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</font><font face="Arial, Helvetica" size=2><a href="http://truthout.org/docs_04/010904A.shtml">Click
here: t r u t h o u t - Bush-Hitler: A Survivor Speaks Out</a> <br><br>
<br>
</font><font size=3> <b>The Bush Hitler Thing<br><br>
</b> t r u t h o u t | Reader Submission <br><br>
Friday 09 January 2004 <br><br>
Dear Sir, <br><br>
My family was one of Hitler's victims. We lost a
lot under the Nazi occupation, including an uncle who died in the camps
and a cousin killed by a booby trap. I was terrified when my father went
ballistic after finding my brother and me playing with a hand grenade. (I
was only 12 at the time, and my brother insisted the grenade was safe.) I
remember the rubble and the hardships of 'austerity' - and the bomb
craters from Allied bombs. As late as the 1980s, I had to take detours
while bombs were being removed - they litter the countryside, buried
under parking lots,buildings, and in the canals and rivers to this day.
Believe me, I learned a lot about Hitler while I was growing up, both in
Europe and here in the US - both my parents were in the war and talked
about it constantly, unlike most American families. I spent my earliest
years with the second-hand fear that trickled down from their PTSD -
undiagnosed and untreated in those days. <br><br>
I'm no expert on WWII - but I learned a lot
about what happened in Germany - and Europe - back in those days. I
always wondered how the wonderful German people - so honest, decent,
hard-working, friendly, and generous - could ever allow such a thing to
happen. (There were camps near my family's home - they still talk about
them only in hushed conspiratorial whispers.) I asked a lot of questions
- we were only a few kilometers from the German border - and no one ever
denied me. My relatives had obviously spent a lot of time thinking about
the war - they still haven't forgotten - I don't think anyone can forget
such a horrible nightmare. Among the questions I asked: <br><br>
<b>Why didn't you do anything about the people
in the camps? <br><br>
</b></font>Everyone was terrified. People 'disappeared' into those camps.
Sometimes the Nazis came and lined everyone up, walking behind them -
even school children - with a cocked pistol. You never knew when they
would just shoot someone in the back of the head. Everyone was terrified.
Everyone was disarmed - guns were registered, so all the Nazis had to do
was go from house to house and demand the guns. <br><br>
Didn't you see what was happening? <br><br>
</b>We saw. There was nothing we could do. Our military had no modern
weapons. The Nazis had technology and resources - they just invaded and
took over - we were overwhelmed by their air power. They had spies
everywhere - people spying on each other, just to have an 'ace in the
hole' in case they were accused - and anyone who had a grudge against you
could accuse you of something - just an accusation meant you'd disappear.
Nobody dared ask where you had gone - anyone who returned was considered
suspicious - what had they said, and who did they implicate? It was a
climate of fear - there's nothing anyone can do when the government uses
fear and imprisonment to intimidate people. The government was above the
law - even in Germany, it became 'every man for himself'. Advancement was
possible by exposing 'traitors' - anyone who questioned the government.
It didn't matter if the people you accused were guilty or not - just the
accusation was enough. <br><br>
Did anyone know what was going on?</b>
<br><br>
We all knew. We imagined the worst because the Nazis made 'examples' of a
few people in every town and village. Public torture and execution. The
most unspeakable atrocities were committed in full view of everyone. If
this is what happened in public, can you imagine what might be going on
in the camps? Nobody wanted to know. <br><br>
Why didn't the German people stop the Nazis?
<br><br>
</b>Life was better, at first, under the Nazis. The war machine
invigorated the economy - men had jobs again, and enough money to take
care of their family. New building projects were everywhere. The shops
were full again - and people could afford good food, culture, and
luxuries. Women could stay home in comfort. Crime was reduced. Health
care improved. It was a rosy scenario - Hitler brought order and
prosperity. His policies won widespread approval because life was better
for most Germans, after the misery of reparations and inflation. The
people liked the idea of removing the worst elements of society - the
gypsies, the homosexuals, the petty criminals - it was easy to elicit
support for prosecuting the corrupt 'evil'people poisoning society. Every
family was proud of their hometown heroes - the sharply-dressed soldiers
they contributed to his program - they were, after all,defending the
Fatherland. Continuing a proud tradition that had been defeated and
shamed after WWI, the soldiers gave the feeling of power and success to
the proud families that showered them with praise and support. Their
early victories were reason to celebrate - in spite of the fact that they
faced poorly armed inferior forces - further proof that what they were
doing was right, and the best thing for the country. The news was full of
stories about their bravery and accomplishments against a vile enemy.
They were 'liberating' these countries from their corrupt governments.
