Holocaust

[baremission]

I am doing some research. It has been stated by a German intellect that the constant commemoration of the Holocaust is a bad thing. He claims that it does not allow Germany to move on and labels them with an infinte identity of Nazism.

Do you agree or disagree with this?

[radiogaga]

yes as most germans are deeply ashamed of the past. it is possible to commemorate too much like it is possible to be counseled too much. people have to let go and move on for the health of their psyche.

[jno]

that sounds like good sense, but it seems to me Germany have movedon pretty well all the same. The British could try to get over the war too and join the modern world; many of them still see Germans as Nazis. But the Germans have long since accepted responsibility for what happened and got on with life.

[Hugh Spencer]

We are getting on with things and I hope nobody is labelling ordinary German people as favouring Nazism at all. The Holocaust, like many other tragic events and military campaigns that killed enormous numbers of young adults at the beginning of their lives, should never be forgotten to illustrate what sacrifices were made. Does that mean they shouldn't be remembered?

[Octavius]

My opinion is that a Holocaust commemoration is about remembering the dead and honouring their memory. Nothing really to do with pointing an accusatory finger at Germans these days as most people dissociate modern day Germany with 20th century Nazism.

If Germans feel a sense of shame because the dead are remembered, is that such a bad thing?

Every nation has some embarrassing/shameful history that they�d rather not be reminded of, but to deny the remembrance of people affected by those shameful moments in history seems a little supercilious.

History is forever repeating itself, so it also serves as a reminder.

[dot.hawkes]

it also has me wonderiing why it took someone of 'intellect' to get that, most people surely do anyway.

[josie48]

I fully agree with Octavius about this!!

[josie48]

Too right Zacmaster, No nation should ever forget.

[crazy legs]

"The fact that it happened in a now completely reformed country is unfortunate, "

this sounds like you wish germany wasn't reformed so you could still blame it?

[mata hati]

What about all the people other than the jews, who were hearded up, imprisoned, tortured and killed in the same way ? The gypsies, the physically and mentally handicapped, russians who were killed in their hundreds of thousands and all others? Why does no-one ever mention them ? or are they not thought worthy enough. I would say the jews are not entirely innocent themselves of these crimes - look how they carry on in Israel. You would have thought they have had enough of killing over the years!

[weggiewabbit]

mata hati, I both agree and disagree.

There were very many other people slaughtered by the Nazis (but not as many as 6 million), and they should be commemorated too.

The same goes for Stalin�s victims.

I don�t agree with you about Israel, though. They�ve been under siege for decades, and still are � I think they�ve shown commendable restraint.

[stick28]

I'd just like to put a different slant on this, it appears to me that the only nation that 'CANT' let go of the war and atrocities are the english. If i could ask you to cast your'e minds back to EURO 96, England were to face Germany in the semi final on the wednesday night, so what does the good old SUN newspaper do ??? It gives away free plastic 'TOMMY HATS' with the george cross on the top!!! So imagine if you will for a moment how german citizens living in this country at the time felt when they subjected to a rousing chorus of "TWO WORLD WARS AND ONE WORLD CUP WHOA WHOA !!!!!!

[Octavius]

mata hati not one person here mentioned the Jews in isolation until you did.

Of course other groups were persecuted and killed by the Nazi regime, including the Roma; Soviets, particularly prisoners of war; ethnic Poles; other Slavic people; the disabled; gay men; and political and religious dissidents, such as Jehovah's witnesses.

In my mind, recalling the holocaust is about remembering all the people from that atrocious time who had their lives taken from them because of a facist ideology.

Would you prefer it was called the "Persecution and genocide of members of European nations by Nazi Germany commemmoration'?

I'm sure the Germans wouldn't.