I honestly don't know who was the first to say the famous sentence that those who do not learn history are doomed to repeat it. I heard 3 (slightly different) versions claimed to come from 3 very different (though all well known) persons. So I will just leave out who saying only that yes, I agree that not learning from history has the terrible power to bring people to the same awful deeds.
It looks like Europe has learned nothing :(.
The II WW took 60 million human beings, many in Europe, 10% of them Jews and their story is more desperate than others as they didn't have to DO anything (including just bad luck of being in the wrong place at the wrong time), murderers were actively looking for THEM to kill all - women, children, infants, elderly. That was the predominant difference between their fate and those of others attacked by Nazi regime. Yet all the continent suffered. It was just two generations ago. And now:
Austrians have all but forgot about past. About their enthusiasm for murderers, antisemitism, nearly unanimously support for them. But also about one of their leaders - opposing Nazis - who shot at the abdomen was dying begging for a priest (never receiving this consolation). Or maybe they have not and still they would like to have Hitler provided that this time he will keep the power longer (he had a chance, but for few mistakes that, thank goodness he made).
And what about Netherlands? The country Anne Frank came from? The country attacked ruthlessly by Nazis in 1940, whose inhabitants fought, worn yellow stars of David in the first moment after establishing ghetto in Amsterdam (as a sign of protest)? There were dark sides to this story, surely, but how can this country let her youths publicly praise genocide and Hitler now?
Somebody said that in early 30s it would have taken 6 policemen to get rid of Hitler, a decade later it took 60 million. It is kind of exaggeration, but thinking back about one dutiful (and this time maybe one should say "unfortunately") Irish gendarme serving in German army in 20s, who informed that some petty corporal is delivering political speech in the bar and is about to be lynched harried to the scene to bring back order. Yes, you guessed properly who the corporal was, and yes, he was very unpopular at that moment, but crisis, repeating his madness and few other factors brought change.
In 1933 Polish state leader, Pilsudski, proposed to France to conduct per-emptive strike on Nazi regime to stop the road to another war, but France, still mourning Verdun victims, refused.
It was the un-learnt lesson from I WW. The II WW was way more bloody and brutal. Are we now, in Europe, ignoring this lesson to find just one more time? Hope not, but the voice of those who hear the warning has to be heard NOW, as all it takes for evil things to come is for good people to do nothing.
This is a blog about Israel, her history, culture, touristic as seen by outsider but fully in love with this amazing, beautiful country. It is also partly about the dialogue between Judaism and Christianity and - as this can't be avoided - a little bit about politics, but no more than is necessary
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“When Israel, the only country in the world whose very existence is under attack, is consistently and conspicuously singled out for condemnation, I believe we are morally obligated to take a stand.” by Canada's PM Harper
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