THE SHADOW OF THE PAST February 16, 2007
Posted by wmmbb in European Politics.trackback
The story of the holocaust denier given five years prison does seem extraordinary, especially when coupled with the fact that he was extradited from Canada where he had an anti-Jewish website. He seems to have a hagiographic view of Adolf Hitler, which surely is an opinion, not a crime. As the incumbent of the rotating EU Presidency, Germany now wants other countries to adopt smilar laws.
We seem to be imprisioned by our histories, in particular Australia, Russia and Germany. To deny the suffering and brutal death of large numbers of people is offensive, but is not the same thing happening in Iraq, where the number of Iraqi deaths seem not to matter. I would suggest the denial of Aboriginal deaths by a government and its leaders is worst.
Fascism is on the rise, or at least the methods of fascism and they flow from the actions of government politicies and decisions, and those governments call themselves democracies. The ability of Hilter idolators to influence the social climate and public policy is negligible.
Still to be a population and to be defeated in war, is I imagine a seering experience, and quite reasonably, if only for reasons of self respect, it is understandable that Germans would not want that to happen again. It is a pity that the populations in the US and Australia do not fully appreciate the potential full implications and ramification of some policies a majority of their voters have supported – but in reality that might always be the case.
Still Germany is not merely living in the shadow of its history. Chancellor Merkel seems to running with the baton on matters European that Blair once believed he held.
[...] considers the case of holocaust denier Ernst Zündel, extradited from Canada and sentenced yesterday to five years’ gaol by the Germans, and wonders [...]