
#481 – Norman Ohler: Hitler, Nazis, Drugs, WW2, Blitzkrieg, LSD, MKUltra & CIA
from Lex Fridman Podcast
by Lex Fridman
Published: Fri Sep 19 2025
Show Notes
Norman Ohler is a historian and author of “Blitzed: Drugs in the Third Reich,” a book that investigates the role of psychoactive drugs, particularly stimulants such as methamphetamine, in the military history of World War II. It is a book that two legendary historians Ian Kershaw and Antony Beevor give very high praise for its depth of research. Norman also wrote “Tripped: Nazi Germany, the CIA, and the Dawn of the Psychedelic Age”, and he is working on a new book “Stoned Sapiens” looking at the history of human civilization through the lens of drugs.
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Transcript:
https://lexfridman.com/norman-ohler-transcript
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EPISODE LINKS:
Stoned Sapiens Substack: https://substack.com/@stonedsapiens
Norman’s X: https://x.com/normanohler
Norman’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/normanohler
Norman’s YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Norman-Ohler
Norman’s Website: https://www.normanohler.de
Norman’s books: https://amzn.to/46uNS18
Blitzed: https://amzn.to/4mmY2XC
The Bohemians: https://amzn.to/3KubPhK
Tripped: https://amzn.to/4nEy7eX
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OUTLINE:
()– Introduction
()– Sponsors, Comments, and Reflections
()– Drugs in post-WWI Germany
()– Nazi rise to power
()– Hitler’s drug use
()– Response to historian criticism
()– Pervitin
()– Blitzkrieg and meth
()– Erwin Rommel (Crystal Fox)
()– Dunkirk
()– Hitler’s drug addiction
()– Methamphetamine
()– Invasion of Soviet Union
()– Cocaine
()– Hitler’s last days
()– German resistance against Nazis
()– Totalitarianism
()– Stoned Sapiens – Drugs in human history
()– Religion
()– LSD, CIA, and MKUltra
()– Writing on drugs
()– Berlin night clubs
()– Greatest book ever written