[shrinkermd]

"Why should they quit apologizing for Hitler?"

Answer: Because Hitler and the war have been over for 57 years, and it is time for Germany to assume defence responsibilities for Europe and the EU allies.

[ModelBreaker]

Generally, I agree with you. But I have had a lot of business dealings with Germans over the past ten years. The combination of intramural arrogance and intermural herd mentality there is quite amazing and strikes me as the same lethal combination that lead to the Holocaust. Of course, the expressed belief structure has changed. But the underlying culture has not.

The Greens there make our environmentalists here look like tolerant, open-minded folks. A political lurch to the Greens in Germany could easily, in my opinion, lead to another nazi type regime (Hitler was elected with just over 30% of the vote--not an unachievable number for the Greens). Oh, the style would be different but the substance, as it affects the rest of the world, would be very similar.

Of all countries, I firmly believe that a permanent sense of guilt and need to apologize by the Germants is healthy for the rest of the world. The longer it keeps them demilitarized, the better for the rest of us.