The singer, who died in June aged 50, was also convinced that he could have cured the Nazi leader’s evil, had he been alive to speak to him.
He said that the dictator – responsible for the murder of 6 million Jews – needed “help” and “therapy”.
Jackson made the claims during interviews with “Rabbi” Shmuley Boteach, with whom he became close friends. The conversations were recorded with Jackson’s approval and have been published in a new book – The Michael Jackson Tapes – which goes on sale in the US and online on Friday.
During one interview, Jackson said: “Hitler was a genius orator. To make that many people turn and change and hate, he had to be a showman and he was.”
Boteach then asked the star: “You believe that if you had an hour with Hitler you could somehow touch something inside of him?”
Jackson replied: “Absolutely. I know I could.”
He went on to argue that nobody is totally evil, adding: “You have to help them, give them therapy, teach them that somewhere, something in their life went wrong.”
Boteach, 42, who recorded more than 30 hours of interviews with Jackson, told The Sun: “Michael despised what Hitler had done. When it came to believing he could heal Hitler, that was hopeless naïvety.”
(Source: Telegraph UK)
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26 Responses
Dear YWN. Why the headline, Adolf Hitler Was a ‘Genius’. You guys are doing the same as the left wing media is doing to Isreal and the conservatives. After all MJ was a Gentile.
No question, this useless little housepainter had a gift for speaking…somehow he whipped up the people into adoration & total obedience with his rhetoric.
Sounds dangerously familiar & contemporary?
This from a man that needed the most therapy of all. But of course he can cure him!!
Mr. Boteach is a fool.
The Headline is quite misleading.
‘Was a ‘Genius’’ is quite different than ‘a genius orator.’
The two have completely different meanings.
What difference does it make what a singer says about psychology. Would you care about an astronomers view on economics?
Well, then give me an hour now with Jackson, and I’ll rehabilitate him! Nonsense
Time to put Boteach in cherem.
Who cares!
Don’t you mean: “The singer” who died in June
And: who recorded more than 30 hours of “interviews”
Also, I don’t know why everyone is tolerating the following comment from bestbubby about Hitler: “No question, this…housepainter had a gift.” How offensive.
Meanwhile, iztheman believes about MJ, “This from a man that…can cure him!!” No one wants to debate him on this?
Hmmmmmm, YWN?
I don’t see anything wrong with this article, other than the fact that the headline is grossly misleading. Oh and also, why do we care what MJ thought about him? This is so irrelevant to my life, and yours too!
Wishing all of klal yisrael a gmar chatima tova!
(bear in mind, neither speaking negatively about this rabbi nor reading up on michael jackson will prove helpful in that department)
kol tuv
No Joseph, Boteach is a total fool. What an ambarresment.
Tks for sharing that with us, I honestly don’t think
during these Yomim Noraim(or any other time for that matter) we could have survived without knowing Mr. Jackson’s opinion on Adolf Hitler’s phycological status?!!!
Oh, and a hearty Yoshar Koach to Shmuley Boteach for cheapening the atrocoties this man stood for and demeaning the kovod of our Kedoshim by giving this wacko the limelight on this issue….
For some reason I didn’t mourn Michael Jackson’s death. Now I know why. Let him burn in peace.
y is this genius of a menuval & toeivah being quoted here??!?!?!
YWN, you really need to be a bit more responsible with your headlines (and at other times inserting your opinions into a news story). If these innacuracies continue, you will lose your credibility as being a trustworthy news source. (Y’know like CNN).
Did Jacko know that Hitler didn’t like African-Americans? While he shook hands of German and Finnish winners, he refused to shake hands with colored American athlete Jesse Owens, who won four gold medals at the Olympic Games in 1936 in Berlin.
In a more serious reply to bestbubby:
>”had a gift for speaking…somehow he whipped up the people into adoration & total obedience with his rhetoric.
>Sounds dangerously familiar & contemporary?”
I think I see where you’re going with this–Glenn Beck may not be a top-notch orator, but I can see the argument that he has indeed whipped up people into obedience. I wouldn’t have thought of this myself, but it’s a fair and scary point–best example of a popular frenzy today, after all–so kudos to you.
to #21
I apologize that I assumed you would be intelligent enough to know the difference between Glenn Beck, a radio personality, & the President of the United States, & that you could see the difference between their level of power & influence. I must say, you give Glenn too much credit & not enough to Obama. That’s not nice.
But you are right, Glenn does speak for millions who don’t have a voice in this country.
To #17,torahis1- Boteach may think he’s a Rabbi, but by a Rabbi, he’s no Rabbi.
Name one good thing he’s done.
Do we care about anything this dead alien thinks?
Now now, bestbubby, you set yourself up for that one.
But between the two, seeing Beck stir up angry conservatives to storm town hall meetings, yelling and showing up with guns–that makes you more comfortable?
Mm-hmm.
To #26
Oh yes, much better than seeing a Black repeat of programmed Hitler Youth, only this time in the United States 2009 instead of Germany, 1939. Better than ACORN, CAIR, & other “community organizations” bullying people, bringing in unregistered people to vote & forcing others to either vote for Obama & his cronies or abandon any idea of voting at all.
I could continue, but it’s time to put up the cholent.
If you give me your address I’ll be happy to send you a complimentary copy of Glenn Beck’s new book: “Arguing with Idiots” I believe it’s called. I’m doing the arguing. You can read it & become educated. 🙂
#24 – sammygol, I agree. Now that’s really something new.
Bestbubby,
I don’t argue with people who compare Israel to the Nazis y’s, and I’m not going to do it with anyone who compares the president to them either.
Gmar chatima tova.
Once again, YWN most prolific writers continue to do what they do best: bash other Jews they don’t agree with and more importantly don’t know.
Its Erev Yom Kippur and knocking his smicha, as if your’s is better, clearly shows the frunkeit of people here. You don’t like MJ, kol hakavod, he was not one of Amcha Yisroel. But to just denigrate someone, who you don’t know, whose work you clearly don’t know, is not the actions of frum yiddin. Mi K’amcha Yisroel?