Holocaust reminders

I read a news report recently about the Holocaust in the 1940s orchestrated by the Nazi's and it never fails to make me shudder in disbelief. I am not shocked by the diversities of human nature and what humans are capable of in the right environment because atrocities committed in endless wars raging around the globe at any given time shows that but...the Holocaust was different simply because it was an orchestrated government policy to extingish a whole race of innocent people via industrial death factories. I mean that surely is a nitemare scenario isnt it. over the years I have watched the vivid black + white films of this event and read the witness statements of those poor souls who remarkably survived the camps...watched in horror the piles of corpses of men women and children scattered like debris in pits like a vision from Dantes Inferno. decent ordinary families rounded up like cattle and systematically starved and ill treated stripped of all human dignity or feeling...pain ...hurt...horror...terror...numbness...emptiness...despair. it still hurts me today to imagine such things that those innocent Jewish families suffered at the hands of a political party. how could such a thing ever happen? it couldnt have happened over night it had to be planned and built by many different people ie architects....builders..admin staff..railway employees...camp employees etc etc a joint effort by thousands of people in order for it to happen. repeatedly seeing/reading about these events has not de-sensitized my feelings about the whole thing.


I believe it is not only important to remember these events and pass it on to future generations...you've heard the verbal warnings like " remember and learn from the past...otherwise we're doomed to repeat it" which are wise words but we need to try and understand 'why' such a thing could happen? I find it hard to comprehend how a modern and cultural people/country like 1930s/40s Germany could ever get involved in such a thing? They were not dis-similar to us having normal schooling and upbringing. an ordered religious society and a rich history of culture and understanding. The family unit was important in pre-war German society like every where else. so how could an obscure political party rise from nothing and twist humanity in such a short period of time? should we view the whole process as a warning that it could also happen to us anytime in the future? I mean we're talking about human psyche here so such a thing is possible any where/time given the right circumstances isnt it? such thoughts arent easy to comprehend and we tend to shun them..but we must face such issues.


I am aware that the 1920s/30s/40s German situation was complex but fundamentally its based on social and environmental fixtures that are in place everywhere. we had a destroyed country and economy after the first world war in Germany. worn out and humiliated people were left behind by the world in 1919. The penalities imposed by the victorious European forces on Germany for engaging in war were indeed harsh and many German citizens felt bitter about how they were treated. The hardships were real too with no employment and food shortages..povety...restricted industrial development..lost hope etc and a bleak future. such conditions just add to a public feeling of bitterness toward the nations who defeated them. its important for victorious forces to settle the ground after any conflict and ensure that justice and social care/development are in place so that people can accept their defeat and move on...I dont think that happened in Germany in 1919 onwards. Also many returning German military troops didnt feel defeated at the end of the first world war..they felt they could have still won. They just added to the feelings of public unrest during that period because they felt they had been cheated..the sacrifices they made in their millions of lost lives was for nothing.


1920s Germany was a lost country with no soul. Communist parties grew up and caused civil unrest in the streets. crime levels rose and social decay continued. people felt the political leaders of the time were detached and out of touch. a country screaming out for change and leadership...a new direction that would improve ordinary peoples lives and bring back law and order....jobs....decency. people feared Communism was taking over and that neighbouring Russia was infiltrating the countries government etc etc it was a tinder box waiting to ignite. This whole scenario isnt that dis-similar to modern day Britain today with its almost bankrupt economy...corruption in the banks and political ranks..break down of law and order in our city areas etc. and threats from Islamic militants.


Enter this German scenario a charismatic enthusiastic public speaker who slowly gains quite a following amongst ordinary working folk who like his visions of a new Germany with respect back on the streets...work for all and food a plenty in the shops. To rid the streets of communist demonstrations and riots...to bring back law and order again so children can play safely on the streets...to bring back a sense of national pride and dignity for the country..to feel good about being German again etc obviously such a man with an increasing public following is going to gain attention from the media and the intelligentsia. after a while he just cant be ignored as his party gains numbers and momentum..he promises the things that people desperately need and his words ring true with many from all walks of life. Things appear increasingly desperate politically and civil unrest is growing. eventually the thoughts are can the National socialists be any worse then the current government? or the Communists who are gathering influence? why not give them a chance? so....circumstances and fears..public pressure caused a fluke that gave the Nazi's power! The rest is history.


The Nazi's once holding the reins of power lost no time in using the full weight of the media propaganda machine. They knew that forming a common cause based on current fears would unite the ordinary people behind them. stimulate peoples bias and prejudices against something would mould thoughts even further and sadly this common cause and common prejudice was the Jewish people [it still exists widely today in many counties] Hitlers manic Mein Kampf book outlined his vision on the Jewish people for their involvement for the worlds ills. fixate such thoughts stealthly into peoples thoughts over a period of time and slowly instigate laws against the common foe whos to blame for our countries woes and bingo..its the start of something awful. day after day of media propaganda and its not long before people do think a race of people are out of place in their society. Today our media are starting to unfairly do a similar thing to immigrants. with the state of mind being fostered in 1920s Germany it was only a matter of time before things changed for the worst. history tells us it did ie suspension of democracy [ironic when democracy brought the Nazi's to power] civil rights restricted..internment without trial or charge..religious views curtailed..strict media censorship..anti-terror laws that enabled human rights to be swept aside etc etc such measures are not restricted to one country or time period they can evolve any where.


The profound message or warning from the whole Nazi period echoes across the decades to me. Given the right circumstances or political climate...media stimulation of outside threats to our way of lives can produce similar vibrations..we have to be on guard and realise that facists do not always wear swastikas and do the goose step. That facist political parties can easily manipulate the present democratic system to further their aims and stimulate media attention..its easy. The 'New World Order' created by George Bushs administration has succesfully invented a climate of fear across the world and tells us that the world wide Islamic militant threat to our way of life are the new Nazis..but are they? I recognise elements of facism in the 'New World Order'. we each have to make our own minds up on who are the good guys today? it isnt easy. I dont want to see concentration camps set up again or for a race of people to be victimised. Here in the UK we have a racist political party who are increasing their power and positions in government [BNP] do we really want to elect a racist party in this country? lets all look back to the Nazis and learn from them...realise that a simple political process can lead to horror if not checked. CALLEN












Words of wisdom......" Good people are good because they come to wisdom through failure....we get very little wisdom from success alone"