Today, countless men and women in our nation suffer from the overwhelming addiction to methamphetamine (meth).
However, meth is not a recent invention. Adolph Hitler, who became addicted during World War II, used this powerful war-facilitating synthetic drug that stimulates the central nervous system, reduces fatigue and appetite, increases wakefulness, and a sense of well-being to wage war in Europe.
Nazi ideology was fundamentalist in its antidrug stance. Social use of drugs was considered both a sign of personal weakness and a symbol of the country’s moral decay in the wake of a traumatic and humiliating defeat in World War I.
But, meth was the privileged exception in the Third German Reich. While other drugs were banned or discouraged, meth was touted as a miracle product when it appeared on the market in the late 1930s. Energizing and confidence boosting, meth played into the Third Reich’s obsession with physical and mental superiority.
Dr. Otto F. Ranke, director of the Reich Research Institute of Defense Physiology, had high hopes that this drug would prove advantageous on the battlefield. His goal was to defeat the enemy with chemically enhanced soldiers who could give Germany a military edge by fighting harder and longer than their opponents. After testing the drug on a group of medical officers, Ranke believed that meth would be, “an excellent substance for rousing a weary squad.” He was right. He was also wrong.
September 1, 1939 – Poland – As German Panzer tank divisions, heavy artillery, SS infantry, and the Luftwaffe above cross the border into Poland, the first real military test of the drug takes place in the field of battle. The German war machine engulfs its eastern neighbor by October, with 100,000 Polish soldiers killed in the attack. The invasion introduces a new form of industrialized warfare; Blitzkrieg. This “lightning war” emphasized speed and surprise, catching the enemy off guard by the unprecedented quickness of the mechanized attack and advance. The weak link in the Blitzkrieg strategy was the soldiers, who were humans rather than machines. That is where meth introduces itself to the German on the battlefield.
April 1940 – Western Europe – Meth is being ingested by an alarming number of German infantry and tank divisions. Denmark and Norway surrender to Germany. The next month, sleepless German troops invade Holland, Belgium, and finally France. Panzer tank divisions cover 240 miles of challenging terrain, including the Ardennes Forest, in 11 days.
However, this “superhuman drug” proves that it is no match for the iron will of good men. Neither the stubborn, fearless, imperfect, and blunt Prime Minister of Great Britain nor his brave fighter pilots will surrender to Hitler’s unprovoked aggression. After his morning taste of Johnnie Walker Red, Winston Churchill makes it clear that he and his people will battle until the end.
After months of heavy bombing by the Luftwaffe, the British still refuse to surrender. Hitler and the commander in chief of the Luftwaffe, Hermann Goring, soon learn that they cannot take the small island with or without meth.
After the Battle of Britain, Nazi scientists learn that meth has some negative effects. German soldiers become addicted, eventually must sleep for days, and suffer from impaired judgment.
Perhaps the best example in history of how meth negatively affects a person was when Adolph Hitler ignored his generals and invaded the Soviet Union. The aftermath was only death, suffering, and the rise of the most evil nation known to man.