Dear [you],

One of these days, maybe I'll write letters to people I'm related to who have failed me, in one way or another. I don't want to care; where a lot of people put importance on "family" I feel like the majority of mine has failed to the point where I shouldn't even give them the space in my head or that they shouldn't warrant any feelings, even anger. But that gets hard to do.

Here's what I might write:
"Hi, I'm Cassie. I know we haven't met, because if we had you would know that we're related. And that I'm the "kid" in this situation. And you would know who my brother is, & a hint of what I've had to put up with my whole life. There aren't many pictures of me when I was little, because by the time I came along babies had lost their "new car" appeal & not many people cared enough to come to visit me. Then when we moved back, all attention was on Cory. My memories don't start until 4 or 5; most kids remember 2 or 3. I was forced to go to therapy, just like when Cory was in Big Brother/Big Sisters; I was forced to do things as a side note. "Oh we wouldn't want the other one to feel left out." P.S. Big Sisters was one of the worst experiences of my life. If I ever see Lorraine she better hope she's too old for me to punch her. But maybe they thought I needed that, since there weren't any other real role models in my life [minus mom]. I've felt nothing but indifference, which can be worse than rejection. Right now Cory is rejected, but guess what? That means he gets attention, gets discussed, gets thought of. I don't even get a thought. He's always the center of attention, even when he's not around. I could be standing in a room screaming, & all anyone would say is, "Cory has done worse." The world is lucky I'm not like a lot of people who try to get attention through acting out & causing problems.
I say, "You want to ignore me? Act like I don't exist? Fuck you." You will never be anything to me. It's the way it has to be; I don't have a choice. I didn't do anything. You did, by doing nothing."

I'm sure there's lots of other things I could say, but I always end with a feeling of indifference. Like I said I don't want this to matter. It's sad, but the feeling I have towards most of them is the same I feel towards my father. Some people may ask how, but I don't see how it can't be that way; both have screwed me over so why should I even give them the energy it takes to hold onto anger?

My brother needs his own letter. Another day perhaps.

No Order From Hitler..?

This is just an essay I did for class; naturally it is not a professional opinion, nor would I say it is entirely complete. It is what it is.

Since the end of World War II the world has been attempting to make sense of the Holocaust. Part of that mystery is finding definitively who was to blame for what occurred. The obvious choice would be Adolf Hitler, but there is a problem: there is no direct order for the slaughter of millions of Jews and other undesirables. The problem of no direct order from Hitler creates many problems for historians, including how this problem creates room questioning how the Holocaust came to be and how much involvement Hitler actually had. Still, without hard evidence, most people assign the blame for the Holocaust to Hitler, which is very significant for history.

            Some historians believe that when the origins and details of the Holocaust come into question it opens the door for the “revisionists” and deniers. However, one hot topic for historians is the question of how the Holocaust developed. “Functionists” believe that “the murder of the Jews generally was the result of development of German society, from before the Nazis’ accession to power and throughout the short and stormy history of the Nazi regime” (Bauer, 2001, p. 211). According to the functioninsts, the Holocaust could have, and would have, happened under any other political group; it was the German society that made it possible. Historian Yehuda Bauer writes, “…the Nazi regime, divided as it was into semi-autonomous and mutually antagonistic fiefs of major Nazi figures whose allegiance was to Hitler personally, developed impasses and blind political and economic alleys from which there seemed only one way out: increasing radicalization” (p. 211). This led the authorities to attack the Jews. This school of thought also believes that the murders were a local initiative; “Hitler was little more than a legitimizing factor, but did not actively intervene in these matters as long as his obsessive radical, racist antisemitism was satisfied by underlings who executed the most radical anti-Jewish measures possible” (Bauer, p. 211). This means that, while it appears to the functionalists that there is no hard evidence linking Hitler to the Final Solution, he obviously did nothing to dissuade others from creating antisemitic orders from his ideals. In fact, Heinrich Himmler, along with other Nazi officials, often referred to Hitler’s “wishes” as if they were law, even though there are no records of the details of their discussions.

            Another school of thought is called “intentionalist”. The intentionalists believe that Hitler and Himmler had everything to do with the Final Solution: “that directives came straight from Berlin center … and from a core of ideological antisemites loyal to Hitler, and developed into a well-organized campaign of mass murder” (Bauer, p. 211). That means that the Holocaust would not have occurred if the Nazis did not exist; it was their radical ideals that created the concentration and death camps. This school does not, however, answer the question of why Hitler did not want his name linked to this murderous action, which to some may seem “uncharacteristic” since Hitler always spoke of bravery. For example, after Kristallnacht Hitler was seen as being “shocked and angry” about the destruction (Niewyk, 2011, p. 24). The explanation may be very simple: Hitler was a politician and did not was to be seen promoting an action that was not received favorably by the general population.

            Despite the professional arguments surrounding the Holocaust, Hitler is still most often said to be responsible. Why is this significant? Comprehending the Holocaust is difficult enough without having a “boogie man”. It scares us to think that this could happen anywhere at any time; we need Hitler to make us feel better about humanity for allowing the Holocaust to happen. Hate is so unacceptable that it embarrasses us as a civilized society to admit antisemitism exists on that scale. Blaming Hitler is largely a coping mechanism. It also simplifies everything; no tedious task of trying to determine who else was at fault, especially the German civilians who afterward claimed to have had no knowledge. For the men and women who actually perpetrated the acts of murder, the need to have others’ blame Hitler was important for their conscience and for their future social standing. Holocaust historian Christopher R. Browning writes in “Ordinary Men: Reserve Police Battalion 101 and the Final Solution in Poland” that after the battalion’s first slaughter of innocent Jewish women and children “Major Trapp made the rounds, trying to console and reassure them, and again placing responsibility on higher authorities” (1998, p. 69).

            While there is no physical direct order from Hitler in existence, the part he played in the Final Solution was pivotal. That is not to say that others, such as SS members and indifferent German bystanders, do not share the blame. Local initiatives occurring out of the idea that it was Hitler’s wishes are impossible to ignore. Since World War II Germany, has been trying to redeem itself on the world stage, passing laws that forbid Nazi-esc racism. As long as we do not forget the atrocities that occurred during the Holocaust, there is hope for the future.

Works Cited

Bauer, Y. (2001). A History of the Holocaust. Danbury: Franklin Watts.

Browning, C. R. (1998). Ordinary Men. New York: Harper-Collins.

Niewyk, D. L. (2011). The Holocaust: Problems and Perspectives (4th ed.). Boston: Wadsworth.

Additional direction!

Even though I've changed directions of this blog once, I would like to add subject: history. This is mostly out of being bored of talking about myself; I suppose my life is just not controversial enough.

Lately I have been seriously considering changing my career paths, which is a big deal for me. Since I was 4 years old I've said that I would be a psychologist, mostly because I need to help people to be happy. But another thought has occured to me: by learning about history & finding a way to apply it to every day life I could help people, too! I've always been interested in German & Jewish history, especially Holocaust history. This semester one of my classes is a History of the Holocaust course, & I've really enjoyed being able to devote all of my "free" time to learning more. Right when I think that there's nothing more to know about it, I find something completely different in the history books; I think that's the way most people view Holocaust history. They think there is a set number of facts: 6 million died, Nazi's are evil, Hitler's dead, & the rest is just details.

So, since I don't know anyone who likes to discuss history (other than when I make my husband listen), I thought I would start writing. If anyone stops by that has opinions or advice, I'm all ears!