Could something like it happen again? Something like what? Hitler's coming to power in Germany and what followed from it. The question is posed and answered by Professor Ian Kershaw. He considers aspects of the contemporary world that echo that earlier period, but concludes that these do not provide a close parallel to what happened then:
Mercifully, what happened in Germany in 1933, and its aftermath, will remain a uniquely terrible episode in history. What took place then reminds us even so of the illusory assumption that democracy will always be a favored choice of a population torn apart by war, facing enormous privations and burning with resentment at national humiliation through perceived foreign interference. It also reminds us - if such a reminder is necessary - of the need for international cooperation to restrain potential "mad dogs" in world politics before they are dangerous enough to bite.