tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1644690488802388716.post1712918569707377668..comments2024-03-28T01:36:51.952-06:00Comments on Mysteries and More from Saskatchewan: The Collini Case by Ferdinand Von Schirach With SpoilersBill Selneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17268006369157307593noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1644690488802388716.post-57873458754168158782014-09-24T03:36:37.857-06:002014-09-24T03:36:37.857-06:00Well, there should always be evidence or testimony...Well, there should always be evidence or testimony that shows the guilt of those who committed war crimes.<br /><br />Gordon Ferris' Pilgrim Soul contains courtroom scenes of witnesses who had been in concentration camps testifying against Nazi officers in Hamburg in 1946-1947. <br /><br />Ferris mentioned in his Afterword the number of war criminals who were executed; it was a low number. But he also mentions some who didn't even go to jail ot were imprisoned for short periods.<br /><br />Hatred isn't a reason for punishing people. But collaborating in genocide is. And I think the "only following orders" in carrying out horrific brutality is not an excuse. People have to have consciences and limits on what they will do as human beings, including soldiers.<br /><br />During the Vietnam War, there were massacres by U.S. soldiers and all sorts of atrocities were committed, including the My Lai massacre.. A few were tried and sentenced to short prison terms. Many others were not held accountable. <br /><br />As you recall, there was a gigantic anti-war and anti-dratt movement going on in the U.S., which grew as people got word of atrocities going on in Vietnam. Many soldiers refused to carry out these brutal acts in one way or another.<br /><br />In the U.S., there are a lot of difficulties within the criminal justice system, with evidence hidden by police or prosecutors. Just a few weeks ago, two men were released from a North Carolina jail on the basis of DNA evidence after wrongly serving 30 years, one on death row.<br /><br />A man in New York was awarded $6 million for having been wrongfully jailed for decades and finally was released on the basis of "newly found" evidence. And another man was recently released after 17 years incarceration on the basis of evidence.<br /><br />I hope that the German justice system revises its laws, although now most war criminals from WWII have probably died. It's too bad so many were able to escape punishment, and that many were able to live good lives in South America, the U.S. and Canada. It's just morally wrong, given what they did. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1644690488802388716.post-76004705548366049772014-09-23T13:49:43.256-06:002014-09-23T13:49:43.256-06:00Kathy D.: I agree with murder and its legal variat...Kathy D.: I agree with murder and its legal variations should never have time limits. I am less sure about other war crimes. Hatred can lead to false accusations and destroyed lives.Bill Selneshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17268006369157307593noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1644690488802388716.post-91458869521853507562014-09-20T16:58:55.405-06:002014-09-20T16:58:55.405-06:00I thought this book was very illuminating. It sho...I thought this book was very illuminating. It showed that the law was changed in Germany in 1968 to the benefit of soldiers who collaborated in genocide, i.e., "I was only following orders." I don't think any time limitations should apply regarding war crimes.<br /><br />This was WWII, the Holocaust. Crimes were committed against millions of people for many reasons. And the Germans violated international laws constantly, daily. They should have been held accountable for all of these horrible acts.<br /><br />What's criminal to me is that so many war criminals fled to South America, the U.S. and Canada and were never caught and tried or were caught in their older age, which is almost pointless.<br /><br />Sometimes the NY Times has obituaries of people in their 80s and 90s who have lived in the U.S. or Canada peacefully since the war, and they committed horrific war crimes. Is that right? No. <br /><br />In this country, there are statutes of limitations, but not on murder, usually. <br /><br />I read at Mrs Peabody Investigates, a terrific website, run by German literature professor, Katherina Hall, that this book instigated a discussion of the German criminal justice system inside that country. It must have shocked many Germans.<br /><br />Hall was going to inform her readers if any changes arose from those discussions. I surely hope so.<br /><br />I think the writer, Ferdinand von Schirach, had this intention when he wrote the book. His grandfather was a German war criminal, responsible for the deaths of many. He went to prison for many years, but never regretted his actions nor apologized for them. <br /><br />The author must bear feelings of shame about his grandfather's actions. So, by writing this book, he may have been expressing his feelings and views and calling for legal changes.<br /><br />The WWII genocide should never be forgotten, nor its criminals let off the hook. It's just unfortunate that so many escaped punishment, some through "ratlines," to North and South America, or somehow lived in Europe. <br /><br />IAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1644690488802388716.post-51123066700208531972014-09-19T08:14:30.311-06:002014-09-19T08:14:30.311-06:00Margot: Thanks for the comment. Many decades old c...Margot: Thanks for the comment. Many decades old charges would be quickly resolved if there was forensic evidence but it is rarely available. In most cases there was no investigation at that time. The allegations arise many years later and all the evidence is verbal.Bill Selneshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17268006369157307593noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1644690488802388716.post-43207872110778541572014-09-18T15:06:30.559-06:002014-09-18T15:06:30.559-06:00Bill - What a thoughtful post. Thank you for discu...Bill - What a thoughtful post. Thank you for discussing these questions. As you've shown, limitation periods are not any more perfect solutions than anything else is. A lot of the 'cop shows' that focus on older cases have things like DNA evidence turning up or something else similar that unequivocally show who's really guilty of a crime. My guess is that it doesn't happen that neatly at all in real life. Even if there is somehow that kind of incontrovertible evidence, there are enough other factors involved that I can well imagine it's harder to make a case after a very long time than soon after a crime. This is all really interesting, for which thanks.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com