The Nazis Next Door

A couple of my friends urged me to read Eric Lichtblau's book The Nazis Next Door; How America Became a Safe Haven for Hitler's Men (#471).  They were outraged after reading it, and having read it myself, it's easy to understand why.  I had always been aware that the United States recruited Nazi scientists to work on our own rocket and space program - the name Werner von Braun sprang immediately to mind on reading the title of Mr. Lichtblau's book.  What I hadn't realized was just how cynical, calculated and wide-spread that recruitment was on the part of American spy agencies and the military, nor what a great role the US played in the continued imprisonment of the victims of Nazi purges (now hygienically renamed "Displaced Persons") after the so-called "liberation" of the concentration camps.  This book made me angry and sick simultaneously.  I certainly came away from it thinking that the ends definitely and most emphatically did not justify the means.

It also makes me think that "The Greatest Generation" is misnamed.  Yes, there were plenty of soldiers and sailors who fought for the right and noble reasons, but I always did think it was sad to think so many of these veterans recalled years of brutal warfare as the "best years of their lives".  But many Americans conveniently forget (or never knew) how many politicians and their like-minded constituents fought to keep us out of World War II entirely, and actively blocked the immigration of both European and Asian refugees, especially if those refugees happened to be Jewish.  General Patton was comfortable with the status quo of the inmates of the concentration camps in the areas the Allies won.  Conditions and food supplies didn't improve, nor did the DPs' work loads for several years.  The only difference under Patton was that the suicide rate went up among the inmates.  What else would you expect when your last hope is taken away?  In the visa application process for entry to the United States, their applications were consistently shuffled to the bottom of the stack as Nazi applications were given top priority, even for those who were known to have participated in Nazi atrocities.  If they were anti-communist, that was good enough to guarantee a free ride, and in many cases, a good job, spending money and the protection of the United States government.

Those who tried to unmask these former Nazis who were wanted for trial as war criminals in Europe were continually stymied in their efforts by our own government, which did not want to lose its "valuable" assets.  The whole story Pulitzer Prize- winning journalist Eric Lichtblau tells here is an evil witches' brew, but at the same time, one that needed to be told.  Draw your own conclusions about how history will view this episode.