[Blewvane]

Originally Posted by niknik ↗

I suppose late is better than never. He admits to taking part in one of the most horrible acts ever committed. No matter what his role was, he took part in a war crime. I really don't agree it's actually a war crime, that's what they call it. What they were doing at these camps had nothing to do with war.
Anyway this guy knew women, children, elderly, even babies and pregnant women were being murdered by the thousands and hidden with his help. How he could accept that and participate I can't understand.

If he disobeyed orders he would consider himself lucky if all he got was executed on the spot or sent to the Russian front. It's most likely his family would also have been arrested, labeled as enemy sympathisers, and put in a prison camp to die.
You're lying if you expect anyone to believe you'd do any different if put in his exact situation.

[Pigeon]

Originally Posted by TheVrist ↗

Seems considering the era, and a country chock full of pheasants with equivalent too 5th grade intelligence , it would be easy for leaders to "racially, physically, and philosophically vetted prior to being accepted into the SS." people.

Oh, let's all blame the pheasants; they're used to being an easy target.

[TheVrist]

Originally Posted by Pigeon ↗

Oh, let's all blame the pheasants; they're used to being an easy target.

Like my spelling isnt bad enough, my phone adds insult to injury

[GregK]

Originally Posted by azdesertsnake01 ↗

Live out his YEARS? You're quiet the optimist. I would say let him live out his days or months. Lol.

figure out speech. You're probably right!

[GregK]

Originally Posted by GregK ↗

figure out speech. You're probably right!

Figure OF speech. Auto correct

[niknik]

Originally Posted by Blewvane ↗

If he disobeyed orders he would consider himself lucky if all he got was executed on the spot or sent to the Russian front. It's most likely his family would also have been arrested, labeled as enemy sympathisers, and put in a prison camp to die.
You're lying if you expect anyone to believe you'd do any different if put in his exact situation.

Nobody said he should have disobeyed. More than likely this old man is a coward. And volunteered to work the camps to avoid being in combat. The job that was described he carried out was no specialized job. Anyone could have done it, and during war time there's always soldiers who look to get assignments away from battle.
In a situation like this, being a coward is no excuse. And don't assume to know what I would or wouldn't do. I know before 1944 SS was voluntary, and assignments within were often requested. I wouldn't have done it. And there's evidence of many who choose not to. Especially among the war prisoners who were forced to work the camps. There's testimonials from many survivors who've said they witnessed several prisoners refusing to take part and were killed. So hundreds if not thousands of people died refusing to take part.
But as far a SS soldiers, they weren't forced under the threat of death. That's what the facts show.
You line up 100 children and put a gun in my hand and tell me I must shoot all of them or die. I would put the first bullet in my own head. Because I'd rather die than do something like that.

[30564U]

It's very difficult to put ourselves in the mind of a 1940's German and to understand the social norms of that time. Today the whole Nazi philosophy seems completely retarded and crazy, but to a 1940's era person (who was possibly born anywhere from 1900 to 1920) the racist and ethnic aspects of the National Socialists would not have seemed very far out of line. As a 30 year career police officer/detective I can understand what happened and why it happened...I don't condone it, but I get it. I can't honestly say what I would have done, put in the same career in 1940. I'd like to say I would have refused to participate in rounding up the Jews, Gypsies, etc., but I honestly can't say. Given the nature of civil service and law enforcement in general, I'm not real sure I wouldn't have done what I was told/ordered to do. I am of Germanic heritage and grew up with many real Germans (most of which were card carrying Nazi Youth and WWII German army/navy veterans). Without a doubt and without exception...when asked about their war experiences, they would deny any love for the Nazi Party and say they were forced to participate. In fact, it became a running joke within my family, that every German was in fact a "partisian" and was totally against the war and subsequent genocide. Today, I still have no idea who voted for Hitler, because I've never met a German that did...apparently he was appointed as German Chancellor by God himself...we all know someone voted for him.

[GG57]

My husband had a great uncle that a Nazi and was convicted of war crimes for outing Jews in their neighborhood that got sent to the Camps. Most of the family couldn't stand the old ass. It was pretty much an open secret in the family that he had been one but his own daughter's didn't know it. There were so many people named Karl in the family that they all had an addendum to their name to tell them apart. He was Karl the Nazi. When our kids were babies we were getting all our stuff together to pack to go on vacation and my husband started cursing and said, "He is not coming in this house around our kids!" His cousin had pulled up in front of our house and she had with her, her father, Karl the Nazi. He'd come over from Germany for a vacation. My husband ran out the front door and met them at the car and explained what we were doing. I was introduced to him and it became very clear very quickly that he was still a Nazi with all the hatefulness and ideology. It took all I had in me to call him Onkel Karl and not Karl the Nazi to his face.

[subhuman]

Originally Posted by niknik ↗

I suppose late is better than never. He admits to taking part in one of the most horrible acts ever committed. No matter what his role was, he took part in a war crime.

I agree. Using that same logic, I also believe that all US militia should be tried for accessory to at least 6,000,000 murders.

[niknik]

Originally Posted by skaan ↗

I agree. Using that same logic, I also believe that all US militia should be tried for accessory to at least 6,000,000 murders.

In this particular case they seem to have proof and this guys own admission he played a part in a crime. I don't think anyone is suggesting all Nazi soldiers be tried for war crimes. Just the ones we know did contribute directly, and were close enough to the crimes that it would be impossible for them to not know.