English Translation

S - 3 - 2. Instead of a constructive political idea - the liberation of the peoples - a propaganda system consisting of a combination of changing arguments has emerged. It is not incomprehensible in itself that the existing political-spiritual valuum is filled with propaganda. It must be clear, however, that a prop agenda that is not anchored in strong moral impulses and firm political goals is inferior to our opponents' theories because they know exactly what they want and are therefore able to give the impression of consistency and the appearance of morality. The creative talents of the nation /e.g. Heinrich von Kleist, Fichte, Adam Müller, Ernst Moritz Arndt, Jahn, who was led by young Dahlmann, Sehlegel/ i.e. by the productive intellectual forces, are today the focus of the reproducible gei- tic forces of the propaganda sector. As important as good propaganda is, it is clear that the German people can only survive the present world struggle if they use the politically shaped creative forces of their spirit and at the same time see that this war is also total in demanding a spiritual and moral decision. 3. The use of the German spirit has, as is often claimed, not been done so far, because the diversity characteristic of German intellectual life disturbs the uniformity desired by propaganda. However, broad sections of the people of Germany perceive this uniformity as a preference. They see in it the apportionment of some experts in central political departments, who want to make their mental insignificance a norm for all and therefore see a political danger in the polyphony of the German mind. Finally, this tendency towards uniformity had the effect that our propaganda had not awakened in any country the anti-Bolshevik forces themselves: if one beats everything mentally over a groin, with which believing Catholics or Protestants no longer could speak in their language, with the humanistically educated scholar of the West no longer in the categories of Western philosophy, then that internal suicide of the anti Bolshevist forces of Europe, which had taken place almost everywhere under German protection or through German guilt, was the inevitable consequence. Today it is essential to give up the unilateral determination on our alleged "world-view" friends /Mussert, Quisling, Degre- le/: one should address all European forces opposed to Bolshevism and Americanism, regardless of which ideology they represent. This presupposes, however, that the diversity of the German spirit is also taken into account more closely within. 4. Very often, as a crucial lack of our position, the lack of a universally binding moral responsibility is claimed. Our policy in Ukraine and in other countries has clearly demonstrated that leading politicians lack not only the necessary foresight, but above all moral maturity.