Uncomfortable parallels drawn between 1930s Germany and now

On April 21 (“10th-graders belong in school”), Frank Bunkell chose to

respond to my rebuttal to his original commentary regarding student

protests against the war in Iraq. I did not expect the comments

received. As any debater knows, when a debater attacks the opponent

rather than the argument, well ... enough said on that score.

As for Tadeh Ohanian, this is a student who in three years will be

able to fight and die for this country, as well as vote. Civic

awareness does not come with the passage of a yearly milestone, but

is nurtured and brought to fruition over a period of time. Ohanian’s

motivation to protest is indicative of that growing political

awareness, and the avenues of expression taken are dictated by

Ohanian’s conscience.

The core question is, Mr. Bunkell, had Ohanian demonstrated in

favor of the war, would you have protested the action taken so

vehemently?

Out of respect to you, I did not respond to the political

realities you assert existed in Germany during the 1930s. However, as

you again referenced that era, I now feel obliged to challenge what I

consider misleading statements.

The term Nazi is derived from Nationalsozialistische Deutche

Arbeiterpartei, or National Socialist German Workers Party, of which

Adolph Hitler was an early member. In the 1920s, it was considered a

minor but violent political force.

However, the worldwide depression that began in 1929 amplified the

problems Germany faced. It was period of hyperinflation, rampant

unemployment, and civic unrest prompted, in part, by the repressive

reparations imposed on Germany by the Treat of Versailles at the end

of World War I.

The Nazis capitalized on that unrest to become one of the

political parties represented in the Reichstag, the German

parliament.

When no party attained a majority after the elections of 1932, the

president, Paul von Hindenburg, called for a coalition government

(composed of Nazis, Communists, Social Democrats and the Center

Party) and with Hitler as chancellor. On becoming Chancellor, Hitler

had the Nazis torch the Reichstag, and had the Communists (who

intimidated opponents also) blamed for the act. With the Communists

purged from the Reichstag, Hitler, with von Hindenburg’s blessing,

called for a new general election.

Hitler was again thwarted, as the Nazis were rejected by the

people, and they remained a minority political party. Then, Hitler

demanded the Reichstag grant him exceptional powers under a bill

titled “Law for Removing the Distress of the People and Reich.” After

much politicking, and with Hitler promising to respect von

Hindenburg’s right of veto, the Center Party voted with the Nazis for

the bill, thus giving Hitler the majority he needed in the Reichstag.

With the bill passed, Hitler never looked back, as von Hindenburg

died shortly thereafter. A constitutionally elected government was

thus overthrown by its own legislative branch.

It was not people rioting in the streets that brought down the

government, Mr. Bunkell, but “good Germans” who did not protest. As

William L. Shirer, in his definitive work “The Rise and Fall of the

Third Reich” put it, “The Germans had no one but themselves to

blame.”

Hmmm. Seems like we have a parallel these days, with a president

winning an election based on a minority popular vote and benefiting

from a certain state cooking the books. A trumped-up war is then

created to get the Patriot Act passed by an inept legislature, and

the Defense Department subsequently takes the lead in foreign

affairs.

Now, “good Americans” are those who do not question the actions of

their government. Does that sound ... nah, better not go there.

And since you inferred a lack of civic responsibility on my part,

yes, Mr. Bunkell, I have voted in every presidential election since I

have been able to vote. I have written to congressmen and worked as

an election precinct worker. I have also protested in the streets

what I believe is a jingoistic adventure that has taken this nation

beyond the realm of international law.

Can you say all of the same?

HOWARD H. GETHING

Glendale