Auschwitz

Yesterday I seen that it was a day to remember Auschwitz, the largest concentration camp that resided in Poland during Hitlers reign of terror. Here are some facts that many seem to overlook about the Holocaust that sheds light on the truth behind Hitler and why he did what he did.

1. No one know the exact amount of people killed during this time, estimates have shown that around 5 or 6 million were Jews, but altogether 11 million were killed. This proves to me that even though Hitler may have been targeting Jews, he killed anyone who got in his way, so the next time you remember the holocaust, remember all who lost their lives not just some.

2. When you look at the core of why Hitler did what he did you see that he harbored hatred towards a certain group of people (no, not just Jews) and believed that his interpretation of what a person should be like was better. It’s amazing how many people adhere to this ideal, plus they put a religious spin on it and say this group is okay and this one is not. Once Hitler began to see one group as human and the other group as dogs his conscious never bothered him because it’s okay to treat animals bad, just like people lose their love and compassion for one another when they see one as lower.

Everyone wants to be important, everyone wants to know that their lives mean something and that they are not just nothing, this Hitler attitude feeds on people’s self-worth, killing them from the inside out. Instead of boasting about how much better one type of person is than another, we should be building people up, helping them to see their greatness and beauty. Diversity is a good thing, look at nature, diversity is beauty.

3. Even though the holocaust may be over, his attitude still lives on in many people. Many people out there claim to be superior to those around them and all religions claim to be more special to God than anyone else.

I just finished reading a book by Victor Frankl called Man’s Search For Meaning. If you want to read a good book about the holocaust then I would definitely recommend reading his book. Victor was a psychiatrist who found meaning even during the years he suffered in the concentration camps, he did not allow his suffering to twist his meaning and purpose in life, he did not become angry and bitter about what was done to him. Instead he devised a new way to help people called logotherapy, which is mentioned in this book as well.

Here are some of my favorite parts of his book,

Man is not fully conditioned and determined but rather determines himself whether he gives in to conditions or stands up to them. In other words, man is ultimately self-determining. Man does not simply exist but always decides what his existence will be, what he will become in the next moment. By the same token, ever human being has the freedom to change at any instant.

Man’s search for meaning is the primary motivation in his life and not a secondary rationalization of instinctual drives; hence he is not driven by pain and pleasure but rather to see a meaning in his life.

From all this we may learn that there are two races of men in this world, but only these two-the race of the decent man and the race of the indecent man. Both are found everywhere; they penetrate into all groups of society. No group consists entirely of decent or indecent people. In this sense, no group is of “pure race”-and therefore one occasionally found a decent fellow among the camp guards.

A LIFE OF MEANING BRINGS LIGHT TO EVEN THE DARKEST OF CORNERS

Next time you remember the holocaust remember all the precious lives lost during that time not just a few, for every life has meaning and every life is important.