There is more also.
There were Russians who fought for Germany, not because they were Anti-Russia, Pro-Germany, or Pro-Hitler, or NAZI's or Aryans. They were Anti-Communist. Many of the French Pilots in the Normandie Niemen flew with the Russians because they were Socialist or Communists, and Anti-Fascists, and didn't have Democratic or Monarchiacal leanings. THere were Russians captured at Ohmaha beach on D-Day. The French fought against the Americans and English, as well as along side them.
And what is not mentioned is that the German people were either brainwashed or intimidated into the whole NAZI/Aryan thing. There were many Anti-Facists in Germany before and during WWII and a lot of them got Burned up in the Ovens along side the Hebrews and the Homosexuals.
A lot of the professional officers in the German Military were following the orders of their political leaders. Toward the end of the war, they were attempting to get the Americans and British to help them fight against the Russians.
In China the Communists made up the larger part of the trained and organized forces that actually resisted the Japanese where the Warlords and the (I hesitate to say) Democratic people fought, argued, or abscended.
If were as simple as Black and White, good versus evil, Axis and Allies there would be no discussion, but it wasn't that simple. There were 1st and 2nd Generation Americans who had emigrated from Germany in the U.S. Army fighting against the Germans. Germany had nearly as large a population of Resistance fighters as France. There is quite a bit of evidence that a very organized group of German Industrialist and bankers organized via the Swiss the defeat of Germany(Hitler) and the Reconstruction of Germany (at least on the Allied Side.) I have seen de-classified documents of this organization that were in Washington many months prior to D-Day.
Hartmann's Father told him that day that Germany declared war on the U.S. that the war was lost.
From reading his book I don't get the impression that Hartmann was much impressed with Hitler, of course that may have been editorialized for the "Cold War" media, but it seemed pretty sincere.
Yes there were Ranting Nazi Lunatics in the Cockpits of 109s, but there was also Soldiers defending their native soil, people who believed that they were doing something that would benifit their nation, and by extention their families.
When U.S. Forces went to Vietnam and Korea you know that a lot of men patted their sons on their shoulders and and said "Son, it's your turn to defend democracy and freedom."
Tell me why we fought Iraq for Kuwait? Tell me that the U.S. is a just nation that does not wrong, and that our soldiers improve the situation and make the world a better place.
Look at Vietnam, still healing after nearly 30 years. How are things in Somalia, Iraq, Iran, Kuwait, Korea? Are they better today than they were before we went to war for/over them?
My own respect, and I am in no way a Luftwaffe Pilot Fanatic, is in the accomplishments of the men who day in and day out went up against over whelming odds, and survived and in some cases exceeded expectations.
And like Zigrat, I love planes, many of the WWII Era German aircraft have a mystique that is attractive. They are not un-appealing aircraft to look at. I find the P-40 the most attractive of all WWII Era Aircraft and you would be hard pressed to name one thing that is was the best at.
I would prefer to keep politics out of my "FLIGHT SIMS" but they occasionally rear their ugly heads, when that happens the best I can hope for is a reasoned discussion, or an entertaing flame war.
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"Downtown" Lincoln Brown.
lkbrown1@tir.com http://www.tir.com/~lkbrown1 Wrecking Crews "Drag and Die Guy"
Hals und beinbruch!
