Uh-Oh, Mel Gibson Redux? "Will Smith -- Hitler, Schmitler; He Wasn't That Bad"

I see. Hitler thought that he "was saving the world" as opposed to conquering it. Well, I and millions of other people, disagree with you and Mr. Will Smith.

I read this the other day on Yahoo! News, but didn't post it because the headline had little to do with the actual content of the article.

I came from a country where english is not one of its main language yet i'm surprised to how a sentence with such a clear sentence with little room for ambiguity can be translated to its exactly opposite meaning, by a person who considers himself educated no less.
The most obvious example i can offer is The Bali Bombing. The bombers believe to their death that they are doing God's work by "cleansing" the island. I hate it, Will Smith hates it, Rob Walker here hates it, but that's a fact. It is utterly stupid and naive if you believe that people like Hitler knows that what he's doing is evil, that they set out to 'conquer the world' and laughing maniacally while sitting on a throne plotting his next move for the good guys like some cheesy black and white movie.
But if you do, you should read more and get out more

Sorry, from the wordy post above it is clear that you still do not understand that we are not even disagreeing about history facts. It's just a simple human concept that apparently you haven't grasp. Some people do what they do, believing with their twisted backward logic that they are doing the right thing.

It's like watching a tone-deaf American Idol contestant who believe that she is a diva got kicked out and calling the juries names, while the rest of the world know the simple fact that she is just a horrible singer. Again, i offer you the example of Bali bombers who chant the Koran all through the preceding of the trial believing in their mind that everyone else who condemns their actions has lost their way. That their sole purpose in life of genocide (they believe that Caucasian brought sins to the island) is endorsed by God. As a Muslim i am angered by what they do and how they justify it, especially since i lost friends due to their actions. But i also have to come to terms that some people brought out by an isolated society of zealots can have a very warped understanding of what is wrong or right. Like Hitler was. Let me put it simple, we DO NOT rationalize appalling actions, UNDERSTANDING what one does does not mean condoning it. I've read the comments on TMZ and i was relieved that most of the people understand what this fuss is all about.

Freedom of disagreement is when we argue over the facts to answer a question in a quiz or an exam, failing to understand the question is another thing.

I see. The KKK after Lynching and hanging black people, have their reasons, as well. The thinnking behind hate is best left to the academics--which, obviously, is not the situation here. As well, your comparisons, are idiosyncratic, a discussion about the rationalization and explanation of why people hate--is far removed from the cloak of hiding behind reasons to use it for other nefarious and deceptive purposes.

As far as your allegation as to me "failing to understand the question" I didn't pose the question--you did. I am free to dismiss it; and I have.

Wow....for a person who SOUND smart you really are transparently shallow. Well forgive me for all the excitement, I'll leave you to your quiet little corner where you, as you have pointed out,are the majority.

A piece of advice though,...maybe you ought to read other things than what you are reading now. Or communicate with other people more. Or watch Oprah.....

By using personal attacks, you clearly demonstrate a lack of ability to debate. Furthermore, your statement that I should "watch Oprah" and that I am "transparently shallow" because I happen to not agree with you, is a childish and churlish argument that want for a better word, is stupid and insulting. Because I don't accept your belief systems nor your argument is something that you have to deal with. As far as your "advice" save it for somebody who might care.

An update over at TMZ actually proves what I said earlier regarding libel. By putting quotes around 'hitler schmitler; he wsn't that bad' you're saying he actually spoke those words. This is libellous by any definition of the word and needs to be changed immediately unless you can provide a source proving he said that.

UPDATE: Will Smith's rep sent TMZ the following statement from him, which reads:
"It is an awful and disgusting lie. It speaks to the dangerous power of
an ignorant person with a pen. I am incensed and infuriated to have to
respond to such ludicrous misinterpretation. Adolph Hitler was a vile,
heinous, vicious killer responsible for one of the greatest acts of
evil committed on this planet."

It is always a wonder to me when people claim others are personally attacking them, only to sally forth with their own insults. 
"...that I am "transparently shallow" because I happen to not agree with
you, is a childish and churlish argument that want for a better word,
is stupid and insulting."    Calling someone stupid and insulting (even if you're just insinuating it here, which you clearly are) is worse than anyone else is saying.

Not everyone has some creepy mysterious agenda and it is disappointing you feel that way. Also anyone here is welcome to post any comment they want (as long as it falls in the Terms of Use, which some people are getting uncomfortably close to). Maybe just tone it down a bit folks. If anyone has an agenda it's the newspaper that released such a bs article on the slowest news day of the year, a few weeks after Smith's new mega-movie hit theatres. 

Also from the OSS psychological assessment of Hitler circa 1942.

"I follow my course with the precision and security of a sleepwalker."

Does that sound like someone who thinks what they're doing is wrong? From the assessment:

"It is this firm conviction that he has a mission and is under the
guidance and protection of Providence which is responsible in large
part for the contagious effect he has had on the German people.

Many people believe that this feeling of Destiny and mission have
come to Hitler through his successes. This is probably false. Later
in our study (Part V) we will try to show that Hitler has had this
feeling for a great many years although it may not have become a
conscious conviction until much later. In any case it was forcing
its way into consciousness during the war and has played a
dominant role in his actions ever since. Mend (one of his comrades),
for example, reports:"

So actually, not only did he think he was doing the right thing, but that fate/god were behind him and it was his duty to continue it. 

As someone else said, you do understand the distinction between knowing what he actually did was wrong, and still be able to accept that Hitler personally thought he was doing the right thing? The two are not mutually exclusive.

Actually we at NowPublic are responsible for content on the site. Once you put it here, even if you're quoting TMZ, it becomes something we need to concern ourselves with.

Since, as I've stated, Smith never once said those things I think the headline should be changed.

I think everyone would prefer an honest discussion rather than scorn and ridicule.

You're basically dismissing both a heavily scrutinized, long-standing document (The OSS psych assessment of hitler's psychology was taken from hundreds of
interviews of his closest confidantes and internal memos/letters) and the man's own personal memoirs as 'armchair analysis'.

ADL (Anti-Defamation League) Says Will Smith Didn't Praise Hitler. More coverage by People.com.