Watchman wrote: ↑Fri Nov 10, 2023 11:33 am
And the Jewish Chronicle actually published that?
And the ones that ran the ovens were actually bakers?
There is an element of truth to it.
In the early days of Special Operations the executioners (the Sonderkommando) were pretty much up for it, frequently psychopaths or Nazi fanatics, race war types. As the war went on more 'ordinary' soldiers were drafted in, and these did suffer from morale problems, evidenced by Himmler making speeches to them on several occasions telling them that they were carrying out a duty they found unpleasant for the sake of the Reich and to stick at it. Some objected on conscientious grounds (see Richard Böck who refused to work at Auschwitz and was sent back to military duties). There is no evidence - as shown at Nuremberg - that soldiers were forced or coerced, though, and the case of Böck shows that they could opt out - though of course few did.
I think Murray goes way beyond the evidence, but it's slightly more nuanced than most think.