As regular readers know, one of my interests outside of medicine is the phenomenon of Holocaust denial. Granted, I haven't written as much about it lately as I used to, but that doesn't mean I've lost interest. Actually, I think it may be because I seem to be encountering fewer and fewer major issues of Holocaust denial, although the Bishop Williamson case did draw my ire earlier this year, and I have been perturbed by Holocaust denier David Irving's traveling anti-Semitism show that's now slithering its way through the U.S. and is now in the eastern part of the country.
One thing that I have found, however, is an excellent podcast about Holocaust denial run by Holocaust Denial on Trial, the website that documented David Irving's bogus libel trial against Deborah Lipstadt and now serves as a clearinghouse for news about Holocaust denial. Topics include Dr. Michael Shermer being interviewed on Why There Are Holocaust Deniers and Deborah Lipstadt discussing The Ethical Challenge Posed by Holocaust Denial. The only problems I have with the podcasts are that there are too few of them and there hasn't been a new one since April. Fortunately, my contacts tell me that more are on the way and should be recorded within the next few weeks.
In the meantime, here's the podcast feed link to subscribe. After all, what's the good of having a moderately high traffic blog if I can't pimp my colleagues' and friends' projects?
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Great ideas - I'll check them when I'm home from work.
One question: given the point of this post, am I missing something in thinking that the title is lacking the word "Denial"?
Oh, interesting, I will listen to it tonight. I am always looking for new history podcasts, or at least, like this one, one that deals with topics related to historical topics I enjoy.
the most reasonable explanation I've heard about these deniers is that there belief the reject the Holocaust because it contradicts their beliefs about Jews secretly controlling the world.
This is one of those things I can't wrap my head around. Real people who are alive today were there. There are extremely well kept records. There are photographs. There is evidence from people who were in the camps, people who were guards at the camps, and people who liberated the camps. Short of actually being there to witness it, I can't imagine what more proof you would want.
I also don't understand what people get out of it. For people who were involved, denial makes some sense because, if they can deny it, they didn't do those horrible things. However, for random Americans who were either children or not born yet during the war, I don't understand the upside. Their life would in no way be different, other than it would be nice to live in a world where genocide never happened, but that doesn't seem to be their agenda.
A lot of them don't deny the Holocaust per se, merely define it out of existence by claiming Jews weren't specifically targeted (though this is also well documented) or that the death toll is exagerated as if there were "only" 4 million deaths, that wouldn't be a Holocaust.
This is going to be a long one so let me apologize first.
Found this in a forum in Singapore where I am from.
Usually I wouldn't bother but the fact that this email has come so far worries me and can you clarify some of the claims in this email?
Thousands or tens of thousands have probably gotten this thanks to networking sites like facebook..
Your help will be much appreciated.
'This email you mean? (Please read it with your own judgment)
Quote:
Guys, I'm Emailing you because I'm bloody scared about something.
I created my Facebook group for fun, and to use it to market my businesses to people. What I'm doing now totally kills my ability to do that, but I don't care. This is important.
I'm a qualified pharmacist. I've been researching the swine flu vaccine that our government has bought for us (using our money, by the way) and its DANGEROUS AS. Its easy a hundred times more dangerous than the swine flu itself, Imo.
Something that freaked me out is that several swine flu vaccine manufacturers have asked governments to give them an exemption from lawsuits, in case the vaccine caused harm in people. If you made a vaccine that you knew worked, then why would you need a legal exemption in case it hurt people? Massive warning sign. They don't believe its safe.
The swine flu itself has killed about 2/3000 people total. The regular flu kills 40 000 plus per year â so why are we freaking out about swine flu, and not normal flu? Does that make sense? No.
If the regular flu kills 40 000 plus per year, and the swine flu only killed 2/3 000 â then why are governments buying it in advance, giving it to us for free, and giving drug manufacturers immunity to legal cases against them? Does that make sense? No.
The swine flu vaccine contains 2 horribly dangerous compounds â one is called thimerosol. It is made 50% of mercury. It binds to receptors in your brain, and basically causes brain damage. Is it smart to be injected with thimerosol, and get brain damage, dropping 10 IQ points and going dumb, in order to avoid getting a flu that kills 95% less people than regular flu? No.
The other horrible in gredient is called squalene. Squalene accidentally tricks your immune system into killing your own cells, which creates autoimmune diseases like asthma, multiple scelerosis, diabetes, and a bunch of diseases that we don't have a name for yet (because squalene hasnt been used for that long, and we have little data on its effects) â is is smart to inject yourself with that stuff, in order to avoid a relatively mild flu, like the swine flu? No.
If you're a pregnant mother about to take Panvax, ask yourself this â why would you take Panvax, when it contains Neomycin and Polymyxin B Sulfate â both of which exhibit positive risk to unborn children â so as to avoid what? A mild flu, that kills 95% fewer people than the regular flu?
Look, I'm a funny guy. Yeah, I make good Facebook groups. People join them by the thousands, and laugh. But I'm also a qualified pharmacist. I scored in the top 0.1% of my state in school. I'm expert at critical analysis of drugs and their effects on humans. And let me be blunt â if someone came up to me with a syringe full of swine flu vaccine, or came near my family with one â I would take the needle off them and poke them with it myself â followed by several very hard punches. This stuff is poison. Don't take it. Don't let your friends take it. Don't let your family take it. If some idiot in a lab coat asks you if you want it, ask them about thimerosol, squalene, and why the company making it wants legal exemption from being sued, and watch their face go into âOMG! I'm being asked serious questions that I don't have the answer toâ mode.
Anyway. I hope you're all well. Chat to you on Facebook sometime
Sincerely,
George Mamouzellos
Bachelor of Pharmacy
University of South Australia '
Oh, I *heart* Dr. Shermer. Why People Believe Weird Things is a perennial re-read.
People focus on Holocaust denial because it provides them with an easy group to blame for all their problems. It's a particularly malicious and evil form of magical thinking. Sure, the smart ones pretend it's not because they hate jews, but c'mon. Can they be any more obvious?
raqin: This might be a good place to start reading about George's copypasta.
These guys annoy the hell out of me with the "Oh, it couldn't have happened that way" and the "it never happened, the jews made it all up" and the other horse crap. No, I guess I'm being insulting to horse crap. Manure at least serves a useful purpose.
I've seen the film taken by the Allies as they liberated the camps. The raw, unedited footage. I'm not a squeamish type of guy, but after watching that I went and poured myself a drink. Between the films, the interviews with victims and guards, the very exacting records kept by the Nazis -- you simply cannot ignore the totality of evidence.
We Germans were always excellent record keepers. I invite anybody who doubts the holocaust to browse the documents accessible here:
http://www.footnote.com/browsemore/1_WWII:%201935-1950%5EHolocaust%20Co…
i.e: http://www.footnote.com/browsemore/232120282_WWII:%201935-1950%5EHoloca…
click on the enhanced browser, that will get you to the individual pages with minute by minute entries in the "death book" of who died and of what.
There were million of records collected in germany after the war, one of the big archives was in Mainz.
Thank you for the information and "pimping". I am always amazed when I come upon someone who denies that the Holocaust took place. Amazing!! Those who do that are either attention seekers, hatemongers or Holocaust illiterate. The site I work for has a wonderful Holocaust Collection that is free until the end of the year.
Thanks for the article and reference!
The History Man