Monday, March 17, 2008

Boy with a donkey


Boy with a donkey
Originally uploaded by jhhymas
My grandson. And now he's almost through with his junior year in college. And the donkey is an old donkey, but still has a goofy, self-centered personality. Watching him and his brother grow up has been a real treat for me. I pray that he won't be dragged into this war.
In The Snoring Bird, the 2007 book I talked about previously, Bernd Heinrich gives this short quote from the Nuremberg Trials:
". . .Hermann Goering, Hitler's designated sucessor, said:
Why, of course the people don't want war . . . . That is understood. But, after all, it is the leaders of the country who determine the policy and it is always a simple matter to drag the people along, whether it is a democracy, or a fascist dictatorship, or a parliament, or a commmunist dictatorship. Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is to tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the peacemakers for lack of pariotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same in any country."
The Nuremberg Trials of the major Nazi leaders were held in 1945 and 1946. I would like to believe that what HG said isn't true, but it almost sounds like a foolproof recipe.
Our young men are a precious treasure; they should not be squandered.

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