As a German who has served in the Bundeswehr


 As a German who has served in the Bundeswehr, I met my share of former Wehrmacht soldiers.

Most of them (including some of my relatives) were drafted into the Army and cannot really be considered Nazis or ex-Nazis. One of my uncles was killed in Romania when he was only 18 years old and another one lost his right leg in Russia.

I met only two guys I would consider Nazis. Both were fathers of my comrades in the army. One was a former Waffen-SS soldier who volunteered to join the military arm of the infamous SS at age seventeen. He first served as a radio operator on General Paul Hausser’s (the commander of the Waffen SS) command tank and later became a lieutenant in an infantry unit.

The HIAG published a lot of books, magazines, and even calendars before the organization was dissolved in 1992. (Photo: Amazon)

After the war (and his release from Russian captivity) he became a member of the so-called HIAG (Hilfsgemeinschaft auf Gegenseitigkeit der Angehörigen der ehemaligen Waffen-SS or mutual aid association of former Waffen-SS members), an organization that tried to whitewash the Nazis.

He never repented. Of course, he wouldn't say anything antisemitic in my presence or praise Hitler but the fact that he was an active member (and for a while even their leader) of a Nazi organization speaks for itself.

The other old “Nazi” was a little bit different. This guy was a fighter pilot in the “Luftwaffe” who shot down quite a number of American bombers. He had been a war hero: once when he visited us in our barracks, he had put a miniature version of his medal (an Iron Cross First Class) on his jacket.

I had always thought that he still believed in the Nazi ideology until I went to visit his home one day. I was watching some WWII videos with his son in his living room when the old man came down the stairs. When he saw what we were watching (propaganda reels of the German Wehrmacht), he just shook his head and said: “You fools! Why are you watching this sh*t? It was all rubbish what we did, everything we did was wrong!”

I was a bit surprised, it was the first time I heard him talking this way. On the other hand, I thought: “Good for him!” It’s never too late to regret your wrongdoings.

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