Does evil age well ?
The Demjanjuk case intrigues me.
Suppose this man was truly a nazi camp guard, he would truly be an evil one. One of the men who actively pushed men, women & children into gas chambers to their death. One who probably saw death in the face and helped it along.
It is very strange to contemplate such a person. Abhorrent to consider that such a person could be real. Sure, we know that it is possible, but these are people of history books, cartoons or documentaries. Or they are innocent pawns, directed by higher authorities under difficult or forceful circumstances. They are not supposed to be living people who walk amongst us. They are certainly not supposed to people who, in any way, enjoyed or did these acts out of free will or inner belief. And yet, here is a man who allegedly is exactly one such.
If he isn't the man and isn't guilty, well, the case does not intrigue me. But let us assume that this was indeed an evil Nazi prison guard. His chronology runs thus:
For the first 20 years of his life, he spent picking up the values and characteristics that none of us would want for our children. For 10 years he gained the opportunity and exposure to be evil. During this time he participated in the mass killings.
For 20 years after his (alleged) heinous behavior, he enjoyed a good life in the United States. After this for 5 years, his past surfaced to haunt him. The next 10 years he had a tough life, having been deported to Israel for trials and then acquitted. He must have had to remake his life over the following 5 years, when he returned to the U.S. and got citizenship again. The following 5 to 10 years was difficult as his past wasn't quite disappearing, although he appears to have been somewhat comfortable. And this last decade, he's back in the spotlight and in the eve of his life, finally facing justice.
That's several comfortable decades, having evaded the evil he perpetrated, but assuming he was guilty as charged, he's already had a few decades of difficulty and is finally facing a full trial.
He is an old man. Evil in his youth, 60 years ago. How should we see him now, having weathered the trials, tribulations and punishments of age and time ? For holocaust survivors, it may be very relevant to still punish him. But what about for him ? What could be the mental make-up of this man at the age of 89, given that at the age of 25 he was watching innocents die.
Help me think about this...
Suppose this man was truly a nazi camp guard, he would truly be an evil one. One of the men who actively pushed men, women & children into gas chambers to their death. One who probably saw death in the face and helped it along.
It is very strange to contemplate such a person. Abhorrent to consider that such a person could be real. Sure, we know that it is possible, but these are people of history books, cartoons or documentaries. Or they are innocent pawns, directed by higher authorities under difficult or forceful circumstances. They are not supposed to be living people who walk amongst us. They are certainly not supposed to people who, in any way, enjoyed or did these acts out of free will or inner belief. And yet, here is a man who allegedly is exactly one such.
If he isn't the man and isn't guilty, well, the case does not intrigue me. But let us assume that this was indeed an evil Nazi prison guard. His chronology runs thus:
For the first 20 years of his life, he spent picking up the values and characteristics that none of us would want for our children. For 10 years he gained the opportunity and exposure to be evil. During this time he participated in the mass killings.
For 20 years after his (alleged) heinous behavior, he enjoyed a good life in the United States. After this for 5 years, his past surfaced to haunt him. The next 10 years he had a tough life, having been deported to Israel for trials and then acquitted. He must have had to remake his life over the following 5 years, when he returned to the U.S. and got citizenship again. The following 5 to 10 years was difficult as his past wasn't quite disappearing, although he appears to have been somewhat comfortable. And this last decade, he's back in the spotlight and in the eve of his life, finally facing justice.
That's several comfortable decades, having evaded the evil he perpetrated, but assuming he was guilty as charged, he's already had a few decades of difficulty and is finally facing a full trial.
He is an old man. Evil in his youth, 60 years ago. How should we see him now, having weathered the trials, tribulations and punishments of age and time ? For holocaust survivors, it may be very relevant to still punish him. But what about for him ? What could be the mental make-up of this man at the age of 89, given that at the age of 25 he was watching innocents die.
Help me think about this...