"Today, Ive been thinking a lot about this whole neo-Nazi thing...."

[babylonsister]

A friend shared this on FB...

Jim Gath
14 August at 22:01 ·

Today, I’ve been thinking a lot about this whole ‘neo-Nazi’ thing.

And I have to take the phrase, ‘neo-‘ out of it. I look at it as Nazism, plain & simple. Nothing ‘neo-‘ about it.

And that bothers the living shit out of me.

See, I’m 66 years old. Born in 1951. Six years after the end of World War II.

And, growing up, every kid I knew had a dad that was in the war. Every kid in the neighborhood. Every kid in school. Every friend. Every family. Every house we/they lived in was paid for, in part, by the GI Bill as thanks from a grateful nation for making the sacrifices they made.

And every kid’s father was a hero.

Because they all went overseas, to the Far East or to Europe or to the seven seas.

But they all went.

And they all fought.

Fought to eradicate the greatest scourge in history. A scourge that rounded up millions of people, put them into concentration camps & starved them until it was time for them to walk to their deaths in Auschwitz or Dachau or other places that had gas chambers, where they died horrible deaths by the hundreds at a time….until their numbers reached into the millions.

Our fathers & uncles fought that scourge in forests & in swamps & on beaches & on the high seas. Over three-hundred thousand of those would-be fathers & uncles left their mortal coils in the bloody dirt of those European battlefields in their heroic attempts to erase that scourge.

Monte Cassino. The Bulge. Africa. Normandy. Anzio. Berlin. El Alamein. And thousands of other battles. Our dads & our uncles were there.

And on May 8, 1945, victory in Europe was achieved.

Hitler was gone. The Nazis were gone. The death marches were gone. The Reich was gone. Over & done with.

And our dads & our uncles & came home, knowing full well that their victory was forever. They had vanquished an army of unimaginable cruelty. They had vanquished the scourge of the earth.

And, as kids, we looked up to our dads & our uncles & our friends’ dads & their uncles & all the neighbors & all the school teachers & all the scout leaders & all the others who had gone, quite literally, to save the world.

They saved the world from Nazism.

And, now……now……somehow, that scourge is trying to return. Return in our own nation. Within our very shores. It is trying to return in the very same nation that made the world safe from it.

And I can’t quite believe it.

I can’t quite believe that there are people in this land that admire what Hitler had wrought. And that they want it for the United States of America.

To me & all of those other kids I grew up with, it is unfathomable.

This nation must NOT allow Nazism to exist within our midst.

It must be rooted out, perhaps the same way our dads & uncles rooted it out in Europe.

Those who subscribe to Nazism must be vanquished. Again.

We cannot allow what the Greatest Generation accomplished to be besmirched by this crowd of spiritually-bankrupt trash.

They are not Americans.

They are the enemy among us.

They are traitors.

And they must be treated as such.

[ornotna]

1. He put it into words what I could only hope to.

Words that swirl about in my mind but I'm unable to express. They are traitors to America, no question. Wake up America.

[Timmygoat]

37. I have been giving it a lot of thought

These people who dishonor the sacrifice of our troops who gave their lives fighting the Nazis, all seem to just love guns, tons of guns, why don't we bring home our brave troops now and send these hooligans to fight Isis?

[Stonepounder]

2. Great post.

We need to make damn sure that the pledge of "Never Again" remains true,
as well as "Never Forget"!

(PS: I've got you by three years, born in 1948. Dad got demobbed and mom got pregnant.)

[ProudProgressiveNow]

3. K&R nt

[vlyons]

4. I ask myself, what would the Dalai Lama see?

If the Dalai Lama were looking at TV, seeing the Nazi riot in Charlottesville, what would he see? What would be his pure enlightened point of view. What I see is broken, angry, insecure white boys, whose minds are filled with deep dark delusions. I see the dark side of humanity. But what would the Dalai Lama see? Somewhere in all of this, I struggle to see an opportunity to remember to generate a heart of loving kindness and human decency.

