even dorothy thompson by the way, i talked about how she misjudged hitler initially. after she comes back and he takes power, she revises her thoughts quickly. she meets germans that she knew before and stunned by how they have changed, and how they accept this new rule. but further down the line, as war is broken out and remember these many americans stay all the way through 1941. because they are not -- america is not at war yet. and they even people like shiver and others who are furious with the nazi movement, and what hitler is doing, keep -- make a point of reminding themselves in the diaries that there are many germans that are not a lined with this. i do not want to go blind with hatred for jgermans because of what is happening under hitler. sure? all right, and then dave, yes. >> thank you, i'm wonder if you addressed the question of why hitler declared war on the united states after pearl harbor. after all, injugermany did not attack us? >> this gets to the question of rationality of hitler and irrationality of hitler. just like his plan to conquer all of eu

for instance, dorothy thompson, one of the most famous correspondents in that era. at the end of 1931, a little more than a year after -- and before he's ready to take power. and she has an interview with him. and she walks in the room and promptly says that i thought i was coming to meet the future leader -- future dictator of germany. but within 50 seconds, i realized i was not. this was -- look at the startling insignificance of this man. and she goes onto describe how strange a character he is. how his kind of feminine side and all of this and dismisses him. that even if he gets some power, he woent be able to exercise that power. but we do have to remember that it wasn't just some of these americans that got it wrong. some of the most poignant seeds in hitlerland are discussions between americans living in germa germany and german jews. the first in munich working for him, a man by the name of paul dray and they actually observe the early hitler rallies together. and grey kept telling him, nothing will happen. the germans will never elect such a figure. they're

. >> well, most famously, for instance, dorothy thompson, the renowned woman correspondent of that era. she goes in to interview hitler in 1931, in late 1931, when his party's really on the rise and everyone is expecting him to take power. and she interviews him, and she comes out and writes the first sentence of her article, which says, "i was expecting to meet the future dictator of germany. in 50 seconds, i realized i was not, because i saw the startling insignificance of this man." and she goes on about what a weird character he is. >> warner: a little man. >> a little man, somewhat effeminate, quote-unquote, which is something that several americans remarked upon. and somehow not able to stand up to the serious politicians in germany. >> warner: then there was this young diplomat at the embassy, he was the assistant military attache truman smith. even early in the '20s, when hitler was just, and his brown shirts, and his national socialist party down to a very he saw something. >> and he meets hitler in munich when he's this local agitator. and he sees that he is, yes, he's a fana