Condi's Phony History

Slate ^ | 8/29/03 | Daniel Benjamin

[Burkeman1]

As American post-conflict combat deaths in Iraq overtook the wartime number, the administration counseled patience. "The war on terror is a test of our strength. It is a test of our perseverance, our patience, and our will," President Bush told an American Legion convention.

National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice embellished the message with what former White House speechwriters immediately recognize as a greatest-generation pander. "There is an understandable tendency to look back on America's experience in postwar Germany and see only the successes," she told the Veterans of Foreign Wars in San Antonio, Texas, on Aug. 25. "But as some of you here today surely remember, the road we traveled was very difficult. 1945 through 1947 was an especially challenging period. Germany was not immediately stable or prosperous. SS officers—called 'werewolves'—engaged in sabotage and attacked both coalition forces and those locals cooperating with them—much like today's Baathist and Fedayeen remnants."

Speaking to the same group on the same day, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld noted,

One group of those dead-enders was known as "werewolves." They and other Nazi regime remnants targeted Allied soldiers, and they targeted Germans who cooperated with the Allied forces. Mayors were assassinated including the American-appointed mayor of Aachen, the first major German city to be liberated. Children as young as 10 were used as snipers, radio broadcasts, and leaflets warned Germans not to collaborate with the Allies. They plotted sabotage of factories, power plants, rail lines. They blew up police stations and government buildings, and they destroyed stocks of art and antiques that were stored by the Berlin Museum. Does this sound familiar?

Well, no, it doesn't. The Rice-Rumsfeld depiction of the Allied occupation of Germany is a farrago of fiction and a few meager facts.

Werwolf tales have been a favorite of schlock novels, but the reality bore no resemblance to Iraq today. As Antony Beevor observes in The Fall of Berlin 1945, the Nazis began creating Werwolf as a resistance organization in September 1944. "In theory, the training programmes covered sabotage using tins of Heinz oxtail soup packed with plastic explosive and detonated with captured British time pencils," Beevor writes. "… Werwolf recruits were taught to kill sentries with a slip-knotted garrotte about a metre long or a Walther pistol with silencer. …"

In practice, Werwolf amounted to next to nothing. The mayor of Aachen was assassinated on March 25, 1945, on Himmler's orders. This was not a nice thing to do, but it happened before the May 7 Nazi surrender at Reims. It's hardly surprising that Berlin sought to undermine the American occupation before the war was over. And as the U.S. Army's official history, The U.S. Army in the Occupation of Germany 1944-1946, points out, the killing was "probably the Werwolf's most sensational achievement."

[WOSG]

Thanks for posting the facts to respond to a useless baseless attack on the administration. As usual, those calling the Bush administration folks liars turn out to be preaching falsehoods themselves. The acts of sabotage are strikingly similar, and the motiation is strikingly similar too ... Yet we see:

Despite its failure, however, the Werewolf project had a huge impact, widening the psychological and spiritual gap between Germans and their occupiers. Werewolf killings and intimidation of `collaborators' scared almost everybody, giving German civilians a clear glimpse into the nihilistic heart of Nazism. It was difficult for people working under threat of such violence to devote themselves unreservedly to the initial tasks of reconstruction. Worse still, the Allies and Soviets reacted to the movement with extremely tough controls, curtailing the right of assembly of German civilians. Challenges of any sort were met by collective reprisals -- especially on the part of the Soviets and the French. In a few cases the occupiers even shot hostages and cleared out towns where instances of sabotage occurred. It was standard practice for the Soviets to destroy whole communities if they faced a single act of resistance. In the eastern fringes of the `Greater Reich', now annexed by the Poles and the Czechoslovaks, Werewolf harassment handed the new authorities an excuse to rush the deportations of millions of ethnic Germans to occupied Germany.

Ah, clearly the situations in Iraq 2003 and Germany 1945 are TOTALLY different ... maybe we should be glad the Russians and French arent 'helping' us.