I was born in 1947, nine months after Daddy returned from the China-Burma campaign. All his brothers were WWII vets also. One of whom gave his life fighting Nazis in Hurtgen Forrest in 1944. His medal of honor is on display at Texas A&M. Over 70 years ago, we settled the question of what to do with Nazis. We wipe them out, destroy their institutions, put their remaining leaders on trial for crimes against humanity, and hang them. But that doesn't completely eradicate the venomous snake of hatred and bigotry that rules degenerate minds.

[PurgedVoter]

5. Well said babylonsister

My wife, her father died when she was 15 because of injuries he got in a plane that got shot down. My father served in the navy. These young Nazi fools think you make a great nation by claiming you are great. You make a great nation by being great.

Personally I want to know who paid for their shields. As I recall we take all the money, every bit of it, from terrorists and their supporters. I really, really want to see that happen.

As for these Nazi fools. Don't we have a prison for terrorists?

[bdamomma]

16. Gitmo

nt

[forgotmylogin]

36. I was glad to read that one of the journalism style-guides

prompted writers to not use "alt-right" as a watered-down phrase, and to choose White Supremacists, White Nationalists or other phrases as appropriate. "Alt-right" is an attempt to whitewash bigotry.

[markbark]

44. Yup

Whenever I see "Alt-right" in fora online, I always remind the poster that they've got a spelling error.
"Alt-right" should be spelled "fucking-Nazi"

[zentrum]

6. Well done.

Must not allow these racist fascists ----"blood and soil" and all that ugliness.

But we've been moving towards Mussolini style economic fascism for a long time. The corporate take-over of our government, our education, our prisons, our media is absolutely what Mussolini sought. And they've often used dog whistles to grease the wheels. Reagan and his welfare Queen. Nixon and his Southern Strategy. It's been racial nazism in the service of economic fascism.

[moonseller66]

7. How did it start?

There's an underlying question here: This "new" Nazi movement didn't just happen overnight. I feel it had to have someone, some organization start and fund it and maybe still be funding it.

When? Good question. I can't remember any Nazi groups being reported on in the early 60s (could be wrong there) but read about some during the middle stages ('67-'70) of the Vietnam War.

There are organizations and powerful families who have a history of inserting their noses into politics and government for their own purposes and damn the consequences.

All the talk about these current Nazis and no one is asking how, when and where they started and maybe more importantly, who started them?

I'd love to know. Maybe some journalist out there can get him or herself a Pulitzer digging into it.

[relayerbob]

22. They have gone by many names

They were called The Aryan Nation in Idaho in the mid-70s. and had been entrenched with the Posse Comantaes (sp?) for many years, probably decades. The John Birchers were the same people, again, under a different title. But by the time of the big Chicago/Skokie march, they had more or less reclaimed their name. Prison recruitment is very high, as you might imagine

[calimary]

24. Welcome to DU, moonseller66.

You ask some good questions. We should all be asking ourselves, and each other, those same questions. We NEED to know how this sin starts, what on earth the appeal is (totally beyond me what that might be, but it certainly appeals. Unfortunately.

[thecrow]

27. Rachel did a segment the other night about how an armored car robbery in CA...

funded several hate groups. Six masked men shot out the tires and windows of the armored car and got away with 3 million.
All in broad daylight off a highway. I wonder if other such crimes have funded these groups over the years. How many?

[dlk]

8. Trump Has Spit on the Graves of Everyone Who Was Killed in WWII

Trump has no conscience. This means he can and will do anything--including giving Nazis a pat on the back.

[bdamomma]

15. a spoiled

little rich boy with a fucking silver spoon in his mouth, his dad was arrested in a KKK rally apples do not fall far from the tree), he is a criminal and he needs to go.........now. And we have to heal ourselves and our country.

