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An enjoyable read. This quote summarised a lot of what this book meant to me: "Lying propaganda – and in general it always is – stirs people to hatred and is the basis for much cruelty in war".

Every government practices propaganda, and often it is politicians that misrepresent a situation to get the population conscripted into a war. This book represents what an ordinary German experienced fighting on the front lines. He is not making any excuses for Nazi atrocities at all, but what we do see is that the Russians were pretty cruel, and supposedly the US stood aside allowing some things to happen. The treatment of the ordinary German soldiers after the war does not exactly paint a rosy picture of the conquerors.

All wars have their heroes, just as they also have their villains. Populations only get told what they "need to hear" by their governments. I've read many fictional stories about WWII, and of course we hear about the lives of great generals and Prime Ministers, but this was a fascinating insight into an ordinary soldier's war. There was nothing boring about it at all.

A quick but interesting read. What was formulated in 1928 holds 100% true today still, although then propaganda was used equally for "good" and bad reasons.

"The conscious and intelligent manipulation of the organized habits and opinions of the masses is an important element in democratic society. Those who manipulate this unseen mechanism of society constitute an invisible government which is the true ruling power of our country. We are governed, our minds are molded, our tastes formed, our ideas suggested, largely by men we have never heard of."

"We have voluntarily agreed to let an invisible government sift the data and high-spot the outstanding issues so that our field of choice shall be narrowed to practical proportions."

"The minority has discovered a powerful help in influencing majorities."

"Any society, whether it be social, religious or political, which is possessed of certain beliefs, and sets out to make them known, either by the spoken or written words, is practicing propaganda."

"Propaganda becomes vicious and reprehensive only when its authors consciously and deliberately disseminate what they know to be lies, or when they aim at effects which they know to be prejudicial to the common good."

"Many a congressman, in framing his platform, follows the suggestions of a district boss whom few persons outside the political machine have ever heard of."

"A presidential candidate may be “drafted” in response to “overwhelming popular demand,” but it is well known that his name may be decided upon by half a dozen men sitting around a table in a hotel room."

"If you can influence the leaders, either with or without their conscious cooperation, you automatically influence the group which they sway."

"Trotter and Le Bön concluded that the group mind does not think in the strict sense of the word. In place of thoughts it has impulses, habits and emotions. In making up its mind its first impulse is usually to follow the example of a trusted leader."

"No serious sociologist any longer believes that the voice of the people expresses any divine or specially wise and lofty idea."

"The voice of the people expresses the mind of the people, and that mind is made up for it by the group leaders in whom it believes and by those persons who understand the manipulation of public opinion. It is composed of inherited prejudices and symbols and cliches and verbal formulas supplied to them by the leaders."

"The newspaper man looks to him for news. And by his power of giving or withholding information the politician can often effectively censor political news."