Posted by Ilse on July 31, 2000 at 18:10:23:
In Reply to: Re: For all those who ponder the castingof stones posted by Vita on July 31, 2000 at 12:57:40:
Dear Vita,
Though I have no doubts about Dresden being an absolute hell during that time, you must not forget that there were many places like it during WWII. And that the Germans could certainly hold their own when it came to bomb attacks on civilian areas. Famous examples are London and Coventry, but to bring it a little closer to my home, the city I call my home, Rotterdam, was heavily bombed on May 14 1940, which resulted in many casualties and the total destruction of our centuries old city center. My parents were children then, and living there. They witnessed it, and witnessed a lot more during the occupation that followed.
War is cruel, however this war was not started by the Allied, it was started by Germany. And the guy who started it, was put into power through a democratic election process, which shows he had quite some support for his policies. I am sure that the "little history" of the war is heartbreaking (but no more so in Germany, than in the rest of Europe), but I firmly believe that this was a war that needed to be fought. And a monstruous ideology that needed to be destroyed.
Me, I am just grateful for the sacrifices made by the Allied soldiers. I may be critical at times about American policies and attitudes, but that doesn't mean I have forgotten about that. I grew up in a free country because of those sacrifices.
Ilse