Kenko said:
The germans can take pride in their fallen ancestors. The vast majority of the german army were fighting to for their home and fatherland like everyone else did. Only assholes were the real nazi's. The SS, Gestapo and so on. They pretty much coerced germany into war. Everyday germans didnt really have much choice but either shut up and do as they say or get shot like the rest.
Sadly its not so easy.
A part of the Police were "choosen" to form "Einsatzkommandos" at WWII. They had to exterminate partisans, sinti,roma, jews and "assoziale" (criminals, homeless etc) while the army was invading Russia (unternehmen Barbarossa)
This people were free to deny. No consequences. But most of them didnt gon home. they stayed. (they thought of it as a "liability", a "duty".)
That were fathers, men with families ans maybe nice people too. (one was a poet)
(i´ve read a book about the Einsatzkommando.)
and the members of the Einsatzkommandos-they disliked their "work" (some diarys were found, so the though of few members of the ek were documentated.They were also citated in the book I mentioned above)
but they´ve done it. Some of theme were traumatised, but soon they got accustomed.
At school, we learn much about, because wo should not forget about. We hear often: "this should never ever happen again"
But if you demonize only the fuhrer and the politics, you taking the responsibility away.
The holocaust began early. soon after the nazis won the "election", laws were made. Afer a short time the jews were excluded from social life. They were demonized. At the reichskristallnacht their synagogues were burnt, their shops destroyed and many of them died. (At my hometown, one was shot in the synagogue,then they was set on fire, burning the dying boy inside)
The civilans didnt help. maybe they feared the ss, but many of them thought of the jews as "untermenschen".
I dont feel guilty for the things my greatgrandparents and grandparents may have done. but i am interested to know why the "normal german" could live at this times so peaceful*. but these things you don´t learn at school.
i think, that´s very,very important to know, why normal policemen learnt killing children, women, men. Its important, because only if you know how to manipulate people to kill harmless and defenseless people you know how prevent it. and how to aware.
if you say "this never could happen to me" than you dont think about, which factors could get you so far. I for my self, need to know that the hell was going on inside the heads of this men.
concernment doesnt help against atrocities. sadly, at school you mostly learn to b concerned about the things our grandparents have done (my grandma was member of the hj and the bund deutscher mädchen. like many others. it was part of their life. they hat friends their, spendet time together. the nazis attained almost all parts of the german life. interfused it.
*maybe except those, which lived near concentrationcamps like bergen belsen, buchenwald or dachau. they saw the poor people. much of them might have thought, that the inhabitant were guilty. or that "this" was needed to save them from the enemy..maybe they feared the gestapo and ss so they never criticised.
(i hope you get what i wanted to tell. have write more english texts. so, sorry for this. didnt use my english since abitur and never have written about such comlex topics))