[Delmette2.0]

39. I think that most families in this country are affect by the rise of Nazies

Four of seven of my grandparents sons served in WWII, including my father. Three were to young to serve. We have gays, bi-racial and disabled descendants of my grandparents. When I think of Nazis I think of my relatives that they would have killed just because of who they are, including my son.
I think of the disabled protesters that were treated so horribly in the halls of Congress just because they wanted to be heard. It terrified me and my son to know that their rights and healthcare didn't matter. This nazism isn't just with citizens it is in our halls of Congress.
I am grieving my son's recent death and strangely relieved that he didn't have to see the events of Charlottesville hoping he wouldn't be next. As the Republicans plan to reduce Medicaid and Medicare they are going to kill off the elderly and disabled, just like the Nazis.

Just my opinion.

Peace

[3catwoman3]

53. Wishing you strength...

...and courage as you cope with the loss of your son. So sorry to hear.

[IronLionZion]

9. America is diverse, Nazis are unAmerican.

We had a war about this that involved the whole world

[raven mad]

10. +1000

Bookmarked.

[sandensea]

11. The Reich was gone. Over & done with - but they never entirely gave up on their fantasy.

The sad fact is that billions in Nazi loot was quietly laundered out of Germany in the waning days of the war (some of it with the help of Prescott Bush's UBC laundromat) and carefully invested in businesses in Brazil (Odebrecht), Chile (Cencosud), and elsewhere.

They're just waiting for everyone to forget.

[uponit7771]

12. Labeling the "alt-right" Nazis sounds like good morals and good politics as it makes it hard for ...

... the right to stick next to their defenders including Benedict Donald

[bdamomma]

13. what a poignant

and beautiful post and so true. My dad and all of my uncles enlisted and fought. People are forgetting this horrible war and how many people died, and the scourge of Hitler. It would be a travesty to let this cancer invade our country, to disrespect the memory of all who died to keep our country free and live in democracy.

We must not let history repeat itself.

[Scarsdale]

32. I was a child

in Liverpool, England during the war. We had an air raid shelter in the back yard, and spent many, many nights huddled in it, listening to the nazi planes drone overhead, bombs whistling down. The city was heavily bombed. We all carried gas masks to school. I used to stop at the corner of our street, afraid to turn the corner. I was afraid that our house might have been bombed while I was at school,and my mother would be gone. Terrifying memories. We saw too many homes destroyed. My aunt and her family lost everything they owned three times during raids, while they were in the community shelter. The Red Cross helped find apartments, furniture and clothing for them and their three boys. Seeing these marchers, with their nazi haircuts, nazi salutes, Tiki torches, and "brave" statements, upsets me. Not one of them know what the WAR really did to people, memories that STILL bring fear into our hearts. This is like a game to them, riling up aduults, adoring the orange clown in the WH. They have NO idea what they are promoting.

[Metro135]

14. I'm only one year younger than you . . .

And I hear you . . . I hear you.

My uncle was one of the GIs who stormed Normandy Beach. His best friend was blown up by a German mine right in front of him. But my Uncle was lucky. He came home. He passed away in 1983, and if he had seen what happened in VA over the weekend, he'd be speechless.

There is nothing "neo" about a Nazi. When you advocate death for people of different races and faiths, you don't get a platform. Death threats are not free speech.

[mobeau69]

17. Thank you. I know of what you've written about.

1951 here.

Dad fought in North Africa and I don't know where else. I've got a box full of old B&W photos of his of the places and destruction he saw. He never talked about it very much at all. Only a couple of stories. One about how he persisted to get a salute back form Patton. "General. General. General" he yelled at him while saluting as Patton was in a hurry to pass by. Patton couldn't ignore Dad any longer and he turned around and saluted. The other was how he got out because of a "war injury". He sprained an ankle really bad playing Volleyball so they sent him home. Was close to the end of his time anyway and near the end of the war by then. He always enjoyed telling that one!

