I believe Theodore Herzl told Jews to support socialism as it upset the existing order ; he clearly considered that the existing order was not good for Jews. You have said this a lot on the Internet, in various newsgroups, and a search of Google Groups using these phrases is instructive. You have yet to produce in any forum, however, any citation for this supposed remark.

I was not able to see any heroism either. The film made me wonder what kept those last defenders going on - the cause was lost and the situation was hopeless - I may be mistaken, but I believe that the remaining German soldiers, in Berlin especially, were held back from retreating by the SS. They couldn't move forward and they couldn't move back in retreat for fear of being a traitor. OR, perhaps the German soldiers were hoping the US or Brits would get to Berlin first and same them from the Red Army...?? best, Chris

George Orwell in his classic article on anti-Semitism written in 1945... It may be a classic article , but it is no more than personal speculation. It is founded quite explicitly on Orwell's own personal opinion about the extent and nature of anti-Semitism, not on any systematic or organised polling of opinion or literature. There are far better sources of information about anti-Semitism in the UK in WW2 than this lazy commentary, and it would be highly unwise to draw any sort of conclusion from it. I don't think he claimed that it was anything other than personal observation, but I think many people have come to realize that he was a remarkably perceptive man who was able to realize the true nature of many things, e.g. his experiences with colonialism as a policeman in Burma and with the Communists in the Spanish Civil War.  Most acknowledge his books Animal Farm and 1984 as masterpieces. I have read many of the articles available at the web site I listed above and am quite impressed with his insight. Do you dispute his assertion that anti-Semitism (actually Judeophobia is a more correct word) increased in Britain during the war?  He points out clearly the seemingly strange phenomenon that people will deny they are anti-Semites and at the same time they will say they don't like Jews. Or they may say they don't like Jews, but individual Jews they may encounter they will treat with respect, thinking he is not like the others . He points out that with the rise of Hitler to power, classical British-type anti-Semitism became politically incorrect so someone who is polled in a public opinion survey will possibly hide his true feelings in order not to appear primitive and thus deny anti-Semitic feelings that he really has.   Orwell's talent was to look beneath the surface and see the true nature of things. I also recommend the article he wrote about the atomic bomb and the need for scientific education .  He is particularly critical of intellectuals in this one and he wonders why so many educated people are attracted to such pernicious philosophies such as Communism and Fascism.

OR, perhaps the German soldiers were hoping the US or Brits would get to Berlin first and same them from the Red Army...?? No, there was no hope or possibility of that, and the soldiers in Berlin must have known it. German roads were clogged at this time with civilians and soldiers trekking westward, hoping to meet American, British, or French soldiers before the Russian army overtook them. The courage of the common soldier in a hopeless defense like that of Berlin is something that those of us who haven't been tested in that way can never hope to understand. Whether it is nobility, stoicism, self-abnegation, or simply a surrender to the opinion of one's comrades