First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out – Because I was not a Socialist. Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out – Because I was not a Trade Unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out – Because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me – and there was no one left to speak for me.
I had a teacher in college who when he was 18 inherited a few thousand acres of land in eastern Germany on the death of his father in "prison" and was basically given the option of deeding it to the state, or more appropriately the local party, or dying. He chose to deed it to the state and move to the USA to go to college. They were Lutheran, not Jewish, and it was just a question of greed and his father speaking out against Hitler. It happened as the good pastor said to one group at a time and while we all hear of the Jewish, there was enough happening to everyone that it wasn't just a Jewish problem.
That was pretty much the way it went. First they went after the rich and powerful, then the poor and powerless. Typically, the earlier the refugees got out of Germany, the more they got out with. Sometimes it's not enough to be able to read the writing on the wall: you have to be able to fill in the blanks. Hitler was quite the eugenicist. All you had to be was mentally retarded, old, disabled, insane, or "polluted" and you got culled right out of the herd. And of course, only the genetically pure Aryans were good enough for Germany--tall, blue-eyed, blonds, with lots of muscle (ba-doompf!). And a tan. How come no one ever figured out that Corporal Shicklegruber was short, dark-haired, and had brown eyes? Oh, BTW: if you want a medium hoot, follow this link. It explains the real meaning of the name Shicklegruber. (Hit the "show quoted text" on this link.) Google Groups
IIRC if you do not protect the rights of others even if you hate them... you open the way to the loss of your own.... was it Jefferson that said that?
My Grandparents escaped Germany in 1939 with nothing but the cloths on their backs and what they could carry in their pockets! Gramps was a retired Naval Captain and the Nazi's would harass him every month or so with letters demanding he return to the Fatherland and do his sacred duty! They even demanded money from him. He finally sent them a nasty letter and his medals and basically told them to go pound sand. In late 1944 he received a small package and a letter, the letter admonished him and blamed him for the failures Germany was suffering at the hands of the Americans ( mentioned specifically) and made one final demand that he return living or dead, and inside the small package was sterling silver ring with Iron Cross and the Nazi Eagle and flags on the sides. Thankfully he had the good sense to save it! He also kept every letter and turned over copies to the police, Just in case something happened, he and Granny were very worried that some agent would show up in the middle of the night and do them in in their sleep!