But the guys came home and the ones that saw a lot of action didn't tell a lot of war stories. They got busy with their lives, bought homes and raised families. They are truly The Greatest Generation.

These asshole trumpnazis and trumpklans, and the "president" himself, might as well go up to Arlington and spit on the graves of these heroes. They are despicable and their ignorance is mind blowing.

[Delmette2.0]

41. My Dad was in North Africa during WWII, too.

He was an airplane mechanic. His diary entries usually start out with "Went out to the plane today". The mechanics always waited on bated breath to see their pilots come back to the airbase. If a plane was lost, they would always wonder if ithey missed something and caused a pilot's death. Dad spent four years away from home. I guess my point is that even the support crews made their own sacrifices and suffered losses.

We have to stop Nazism now, before we have another war.

[mobeau69]

45. That's for sure, Delmette.

I wish I would have asked more questions when I still had my dad. I got more information from his baby sister after Dad passed away at 62. He just never said much about the war. I've got his dog tags that I will pass along to my son soon enough.

I do know that he was an FDR Democrat, period. He also liked Truman back in the days before he was almost univeresally highly regarded. He took my oldest sister and me to see JFK when I was in 4th grade and she was in 6th and we got to shake his hand. He would've despised dump more than he did Tricky Dick and Reagan.

If he would have had half the formal education I got he could've been governor. He was so well liked by so many people. Part of The Greatest Generation is what he was.

Welcome to DU!

[Delmette2.0]

47. It sounds like our father's were very much alike.

[PatrickforO]

18. To Jim:

I am 58 and feel the way you do. These vicious people are marching in their jackboots with their brown shirts and their swastika armbands. They have clubs, cudgels, knives and guns and they seek to terrify the rest of us into submitting to them.

Well, I'm not going to.

I'm going to speak out, write, petition and telephone people about how we must all stand up and stand together to resist this wave of fascist hatred.

So, I'm with you, Jim. I'm with you and millions of other real Americans, patriotic Americans - Americans who understand that this land is OUR land, whatever our skin color or religion or sexual preference or disability. This land is our land. And we're going to keep it that way.

Because only together, right now, and for as long as it takes, can we nip this awful hate-movement in the bud.

Only together.

[roscoeroscoe]

28. Right with you

I'm 58, still serving. These fools make me sick.

[L. Coyote]

35. This is who we are talking about today, important to keep this image in mind:

Link to tweet

[Marcuse]

19. They've been here before.

Nazi Party rally in Madison Square Garden, 1938.

[dead_head]

20. I did a cartoon about calling them neo a few months ago

[link:|



www.96eyes.com

[relayerbob]

21. 100% agreed

I'm 60, and my father and uncles fought in WW2, my Dad flying out of New Guinea, my uncle serving under Patton. It is unfathonable that these .... creatures .... can get away with this here, and worse, that they are holding the White House hostage.

[calimary]

23. Whoever you are, Jim Gath, I came up just behind you.

64 now. Both my dad and my father-in-law were WWII veterans. Key players in important positions but neither of them were directly involved in actual combat. My dad never talked much about his experiences. But there was one thing he did say that struck me like a thunderbolt, and has made me stop and think and ponder, and marvel, over all these many years since.

I was riding up the freeway in the passenger seat and he was driving. I think I was still in my teens. We were coming home from somewhere or other and some errand or other. Talking very briefly about the war. And he hauled off and declared - "the one thing I'm proudest of is that I never raised a gun against my fellow man." He flew photo-reconnaissance. Only things he shot with were cameras. He was a Lt. Colonel in the United States Army Air Forces - something that eventually morphed into what we now call the Air Force.

My father-in-law was on the far opposite end. Of the planet. And of the sequence of time from preliminaries to the bitter painful end of actual hostilities. Instead of the European theater, he was sent to Australia. He was an Army doctor, sent to a MASH unit where wounded soldiers were brought from the fight against the Japanese. I once saw a brief segment of an old film reel he shot, for home movie purposes, of the clean below-knee amputation they'd just concluded and how they'd tidied up what had been a man's gruesome mangled and half-destroyed leg. That can kinda stop you in your tracks when you walk in on a screening like that! But he too was a war veteran who'd never fired a shot against his fellow man.

