughs, the beat poet, has this quote where he says, “You could all is like a combination of junk and c (cocaine). Trust the Germans to concoct some truly awful shit.” And so ultimately, like it's been documented so many times before, it was Hitler's narcissism that drove him to doing and making decisions that were detrimental to not just him and his own people, but society at large. Much of it was guided under the usage of heavy, heavy narcotics on a very consistent basis. This really good passage that the author writes when he's talking about the first time that Hitler got administered this drug, use it all by his personal physician, Theodore Morell, who followed them around everywhere.
07:50 - Essentially, it was one of Hitler's closest confidants, even in isolation. As the years went on, mostly because he needed the assistance of these drugs to survive and live. But, he writes, “Morell debated with himself whether to use this hard drug, the moment of departure for the important meeting with Mussolini was edging closer. Patient A seemed apathetic, was hunched over, and talking to no one. Morell knew that Eukodal would pep the Fuhrer straight away and remove the violent, spastic constipation that probably had a psychological cause. But he saw the possibility that after trying it just once, the addiction-prone dictator would be very unwilling to give up the supposed nectar of the gods. After only 2 to 3 weeks of regular use, you could all can make a person physically dependent on it. On the other hand, world history seemed at stake the chance that Hitler might not be up to a state meeting of the Axis powers, or that he might even cancel it, was unthinkable. Morell decided to take the risk. He injected the new drug subcutaneously under the skin. It was a momentous decision.”
09:12 - And just to show you how bad the addiction got. As the years waned on the author documents. At one point later in the book Hitler was taking anywhere from 120 to 150 tablets and receiving anywhere from 8 to 10 injections per week of all kinds of drugs, for all kinds of different reasons, all under the notion of it being for his health via this personal doctor. And they went to great lengths to keep the fact that Hitler was in good health and good standing and rock solid and strong and all of this stuff. As the years went on. But it was all basically a lie. All right, so before I wrap this up, I should share just a couple of large takeaways. Obviously, I've already shared a bunch. But one being that I truly think that this is a fresh angle on something that has been written about extensively. So. World War two being a subject that I don't think you could ever get exhausted because of the gravity of it, but I will say that there are plenty of things that you can read about, both in a fiction and nonfiction sense or watch for that matter.
10:31 - There is no shortage of content on World War II, Hitler and the Holocaust, and all of that stuff, but this truly provided a unique angle at this, and that's not always something easy to do. But for me, it's just a reminder that it's always possible to look at something from another angle and provide fresh insight. And perhaps that's all we truly have to offer, is the angle at which we can come at a subject matter. And of course, it's well-researched. It's funny, actually, every time I read one of these books, I always feel like it's going to be a lot longer than it is. But then I'm reminded once I start reading it, that a great deal of the page count is taken up by notes and resources, and all the research that goes into writing a book like this. So it does read significantly shorter than the billed 304 pages. And lastly, before I close this up, I would be remiss if I didn't mention the propulsive ness of the narrative that I believe stems from the author's experience as a novelist.
11:38 - Either way, it's there. And that's not always the case when you're reading a history book. This makes it a breeze to read one that has you sort of on the edge of your seat, almost. So, along with the obvious eccentricity, and absurd nature of what the book is actually about, the style in which it's told will actually make it a super fun book to read. So that's all I've got. I hope you enjoyed today's episode. As always. If you did, I want to remind you to please click the subscribe button on whatever podcast platform you're listening to this on, or if you have it in you to take two seconds, literally two seconds to rate the podcast, because either of those two things will go a long way, and getting it in front of more people and inspiring more men to read. As a reminder, if you want to know more about my new book, Aristotle for Novelists: “14 Timeless Principles on the Art of Story”, all you have to do is visit AristotleforNovelists.com.
12:37 - The link for that will be in the show notes. If you want to connect with me, there are two different ways that you could do that, either on my website, DouglasVigliotti.com, or finding me on Instagram @DouglasVigliotti. It's the only social media that I have. So again, thank you so much for listening. And if you want more information on this podcast, including signing up for the monthly newsletter, then all you have to do is visit the website BooksforMen.org.
