| Statements below are from Mein Kampf (Hitler, 1924), except for #3, which is from a pamphlet by Joseph Goebbels. |
Statements below are from Blood Sacrifice and the Nation: Totem Rituals and the American Flag (Marvin, 1999). |
| 1. |
The most precious blood (in the First World War) sacrificed itself joyfully, in the faith that it was preserving the independence of the fatherland. |
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| 1. |
Blood sacrifice preserves the nation. At the behest of the group, the lifeblood of community members must be shed. Warfare enacts the ritual of blood sacrifice. |
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| 2. |
To be “national” means to act with a boundless and all-embracing love for the people, and even to die for it. |
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| 2. |
The irrefutable sign of national faith (patriotism) is making one’s body an offering, a sacrifice. |
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| 3. |
(Joseph Goebbels): Only willingness to sacrifice one's life transforms a collection of individuals into a people, and in a higher sense, a nation. |
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| 3. |
The creation of sentiments strong enough to hold the group together periodically require the willing deaths of a significant portion of its members. |
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| 4. |
The state-forming forces are the ability and will of the individual to sacrifice himself for the totality. |
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| 4. |
Society depends on the death of its own members at the hands of the group. |
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| 5. |
To be “social” means that every individual is ready to die for the community. |
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| 5. |
To die for others is the ultimate expression of faith in social existence. |
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