In the article “Ordinary Germans” and the Holocaust, Eric Johnson discusses Nazi Terror in Germany and different interpretations and evidence pertaining to discovering who truly holds responsibility for these atrocities. Many people such as Schafer, the earlier leader of the Cologne Gestapo, “maintained that he had only adhered to the existing laws” and that it was due to German laws that “the Jews were placed outside of the German community because of the laws” (Johnson 22). It is thought that it was indeed the leadership and philosophy that was to blame, but their actions are undeniably questionable. German society as a whole, as well as propaganda, Hitler personally, the extent of the power of the Gestapo, have also been called to research and questioned. This article also discusses that others besides Jews, were suffering at the hands of the Nazis, such as Communists, Women, religious sects, homosexuals, and the disabled. These German citizens were considered to be social outsiders and a threat to the Nazi party. Johnson continues to argue that despite the fact that the leadership of the Nazi regime began the terror throughout Germany, “its implementation and effectiveness depended on the voluntary choices and local actions of individual German citizens” (Johnson 239). As more time lapses, scholars gain a greater understanding of the Nazi Party throughout Germany, as can be seen by 3 stages that scholars have already been through studying the Nazi terror.

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A.J. Balfour was a British Prime Minister and wrote this statement as a response to an attack on the British promise to Jewish people in this speech. The Palestine Mandate was a British promise trying to ensure people that The Jewish community would have a place to be considered their Home, and part of Palestine should ensure that Arabs and Jews share in government in order to protect the essential interests of each of the two communities. In the long history of the Jewish People had suffered many prejudices and Balfour requests, “Consider whether the whole culture of Europe, the whole religious organization of Europe, has not from time to time proved itself guilty of great crimes against this race.” (pg 83)He uses the Christianity of Europe to help “organize a culture in a Home where it will be secured from oppression.” (pg 84).

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In the reading of “The total War,” which was written by Eric Hobsbawm, we see that in this chapter he focuses on talking about why the First World War had a great impact on the whole world. During this war, there were many changes that came about that eventually lead to World War II. In this chapter, one of the questions that Hobsbawm wants us to think about is “Why, then, was the First World War waged by the leading powers on both sides as a zero-sum game, i.e. as a war which could only be totally won or totally lost? (Hobsbawm 29)” One of the reasons that he states that this war had no limits was because of the fact that these countries were “fighting for complete power.” (Hobsbawm 29) That is that they did not want to have anything get in the way of being able to further expand into other countries for colonialization. Also, something else that he states in this chapter is that World War I was a war that was now being “technologically fought” where “some started using airships and submarines” to try to look for other ways to harm the others. He also states that this is considered a “Total War,” because these armies are not only focusing in harming the other armies, but they are also harming women, that is that everything is being put on the line regardless of who they have to kill just as long as they come out victorious.

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In the 1900’s, Japanese military forces not only conquered Nanking, China, but also raped, murdered, and tortured hundreds of thousands of Chinese civilians in this genocide. In chapter two of The Rape of Nanking by Iris Chang, the Japanese excuses behind the genocide of the Chinese people are described as “Killing them would not only eliminate the food problem but diminish the possibility of retaliation.” (pg 41) As described previously in the book, as the Japanese conquered the city, the city was isolated and there was no more trade, soon causing a food shortage. Chang describes the murder of the Chinese Civilians by explaining, “Using machine guns, revolvers, and rifles, the Japanese fired at the crowds of wounded soldiers, elderly women, and children who gathered in the North Chungshan and Central roads and nearby alleys.” (pg 46) The murders and violence that occurred were captured by many journalists, such as Imai Masatake, a Japanese military correspondent, who wrote graphically and detailed about the atrocities. Chapter two also describes the plight of women, such as rape that many were subjected to from the Japanese army. “Some [officers] not only urged soldiers to commit gang rape in the city but warned them to dispose of the women afterwards to eliminate evidence of the crime.” (pg 50). This genocide was so violent that when Matsui Iwane, an ill Japanese military leader, entered the city, he was dismayed at the full extent of the rape, murder, looting, and torturing that was occurring. Many of the women who were raped, were later also taken to become The Comfort Women, which was underground prostitution for the Japanese government, though they too were sometimes tortured. The Japanese soldiers were trained to be able to murder Chinese combatants and noncombatants through various killing games. Tominaga Shozo wrote, “Human beings turned into murdering demons. Everyone became a demon within three months.” (pg 58). [Ch 2 pg 35-59]

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Nationalism, internationalism, and colonialism are similar to imperialism. As Hobson says they are “ equally elusive, equally shifty, and the changeful overlapping of all four demands the closest vigilance of students of modern politics: (p. 203). Hobson explains that the struggle in external politics took a disruptive form. Some countries that experienced this were the countries breaking away from the Ottoman Empire. Imperialist feel like they must have markets for growing manufactures, they must have new outlets for investments of surplus capital and energies for the adventurous surplus of the population. In order to obtain these things, they must sell abroad. There was a demand in foreign markets for manufacture and investments. As more nations follow this trend, it becomes more difficult for its manufactures, merchants, and financiers to dispose profitability of their economic resources and use their government in to secure for their particular use with some distant undeveloped country by annexation and protection.

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Hello Everyone and welcome to this new ERC MMW online community & research tool. I'm Marlo Young, and undergrad services librarian at UCSD, and site administrator (libmarlo). This online community is truly designed to help you succeed...so please contribute your ideas at anytime. Have fun with research and using your UCSD Libraries.

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