<br><br>
These are some of the answers I gleaned over the
years. As a child, I was fascinated with the Nazis. I thought the German
soldiers were really something - that's how strong an impression they
made, even after the war. After all, they weren't the ones committing war
crimes - they were the pride of their families and communities. It was
just the SS and Gestapo that were 'bad'. Now I know better -but that
pride in the military was a strong factor for many years, only adding to
the mystique of military power - after all, my father had been a soldier
too, but in the American army. It took a while to figure out the truth.
<br><br>
Every time I've gone back to Europe, someone has
taken me to the 'gardens of stone' - the Allied cemeteries that dot the
countryside. With great sadness, my relatives would stand in abject
misery, remembering the nightmare, and asking 'Why?'. Maybe that's why
they wouldn't support the US invasion of Iraq. They knew war. They knew
occupation. And they knew resistance. I saw the building where British
flyers hid on their way back to England - smuggled out by brave families
that risked the lives of everyone to help the Allies. As a child, I had
played in a basement, where the cow lived under the house, as is common
there. The same place those flyers hid. <br><br>
So why, now, when I hear GWB's speeches, do I
think of Hitler? Why have I drawn a parallel between the Nazis and the
present administration? Just one small reason -the phrase 'Never forget'.
Never let this happen again. It is better to question our government -
because it really can happen here - than to ignore the possibility.
<br><br>
So far, I've seen nothing to eliminate the
possibility that Bush is on the same course as Hitler. And I've seen far
too many analogies to dismiss the possibility. The propaganda. The lies.
The rhetoric. The nationalism. The flag waving. The pretext of
'preventive war'. The flaunting of international law and international
standards of justice. The disappearances of 'undesirable' aliens. The
threats against protesters. The invasion of a non-threatening sovereign
nation. The occupation of a hostile country. The promises of prosperity
and security. The spying on ordinary citizens. The incitement to spy on
one's neighbors - and report them to the government. The arrogant
triumphant pride in military conquest. The honoring of soldiers. The
tributes to 'fallen warriors. The diversion of money to the military. The
demonization of government appointed 'enemies'. The establishment of
'Homeland Security'. The dehumanization of 'foreigners'. The total lack
of interest in the victims of government policy. The incarceration of the
poor and mentally ill. The growing prosperity from military ventures. The
illusion of 'goodness' and primacy. The new einsatzgrupen forces.
Assassination teams. Closed extralegal internment camps. The
militarization of domestic police. Media blackout of non-approved issues.
Blacklisting of protesters - including the no-fly lists and photographing
dissenters at rallies. <br><br>
There isn't much doubt in my mind - anyone who
compares the history of Hitler's rise to power and the progression of
recent events in the US cannot avoid the parallels. It's
incontrovertible. Is Bush another Hitler? Maybe not, but with each
incriminating event, the parallel grows -it certainly cannot be
dismissed. There's too much evidence already. Just as Hitler used
American tactics to plan and execute his reign, it looks as if Karl Rove
is reading Hitler's playbook to plan world domination - and that is the
stated intent of both. From the Reichstag fire to the landing at
Nuremberg to the motto of "Gott Mit Uns" to the unprovoked
invasion and occupation of Iraq to the insistence that peace was the
ultimate goal, the line is unbroken and unwavering. <br><br>
I'm afraid now, that what may still come to pass
is a reign far more savage and barbaric than that of the Nazis. Already,
appeasement has been fruitless - it only encourages the brazen to
escalate their arrogance and braggadocio. Americans support Bush - by a
generous majority - and mass media sings his praises while indicting his
detractors - or silencing their opinions completely. The American people
seem to care only about the domestic economic situation - and even in
that, they are in complete denial. They don't want to hear about Iraq,
and Afghanistan is already forgotten. Even the Democratic opposition
supports the occupation of Iraq. Everyone seems to agree that Saddam
Hussein deserves to be executed -with or without a trial. 'Visitors' are
fingerprinted. Guilty until proven innocent. Snipers are on New York City
rooftops. When do the Stryker teams start appearing on American streets?
They're perfectly suited for 'Homeland Security' - and they've had a
trial run in Iraq. The Constitution has been suspended - until further
notice. Dick Cheney just mentioned it may be for decades - even a
generation, as Rice asserts as well. Is this the start of the 1000 year
reign of this new collection of thugs? So it would seem. <br><br>
I can only hope that in the coming year there
will be some sign - some hint - that we are not becoming that which we
abhor. The Theory of the Grotesque fares all too well these days. It may
not be Nazi Germany - it might be a lot worse. <br><br>
SL | Wisconsin <br><br>
<br><br>
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