[FreedomCalls]

There were zero to none combat deaths among the American troops who occupied Germany after WWII. Please provide a list of casualties who died due to "guerilla attacks" in Germany after the formal close of battle?

That is a HIGHLY distorted view of the allied occupation of Germany in 1945. The Allies included the Soviet Union. How many ALLIED combat troops were attacked (include attacks on Russians in your numbers). Your list of casualties must include RUSSIAN casualties as they were an Allied occupying power in addition to the US, Britain, and France.

[Palladin]

How many Americans died in the immediate months of our occupation due to Nazi die harder attacks? One who really counted--George Patton. Yeah, I know they said it was an "accident".

[WOSG]

hey btw how was it 'proven' Hitler died anyway? How come it took so long to confirm?

As for saddam, I sure hope we find his a** and have the Iraqis try him and kill him properly for his many evil crimes against humanity. Having him die in a gunfight like his sons is too much dignity. Public hanging is more fitting.

[FreedomCalls]

Both Rice and Rumsfeld consistently used the term attacks on "allied troops" in the article. You switched it to "American troops" because you know there were significant attacks on Russian troops in the Berlin area after the declared end of the war. Everything they said was factually accurate.

[FreedomCalls]

The subject was whether the occupation of Iraq in 2003-2005 is similar to, or radically different from, the occupation of the American zone in Germany in 1944-46.

In the Slate article, Rice and Rumsfeld do not limit themselves to attacks in the American zone. They specifically referred to the "allied troops" which included the Russian zone. There were significant attacks on Russian troops (allied troops) in the Russian zone after the formal end of the war.

[Pukin Dog]

Some people would rather bitch than read.

[Pukin Dog]

Either falsehoods, or deliberate uniformed opinions out of fear of the facts.

[secretagent]

Your post quotes an article that claims 5 Americans killed in a police station explosion, after Germany's surrender. As opposed to this, the thread's lead article goes on to state:

It's hard to understand exactly what Rumsfeld was saying, but if he meant that the Nazi resisters killed Americans after the surrender, this would be news. According to America's Role in Nation-Building: From Germany to Iraq, a new study by former Ambassador James Dobbins, who had a lead role in the Somalia, Haiti, Bosnia, and Kosovo reconstruction efforts, and a team of RAND Corporation researchers, the total number of post-conflict American combat casualties in Germany—and Japan, Haiti, and the two Balkan cases—was zero.

So we have a disagreement between two historians. Yours claims 5 American post-war deaths, and the lead article's author claims zero post-WWII deaths. A small but significant difference, but still well below the occupation deaths for Americans in Iraq.

[MJY1288]

If we wait until the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction has spread to all corners of the globe with every Islamic terrorist studying the three step course in Bioterroism and the art of Germ Warfare, it will be too late to act. We have to act now, and the word "ACT" means to wage war against these dead enders where they live, breathe, eat and shit until the day comes when each and every one of them have joined the other dead enders in the ash heap of history.

[Pukin Dog]

You switched it to "American troops"

Good catch.

[Peach]

For those who say there were very few combat deaths in post-war Germany, they are incorrect. A recent History Channel show talked with veterans who served there and they told of numerous killings of our soldiers by Hitler sympathizers. The last known death in Germany of one of our soldiers by a sympathizer to Hitler was 1949.

I've written the Library of Congress for an exact number but haven't received a reply yet. Based on the History Channel show I'd guess the number is several hundred, but that' s just a guess. It was obvious they were not talking about a dozen or so deaths, that's for sure.

[Dolphy]

Daniel Benjamin was a Germany correspondent for Time and the Wall Street Journal from 1990-1994 and served on the National Security Council staff from 1994-1999.

And while at the NSC he became quite friendly with the artful use of words and the building of majestic tales. Too bad he doesn't realize that it was unique to the administration he served not to all administrations.

[RLK]

We are fighting for our lives. The Second World War killed millions. Does anyone seriously doubt that the Muslim terrorists we fight will settle for less? Does anyone seriously think they'll settle for millions?

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Who said anything about Muslim terrorists? It's the religion of peace.

