Pope Recalls Being German POW

Fox News & AP ^ | April 19, 2005

[yoely]

BERLIN — In May 1945, thousands of German prisoners of war trudged down the highway toward the Bavarian town of Bad Aibling (search). Among them — tired but grateful to be alive — was 18-year-old Joseph Ratzinger (search), who just days before had risked death by deserting the German army.

"In three days of marching, we hiked down the empty highway, in a column that gradually became endless," the new pope recalled years later in his memoirs.

"The American soldiers photographed us, the young ones, most of all, in order to take home souvenirs of the defeated army and its desolate personnel."

[Sprite518]

Your reply speaks volumes about your intellect. Not only are you ignoring my replies, but you have taken it down to a sophomoric tone. I am sorry I thought you were an objective person.

[ohioWfan]

Let's just hope that really was his position back then. Like I said I just do not think this is a good P.R. move. If this guy by any chance was not upfront about his Service, then this is going to be a can of worms.

Let's just remind you of this post of yours, Sprite, where you implied that the Pope had not been honest about his past, shall we?

And then let's avoid silly personal attacks about intelligence and sophomoric replies, and lack of objectivity, OK?

Peace, Sprite. I really don't have any more time to deal with your 'logic.' Deal with your 'issues' and come back later.

[prairiebreeze]

Well, you brought the subject up on the thread. You express worries about some sort of PR gaffe. You apparently don't realize or fail to acknowlege that life experiences such as these can bring a wealth of wisdom and perspective to an individual whether they are Pope or just the average Joe on the block and make them even more qualified for a task or role and even more effective.

And yes, I think you need to get a grip.

[Sprite518]

Like I said in previous post. Your reply speaks volumes about your intellect, and lack of objectivity.

[prairiebreeze]

Well stated. It's that danged "copy and paste" thingy on these computers and the internet. It allows people to bring our words back and paste them up right in front of our very own eyes!

[TomB]

One would think they would choose a Pope that did not have any type of possible baggage.

You are SOOOO right!

The only thing worse would be picking someone who had grown up and lived in a Godless, COMMUNIST country. I mean, imagine what things they could say about a guy like that?

Oh wait........

[ohioWfan]

For one who lacks intellect and objectivity, it's amazing that I even remembered how to do that, isn't it?

One must be VERY careful about what one types on a public forum, lest one's words come back to haunt one.... ;o)

[chuckles]

There is alot of stuff to like about this pope, but he does have some baggage. My father was a B-24 gunner and bombardier.Some of his friends were murdered by the Hitler youth after capture. He still has the piece of flak that ripped through his ball turret and ended up in his parachute that missed his leggs by fractions of an inch. He was dropping bombs on the enemy of the United States. If one of them happened to be a Hitler youth stationed on a flak gun, he wouldn't have lost any sleep. He recieved the DFC and other medals for killing Germans just like the future pope.

I hardly think running for your life can be called heroic. How do we at FR feel about deserters from Nam or Iraq? I don't hate Germans today or the Japanese, but you know the MSM will dig and dig until they get something. Building him up to be a war hero is a bit much and asking for trouble. Even German scientists helping us after the war to get to the moon are still controversial today.

I, too, am more interested in what he has to say about spreading freedom in the middle east toady. If he comes back with the standard "America is always wrong", crap, then it will be a long wait for the next pope. The US president will do more to spread God's will than the pope, IMHO.

[Eva]

There is a difference between being forced into Hitler youth and being an ideological supporters of Nazism, as was Schwarzenegger's father. It is well known that the Nazi's drafted school boys at the end of the war to defend Germany. It was all they had left.

I have known several people whose parents belonged to Hitler youth. It was a fact of life in Germany at that time.

[ex-snook]

"The American soldiers photographed us, the young ones, most of all, in order to take home souvenirs of the defeated army and its desolate personnel."

We may have had the Pope. All of our guys were young. I was 19 [no camera!]. The autobahn was full of German soldiers moving toward rear areas. We were moving toward Austria. There was no resistance.

From Regimental After Acton report - "On May 2, Companies E and G were relieved from special duty guarding the Dachau concentration camp and the autobahn bridge. We awaited the war's end in Tittmoning. " [earlier residence of the Pope]

On May 20 in Bad Aibling "The regiment established a perimeter defense and maintained order in that area. German troops began movement into the regimental area for discharge and demobilization."

[an amused spectator]

That is a weak argument and insulting. I am not even going to entertain a response. It is also a complete insult of our troops who fought in that war.

I've forgotten more than you ever knew about World War II.

It's apparent that your "knowledge" of the war is completely one-dimensional, and could have been gained from the back of a cereal box.

Please don't discuss this issue with your intellectual betters on the subject - and there appear to be quite a few on this thread.

[an amused spectator]

I hardly think running for your life can be called heroic.

Basically, the SS and other formations were stopping guys who looked to be of military age (which was practically everybody), and executing the ones who didn't have orders to be where they were.

[Sprite518]

Just for the record. I have never met a WWII vet that would said what you wrote. That is all I am going to say.

[PAR35]

Well name someone in the German army that could be labeled a hero outside the Axis powers?

Col. Claus Graf Schenk von Stauffenberg.

[PAR35]

LOL! Now your down to name calling

Well, you haven't denied it, you have denied von Stauffenberg was a hero for what he did, and you appear to have made a coy reference to the founder of the Klan in post 99, "If you are incapable of not seeing the Forrest thought the tress..."

If you were referring to someone else named Forrest, please explain. Otherwise, I'll draw my own conclusions.

[an amused spectator]

Just for the record. I have never met a WWII vet that would said what you wrote.

Sprite, in your little world, personal anecdote trumps actual historical fact.

I guess it saves time reading, and other bothersome stuff like that. ;-)

[Fido969]

In both cases the left has used the association to smear the individual. I thing it is particularly disgusting that Katie used the politics of Arnold's father to smear Arnold himself. These people are desperate little mice scampering around the feet of giants.

[Sprite518]

Well please tell me what you are referring to if it is a historical fact? Oh I forgot its a personal anecdote as you would say. LOL!

[Sprite518]

I would say its a quite a stretch to call Von Stauffenberg a hero. Yes he tried to kill Hitler, but I am a lot of it probably had to do with the treatment of the German 6th Army at Stalingrad and of course losing the war

If you are implying that Von Stauffenberg was try to end the Holocaust, then why did he not go after Goering or Himmler too? Oh please you have to come up with a better one than that.

[ohioWfan]

I'm starting to feel sorry for the poor fellow, spectator. He's embarrassing himself badly, and doesn't even seem to realize it.....

Please give it up, Sprite. You've lost this battle............to at least 10 different people.

Admit you're wrong, lick your wounds, and do some studying before you post again, OK?