Best speech

Sadly, the word "speech" does not bring to mind anything unique from my own experience. I am not huge on speeches, and the ones I have heard have obviously not left enough of an impact on me to remember them well. Therefore, I have decided to do things a bit differently and choose a speech that I found to be both influential and controversial.

Hitler.

In his address to the Reichstag on January 30th, 1939, Hitler spoke to the German people about the "Jewish question," and uttered the following words:

"If the international finance-Jewry inside and outside Europe should succeed in plunging the nations into a world war yet again, then the outcome will not be the victory of Jewry, but rather the annihilation of the Jewish race in Europe!"

 Clearly, this was not only an influential speech, but it laid the groundwork for the annihilation of over 5 million Jewish people in Europe. Hitler constructed his speeches in such a way that cut deep within the German people, tugging on their pathos and targeting the precise emotions that would get them to follow his will. While Germany was down, in a terrible economic depression, Hitler gave the people a scapegoat to blame for their hardship, and managed to bend an entire nation to his sadistic will. I am not agreeing with him by saying his speech was good, I am merely recognizing the fact that Hitler was an excellent, persuasive speech maker. It is amazing what one can do with the right words said to the right audience.