Monday May 28, 2012

JAPAN NEWS AND DISCUSSION

Auschwitz 'Work Sets You Free' sign stolen

World Dec. 19, 2009 - 04:54AM JST ( 16 )

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16 Comments

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BeelzebubDec. 19, 2009 - 08:23AM JST

I suppose the Holocaust deniers who regularly troll this site will quickly pounce on this one as evidence that the sign's disappearance "proves" the whole thing never occurred. It was just a humanitarian mass relocation to the east that went awry when a million or so people all came down with typhus -- right guys?
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bushloverDec. 19, 2009 - 09:10AM JST

I really hope these thieves return the sign. I don't want deniers using this as propoganda. But I don't think it will happen at least on a scale that would matter anyway.
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numbskullDec. 19, 2009 - 11:42AM JST

Yeah, the sign really proves something. I am sure deniers will jump right on it, sure.

"Arbeit macht frei" actually means "sub-human murder HQ" in German and not the more benign "Work makes (one) free" like we were told. Sure.

If you think about it, the theft of the sign actally works against the deniers. It does not make instant sense to have a sign about work if the whole point is to kill the people. Dead people don't work.
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pawatanDec. 19, 2009 - 04:06PM JST

I guess nothing is sacred!

BTW I don't think I've ever seen a news article translate that sign/slogan, it's always "Arbeit Mach Frei".
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presto345Dec. 19, 2009 - 10:12PM JST

We know there are seriously disturbed up individuals amongst us. This incident again proves the fact. It is regrettable this theft could happen. But history has been written and a replica of the sign can be made. The idiots who committed the crime won't have more satisfaction than what their diseased brains allow them.
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seijichuudo9shaDec. 19, 2009 - 10:48PM JST

Europeans really scare me sometimes.
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nandakandamandaDec. 19, 2009 - 11:06PM JST

Expect it to turn up on eBay...
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MadvertsDec. 20, 2009 - 12:57AM JST

"Europeans really scare me sometimes."

Heh, you mean they make you feel inferior, old friend?
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graftonDec. 20, 2009 - 07:15AM JST

seijichuudo9sha at 10:48 PM JST - 19th December “Europeans really scare me sometimes.”

Europeans may scare you but have thought that the reject Europeans make up the foundation of a number of other counties populations and that I find even scarier. As for these twisted sign robbers, it will be disappointing for many if they turn out to be a bunch of drunken students, but it would be as well to remember that the Poles had no more love for the Jews than the Germans did, so this hardly shows a sign of changing character. It was only world pressure that stopped the Poles (and Russians) from bulldozing all the concentration camps after the war.
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seijichuudo9shaDec. 20, 2009 - 09:45AM JST

I dont believe it! It looks like someone calling himself Grafton is trying to diminish the enormity of, or rationalize, theft of concentration camp artifacts. Their historical value and significance cannot be measured in monetary terms.

Europeans really do scare me sometimes.
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numbskullDec. 20, 2009 - 07:34PM JST

seijichuudo9sha: trying to diminish the enormity of, or rationalize, theft of concentration camp artifacts.

Oh please! The pictures are quite enough. Let's not get all dramatic about a sign!

grafton: but it would be as well to remember that the Poles had no more love for the Jews than the Germans did

Or anyone else. People like to think the Holocaust was a blip in history and an oddity, but in fact, it was the pinnacle of a mountain of Jewish persecution from all around the world, even the U.S. One of the amazing things about the Holocaust is it showed just how much barbarity it took for the Jews to get sympathy: a God awful hell-of-a-lot. But now that sympathy persists even for Jews who never experienced the Holocaust, are well-off, have their own country, and persecute others.
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seijichuudo9shaDec. 20, 2009 - 07:37PM JST

numbskull, you tell it like it is.
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graftonDec. 20, 2009 - 10:14PM JST

So far nobody knows who or why this sign was taken, so on that basis it is still reasonable for people to offer opinions that though they may differ from yours are just as possible. Doing so however does not in any way diminish the twisted reasoning that must have existed in the minds of those who committed this act, even if they are found to be drunken students. Nothing I wrote above takes anything away from the horror and the barbarity of the holocaust because I was not commenting on the holocaust, I was commenting on the theft of the sign, the two things are related but are not the same thing except in the minds of simple souls that wish to make meaninglessly antagonistic remarks.

numbskull at 07:34 PM JST - 20th December

You take me to task by saying that in the past Jews were hated all the world over, I doubt that I really need telling that. My reason for pointing the finger at the Poles was because this theft took place in Poland and the Russians get a passing mention because they controlled that country for so long. I did not forget the bigotry of the rest of the world, I simply didn’t see it as being a part of the story.