Fair enough, Peter. It is an important distinction to point out that Hitler, and the atrocities of the Nazi's in the name of the German people, didn't just come like a bolt out of the sky. They came over a period of time when the Germans were suffering, when the gap between the richest and poorest was rising, when the Government was struggling with the economy ... in fact, there are a number of lessons to be learned here that are relevant to today. If we isolate the atrocities of the Holocaust, and universally damn them as we should, as the most horrific crime ever perpetuated by mankind, and then examine the whole of the rise of the Nazi's, we will learn things that are relevant to today. I am not...... let me repeat this emphatically.... I am not comparing this country and it's leadership to the Nazi's. But when you examine the conditions that exist, there are some parallels that should be noted. This is not to imply we are headed down the same path. But the German people are no more or less evil than any other group of people. When one examines what led these otherwise decent folks to allow such horror in their names, then we can truly learn and grow. This is one of the reasons why I find jingoistic "we are the greatest nation in history", or the God is on our side, type of language so frightening and distateful. It is this type of philosophy that leads down frightening paths.

Mick