Learning From History: Interpreting Godwin's Law
Godwin's Law seems as old as the Internet itself. It's the principle that, given enough time, any online discussion will inevitably lead to some mention of Hitler or the Nazis. Today, however, some people take Godwin's statement as a prescription: Don't mention Hitler or Nazis in an online discussion (unless you're discussing something specifically to do with Hitler and the Nazis). I recall once, a year or two ago, I made a comparison between Ayn Rand and the Nazis on a friend's Facebook wall. I think the analogy was that Ayn Rand is to capitalism what the Nazis were to nationalism. My point, which I made explicitly clear, was that you cannot criticize capitalism by criticizing Ayn Rand, just as you cannot criticize nationalism by criticizing the Nazis. (Edit: Actually, I think I phrased it this way: Defending capitalism by defending Ayn Rand is like defending nationalism by defending the Nazis. But the point is the same.) I think ...