That realization made me feel so good. Still do. I think that's pretty damn cool. Mighty proud of those two and of their service.

[flibbitygiblets]

25. K&R - Nazism is unAmerican, and it's a form of terrorism.

It should not be a form of protected free speech, there I said it. Terrorist speech is not protected, why should this be any different?

[obamanut2012]

29. Oh, I refuse to use the "Neo"

It's fucking Nazis. They need to own their hate. It's nothing new.

[wcollar]

30. Wish they had started this up about 25 years ago

When many more of the "Greatest Generation" were still alive.
Can you imagine what they would have done with this 'basket of deplorables'?

[ginnyinWI]

31. Trump saying the anti-fascists are as bad as the white supremacists

is like saying that the Allies were as bad as the Axis during WWII. Both equally violent! And they didn't have a permit!

[lark]

33. Thank you for your heart-felt eloquence.

You so perfectly captured the whole point. We fought Nazis and put them down, why is the PINO now wanting to bring them into American society and tolerate their hate and violence. It's because his father was a KKK member/supporter and he's exactly the same hate filled megalomaniac as his dad, only a lot more stupid and inept.

[L. Coyote]

34. And there were Nazi sympathizers in America before and after the war.

[SeloverB]

38. My dad

My dad fought the Nazi's, so I wouldn't have to.

Don't think I won't.

[blueinredohio]

40. If they think it's so cool to carry around guns why don't they

join a branch of the armed services and threaten real enemies instead of bullying innocent people?

[radical noodle]

42. I had several friends whose dads had died in the war

Last edited Thu Aug 17, 2017, 04:02 PM - Edit history (1)

It's hard to think of kids that never knew their fathers because of Nazis.

[Nitram]

43. Exactly! Just leave the "neo" off. It is an attempt, like the term "alt-right" to give racism

a kinder, gentler face. Fuck that. They are all nazis. Period.

[scarytomcat]

46. Trump and his hate filled following do not understand history

The Civil War or the World Wars
War in this day and age is a losing proposition as we see. I think it may always have been true. You can't attack an conquer another country and maintain it for long. War can never be won unless you kill everyone in the other country. Why do we think winning is possible? Why do we think we can tell other countries what to do? Or how to live.

[Initech]

51. They don't really understand much of anything!

They don't understand diplomacy, international treaties, how the government works, how the media works, and they clearly don't have any understanding of how the Bible or the constitution works.

[scarytomcat]

54. true that

[bora13]

48. fake news

must = fake money to these clowns.
I mean would they take monopoly money as payment for services?

[The Wizard]

49. Has Republican become a euphemism

for Nazi? Is the president the leader of a domestic terrorist organization, a Russian agent or a cheesy reality TV actor who has no idea about what the fuck he's doing?

[dchill]

50. K&R.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

52. They aren't "neo" and they aren't "alt-right."

Those are just words intended to make them seem like they're not as bad as the original Nazis. Making the rounds of the Internet is this comment:

"Don't call yourselves alt-right. You're Nazis. It's just like if you have sex with farm animals you're not an alt-farmer; you're a goat-fucker."

As others in this thread have commented, a lot of us were born right after the war, and had fathers or uncles or other relatives who were either in the military or were involved in other aspects of the war effort. We knew when we were little kids that Nazis were the absolute worst people in the world and that our family members had done something incredibly brave and important in defeating them. My uncle, who recently passed away at the age of 96, was in the Battle of the Bulge and the liberation of Paris. I can't imagine what he'd have thought of an American president drawing some kind of moral equivalence between Nazis and -- almost anybody.

Just when I think Trump can't shock me any more....