Setting Matters Straight

Recently while turning the dial on the radio I happened upon a talk radio program out of Albany, New York. The caller was attempting to make the point that the Holocaust never hap­pened. The host of the show rebutted him, but in poor fashion, relying on emotion, not logic and facts.

The signal faded shortly thereafter and I went on to another station, but the discussion lingered behind and stuck in my memory. Friends, the Holocaust happened, and if anything it’s understated and un­derreported. I have studied World War II and the Holocaust for well over fifty years and am as sure of its happening as I am sure of the sun rising tomorrow.

The big question always asked is how it happened. Let me tell you two stories that may shed some light on that question.

I was stationed in Germany for nine­teen months in 1964 and 1965. I worked with a large amount of German nation­als

who were mostly in their forties and fifties and had been employed by the U.S. Army for a dozen or fifteen years. They were an interesting bunch and al­most all were WW II veterans. My best friend was probably Helmut Schmidt, who was the dispatcher at the motor pool. Quitting time was at 4:30 but Schmidty and I would end things at 3 or so and have a couple of beers. This was permitted by the way in their em­ployment contract. One day I asked him if they knew about the death camps and concentra­tion camps. He said no. I told him he was full of it and we went at it pretty good for about fifteen minutes when he finally lost his temper with me and said, “Why do you always ask about this? They were only Jews.” The statement, “They were only Jews” speaks clearly and eloquently in explaining the German mindset.

There it was, the truth. I have never forgotten that moment and if I close my eyes I can see and hear Helmut as clear­ly as if it were yesterday. The second story I can share with you took place some thirty years ago. I had a friend who came to this country essentially penniless. He was born in Germany in 1930 or so, lived through the war relatively unscathed, went to college and accepted a job here in the states. He settled in Rhode Island, worked for a large firm, and then struck out on his own. Through brilliance and hard work and long hours he built a company and within ten or fifteen years was worth fifty million dollars give or take a few million.

We shared a few common interests, sports, politics and drinking. He loved to have a drinking friend who would drop all the pretensions, be totally hon­est, debate the problems of the day and who would drink beer with him all night. One night he said to me, “Bill have you been watching the Olympics on TV?” I said, “No Ernst, I have not. Why do you ask? The reply came in sort of a guarded fashion. It was, “well, I thought you might have noticed how the medals are being distributed.” We were both well oiled, and this sort of fencing about was a favorite ploy of his, in our little battle of wits. I said to him, “O.K., Ernst, cut the bull. What is your point?”

“My point is merely this,” he replied. “Have you noticed the East German women are collecting a lot of medals in Gymnastics, Track and Field, and Swim­ming?”

“No, why?” was my reply. He lowered his voice, leaned over the table and said words to this effect: “You must realize that communist East Ger­many has been one of the most isolated countries in the world since the end of World War II, firmly under the domi­nance of their Russian masters. Now even a dullard like you can figure out the rest of the story.”

I looked at him and said “I have no idea where you’re going with this. What are you trying to say?” “You moron,” he exclaimed. “If I must draw a picture of this for you I will. These tall, beautiful specimens of German womanhood are the result of Hitler’s breeding and building a super race of Aryans. Can’t you see this? This is what happens when you get rid of all the mongrels and undesirables and you refuse to let them breed with pure Ary­ans. Don’t you understand, this verifies everything? Hitler was right.” I looked at him and said, “Ernst, you are an extraordinary man. Just when I think I have you figured out you throw me another curve ball.” I then instruct­ed the waitress to bring a couple more, quickly.

To close the book on Ernst, he trav­eled to Europe for a vacation in 1983 and died in and auto accident on the Autobahn. His mistress told me she’s convinced he was murdered.

So what do we have when we com­bine these two separate and distinct tales? First of all, the feeling that Ger­mans felt the Jews were an impediment, an obstacle to a new and greater Germa­ny and that they, along with the gypsies, homosexuals, the mentally and physi­cally impaired were to be removed and discarded by whatever methods that are required, no matter how brutal.

Secondly, that Hitler had hypnotized the people into believing him and his plans for the great and glorious Third Reich he was building.

Please remember if you will, that when Hitler took over as Chancellor in 1933, Germany was in the throes of the depression along with the rest of the world, their currency was valueless, ruined by runaway inflation, unemploy­ment was rampant and breadlines were everywhere. Hitler took power, put people back to work, reinstalled a pride in the German people and literally put the country back on it’s feet. By 1936 they were able to host the summer Olympics, an amazing feat accomplished in three short years. The question now to be considered is, why would you expect the German peo­ple to not follow this man? One last point, these two stories are given to illustrate a point. I have heard/read variations of them innumerable times so I do not hold up the two stories as total proof of my assertions.

Next week - proof of the Holocaust and some facts that are not clearly un­derstood or that have been forgotten.