Poles Demand Obama Apology For "Polish Death Camps" Comment

buzzfeed.com ^ | May 29, 2012 | Rosie Gray

[Free ThinkerNY]

The president referred to “Polish death camps” while awarding a posthumous Medal of Freedom to Polish professor Jan Karski, a hero of the anti-Nazi resistance. Poles believe they're blamed unfairly for the Nazi Holocaust, and the Foreign Minister led the outrage in a late night tweet.

The remark, which barely drew notice in America, is all over the Polish news today. On the country's largest television station:

[Cronos]

funny :)

No, I met a 20-something here whose parents migrated in 1990 -- so second generation. And his Polish and even ability to speak polish was nonexistent

[littleharbour]

You never even hear people speak of “German death camps”. It’s always “Nazi death camps”, so as not to offend current generations of Germans. Obozo is a moron, but the media will attack the intelligence of any conservative who makes the slightest error in history or observation.

[CottonBall]

good summary

[Right Wing Assault]

First Marion Barry, now Dick Obama. It’s the democrat party’s “War on the Polish!”

[Right Wing Assault]

As part of his correction of his “mis-speaking,” he will soon toss us the ‘fact’ that he is 1/256 Polish. On his father’s side. And didn’t we know that all of his friends in Chicago were not just Jews, but Polish Jews? And that he really like Polish food, such as Hamburgers?

[GrandJediMasterYoda]

Don’t forget he’s also a pretty boy with a big smile which is another reason he gets his arse kissed and is able to scam people so much.

[Revolting cat!]

That is correct. And the linguistic distinction was actually invented by the Soviets (and unfortunately adopted by the West), to enable them to divide the Germans into good ones (in the East, where actually more war criminals resided unpunished) and the bad ones in the Western zones.) But the concentration camps belonged to the German state not to the Nazi party, and the war crimes were committed by Germans not by specifically by the German ruling party members.

[dfwgator]

Note that the Nazis employed Ukrainians as guards at Auschwitz, and not Poles. The Nazis knew if they gave Poles guns, the Poles would use them to shoot the Nazi bastards.

[keats5]

“Isn’t the correct term “nationalist SOCIALIST Death Camps?””

Yes, and I think the Poles should force Obama to use that exact language in the apology.

[USMCPOP]

My best buddy was a Polack, God rest his soul. My President is a moron.

[ReformationFan]

So when does the lamestream media start calling the Poles “racists!” for being offended by Maobama’s remarks.

[MaryLou1]

putting food on your family-a little gaffe but harmless

57 states-eh no big deal he was nervous

I never heard my preacher say God damn America in all the 20 years I attended his church. aw he was trying to win to help the country-break a few eggs and all of that

Polish death camps? Blasphemy, disrespect and not a gaffe-an intended insult - don’t blame the author of the teleprompter speech, we need to hold this person accountable for God’s sake

tired of tiptoeing around this stuff already-do you agree?

[gleeaikin]

While Denmark saved most of its Jews, Poland had a long history of anti Jewish pogroms and attitudes. It was easy for the Nazis to get their cooperation/acquiescence in the murder of large numbers of Jews. However, they should be called Nazi death camps in Poland, not Polish death camps.

[gleeaikin]

While Denmark saved most of its Jews, Poland had a long history of anti Jewish pogroms and attitudes. It was easy for the Nazis to get their cooperation/acquiescence in the murder of large numbers of Jews. However, they should be called Nazi death camps in Poland, not Polish death camps.

[2ndDivisionVet]

Didn't his 'grandpop' liberate a Polish Death Camp in 1945? LOL Editor of the Law Review, Law Professor, Nobel Peace Prize winner, smartest man in the room, saviour of his people, uniter not a divider, New York Times bestselling author, etc., etc... [snort!]

[snowsislander]

The Kenyan Clown: incompetent at every job, and reflexively hates this country and the West.

In his chosen profession as a lawyer, he is unfamiliar with even the basics of American law, such as Marbury v. Madison and the principle of judicial review.

In foreign policy, he blunders about, alienating allies and cuddling up to enemies. In domestic policy, he seeks to destroy our economy, our defenses, and our moral fiber. In governance, he sets up large numbers of unconstitutional "czars."

Please, America, vote for no more dog-eating Kenyan cokeheads in the Oval Office.

[LibertyRocks]

Very little in politics is done by accident. Why would the Obama team intend to insult the Poles in this manner?

