JEWISH SOLDIERS SERVED AMONG NAZIS

historical paradox
July 07, 2008 20:56h
2006-2007 javno.com

Would you be surprised by the fact that nearly 150,000 Jewish soldiers
served in the Nazi Army during World War 2?

This is a thesis from Bryan Mark Rigg`s book "Hitler`s Jewish
SoldiersË~G, which was reviewed by Brian Cuban in `Nazi Jews: A
historical Paradox` in his blog. Yes, believe it or not, we bring you
another person`s review of the book. They only way to justify this
is to refer to Slavoj Zizek, Slovene philosopher and psychoanalysis
theorist, who once explained during his lecture how clearer insight
into a piece of work is gained, i.e. when good review is drawn form
a superficial scan of the author`s work. A bit far-fetched, it works
for Zizek, but for other mortals… hardly.

Be that as it may, Brian Cuban, critic and ancestor of Jewish
immigrants from Russia, remains imoressed with the book and the fact
that strict, complex and bizarre Nazi laws were revisited and based
on that, thousands of mixed Jews (Mischling), with one half of one
quarter of Jewish blood, were a part of the regime which planned
absolute execution of the Jewish people, without being aware of it,
seeing how they thought they were fighting for their own country. As
this topic causes nausea, we bring a few comments to the matter.

Firstly, it is unclear what the practical interest of the author and
critic of the `Hitler`s Jewish Soldiers` book is.

Strike iron while it’s hot

Following the trial to Eichmann in Jerusalem in 1963, Hannah Arendt
revealed the practice of Jewish leaders (Judenräte) with those who
professionally dealt with elimination. What Arendt did takes great
personal courage and points to passionate decisiveness in searching
for the truth and corrects what is not right within the community
which determines it. The entire matter stirred things up, not only
because of the analysis of her fellow-countrymen in the war, but
because of the thesis on the "banality of evil", i.e.

official`s obeyance of normal people who conducted genocide.

What do we actually mean? Hannah Ardent had the necessary legitimacy
(she is a member of the Jewish people) to analyse the role of Jews
in World War 2. This, of course, does not mean that nobody else has
that right, but it is suggested to start in your own back yard.

Furthermore, the discourse we use (populist, scientific,
quazi-scientific, post-modern etc) is important when we are doing
what we are doing (Hannah Ardent 1964). When for instance Slavoj Zizek
writes that Schindler`s List is a bad piece of rewriting the Jurassic
Park with the Nazis as dinosaur monster, he does not relativise the
Holocaust because he is writing a film review from a post-modern
discourse, as a psychoanalyst to be precise, which Karl Popper proved
were not scientists at all.

But when Mark Rigg, history professor at the American Army and
South Protestant University, an officer of the US Army with Dallas
as his place of residence, writes a book with a sensational title
Hitler`s Jewish Soldiers, then the motives of his work need to be
questioned. OK, Hitler twisted and reinterpreted regime laws with the
goal of serving its causes, but everyone is aware, let us hope, of the
grotesque nature of these laws. Therefore, Rigg`s review of historic,
religious and cultural conflicts of certain Jews in the creation
of their "Jewish identity" and serving in the Nazi Army represents
scientifically excessive and failed work. His book will probably hit
fertile soil with those who are dissatisfied with Israel`s policy in
the Middle East, as well as hardcore anti-Semites.

The first ones need to be told that today`s policy of Israel cannot
be justification for victims dating back 50 years ago, and the later
ones should not be addressed for a discussion, seeing how they have
morally and intellectually deviated.

As a member of the American Army, Rigg is more qualified to write on
American military occupation, i.e. "liberation" of Iraq.

But, all of this is on him, while Brian Cuban is a collateral victim of
"ethical irrationality of the world".

–Boundary_(ID_4u+9xUyHbBnzK9doz+gdl A)–