[Peach]

I have consistently tried to tell the doubters that US and allied soldiers were killed in what seem to be large numbers in post-war Germany.

The History Channel did a show on this very subject a few weeks ago and although they did not say how many soldiers died at the hands of Hitler sympathizers, it was obviously not just a few dozen. The last known death to a US or allied soldier in post war Germany at the hands of Hitler sympathizers was 1949.

I've written the Library of Congress but do not have an exact number to quiet the doubters.

Can we imagine what Europe would look like now if we'd listened to the critics and left? We would not have an ally in the region.

[Peach]

Actually, the History Channel talked to still living VETERANS who were stationed in post war Germany and they discussed how their fellow soldiers were killed by Hitler sympathizers.

I find myself believing actual survivors of that time period who were interviewed on camera with their name and former rank and whose account was substantiated historically and with other fellow soldiers, than some unknown "scholar".

[RLK]

One difference is that in Iraq, you have a lot of foreign hostile forces coming in from surrounding countries as well.

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Those are not foreign forces. The reality is we are not fighting Saddam Hussein, but most of the Mohammadan world.

[Pukin Dog]

a new study by former Ambassador James Dobbins, who had a lead role in the Somalia, Haiti, Bosnia, and Kosovo reconstruction efforts, and a team of RAND Corporation researchers, the total number of post-conflict American combat casualties in Germany—and Japan, Haiti, and the two Balkan cases—was zero.

I believe the London Bridge is for sale too. Got MasterCard? Consider the source, please.

AMBASSADOR JAMES F. DOBBINS

Ambassador Dobbins has headed the European Bureau of the State Department since May 26, 2000.  He has served as Deputy Assistant Secretary, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary and Acting Assistant Secretary for European and Canadian Affairs.  In Europe, he served as Ambassador to the European Community, Deputy Chief of Mission in Bonn, Political-Military Officer in London, and Political Officer in Paris.  Ambassador Dobbins has also acted as the Department of State’s senior manager for peace operations in Kosovo, Bosnia, Haiti and Somalia.  From 1999 until his current assignment, he served as Special Advisor to the President and Secretary of State for Kosovo and Dayton Implementation, with lead responsibility for management of the Balkan crisis throughout the Kosovo conflict.  Earlier, Ambassador Dobbins served as the Administration's coordinator for Haiti, overseeing the diplomatic and civil aspects of the intervention.  He filled a similar role in overseeing the disengagement of U.S. forces from Somalia.  From 1996 until 1999 he was Special Assistant to the PresidentCLINTON and Senior Director on the National Security Council Staff responsible for Latin America.  Earlier, he served with the U.S. Mission to the United Nations, the U.S. Mission to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the Department of State’s Policy Planning Staff, and with the U.S. Delegation to the Vietnam Peace Talks.  In addition to his official posts, he has held appointments as a Senior Fellow with the Rand Corporation, and occupied a similar position with the Council on Foreign Relations.  Prior to joining the Foreign Service, Ambassador Dobbins served three years as an officer in the United States Navy, including two tours of duty in the Vietnam theatre aboard the USS Bon Homme Richard (CVA 31).  He received a Bachelor’s degree from the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service. 

Oh yeah, I trust THAT dude. A clinton butt-boy, State Dept hack, who manages two tours in a three year career? Another ticket punching liar, if you ask me.

[FreedomCalls]

We are fighting for our lives. The Second World War killed millions.

And we, and the Russians even more so, utterly destroyed the German soldiers on the battlefield. There were very few die-hard combatants left after it was all over. Those that were caught were disarmed. Contrast that with Iraq where most all of them just disappeared and went home (taking their weapons with them). Do you think it would have turned out any different if the Waffen SS soldiers were to have changed into civilian clothes and slipped away back into the Hartz Mountains while keeping their weapons?

[Peach]

Also, see #36 - actual soldiers who lost fellow soldiers in post war Germany were interviewed.

I'll believe our soldiers who were THERE any day over some "scholar".