I have a different answer for you today based upon what I discovered in my "web travels" yesterday, discussions, and readings on this topic. If you see the *backlash* in the Jewish community over Poles being upset by Obama's remarks it should become EXTREMELY clear as to exactly why Obama's team decided to word it in exactly that way. (See for instance, Deb Schlussel's posting yesterday - especially the end where she basically equates the Polish people with the Republican party and makes a snarky comment that *no wonder Jews don't want to vote Republican*.)

I don't know about the Rabbis Obama visited with the day before the Medal ceremony, and I don't want to cast negative aspersions on anyone, but it seems quite coincidental. As you suggested, and I agree, this was no accident. This was a planned manipulation to use people's pride, bitterness, and anger to his advantage. Now late yesterday his team puts out an article claiming Obama "probably knows more about Judaism than any other President" (Patently untrue). His intentions become quite clear.

This, IMO, was a brilliantly evil plan on the part of Obama to secure the Democrat Jewish vote. And, further divide this country according to religion, and ethnicity. Just as the Bolsheviks did, Obama is taking pages out of the playbooks of the past, and attempting to turn people against the Church, and against anyone who will stand up against tyranny whether it be in the form of a political party, or theocracies like those controlled by Islamic leaders.

This is an assault against "The West" in general, and in denigrating Poland it is DEFINITELY a sign to Russia as to where Obama is intending to go in the future. I hope people are paying attention - this is EXACTLY what has happened throughout history, and many who are most at risk are playing right into their hands.

[LibertyRocks]

EASY for them to get cooperation? The NAZIs wanted to kill the slavs just as much as they wanted to kill the Jews! The laws Poland suffered under at that time were worse than ANY OTHER NAZI-occupied country. Poland had just fought a war with Russia, and attempted to stop the Panzer tanks with HORSES. The rest of Europe just stood by and WATCHED.

There were MILLIONS of Poles slaughtered - Jewish and Non-Jewish alike. There are many thousands more who DID what they could to save who they could at risk of not only their death, but the deaths of their ENTIRE FAMILY whether they participated in hiding Jews or not. Thank you though, for understanding why what Obama said was wrong. There were collaborators in EVERY nation that were occupied by the NAZIs, and many who felt helpless to do anything. I would imagine the incentive of self- and family-preservation would be something that was VERY, VERY hard to push past. Also, please don't forget all of the Poles who helped hide Jewish families whose story will never be recognized or told as they were slaughtered - entire families gone without a trace - right alongside the Jewish families they tried to save. As for other Poles across the world back then - do you know how many signed up as soon as they knew we were finally "in the war"? In my husband's own family there were 3 old enough on his mother's side, and 4 old enough on his father's side. They stormed the beaches at Normandy, and fought all the way through Europe hoping to rescue their families and friends, only to see Poland fall into the hands of the Soviets, and then suffer through decades of Communist oppression.

When Obama says, "Polish Death Camps" not only is he offending Poland, he is offending every Polish-American, as well. The things told to me yesterday by Jewish people right here in the US who lost family members in the Holocaust make this quite clear as I was continually told I had no right to be offended at all (and that was the mildest statement). My family HAS members murdered by the NAZIs for hiding Jews, and their names are memorialized in Yad Vashem. For people to turn around and tell me or members of my family that we *didn't do enough* - members here in America, and family still in Poland at the time - to say I'm disgusted and deeply offended is putting it mildly.

[Revolting cat!]

Many people in Poland today believe that Obama’s statement (written and read) was deliberate to appeal to ignorant Americans like yourself and to the Poland hating Jews in America. I suspect they are right.

[Postel]

The fallout from Poland’s misguided Holocaust law], Sharyn Mittelman, The Spectator, 21 February 2018.
“...more than 200,000 Jews were killed, directly or indirectly, by Poles during World War II.”
https://www.spectator.com.au/2018/02/the-fallout-from-polands-misguided-holocaust-law/

Major War Criminal Responsible for Murder of 100,000 Police Jews Gets Death Sentence
JTA, August 13, 1948.
Friedrich Kuczynski, who during the Nazi occupation of Poland was assigned the Job of liquidating the entire Jewish population of Upper Silesia, was sentenced to death in the Sosnowice district court for responsibility for the murder of more than 100,000 Polish Jews...
https://www.jta.org/archive/major-war-criminal-responsible-for-murder-of-100000-police-jews-gets-death-sentence