The Official 356Talk Forum

This thread is really veering into the wilderness, even for the Off Topic Forum ...
Discussing politics is not limited to local politics or today's politics and is not allowed on the forums - it is guarenteed to devolve into namecalling and hair-pulling

Greg I'm not sure that we are discussing politics. I've asked some questions about Porsche history and got some good answers. I don't see any arguments or name calling.

I feel like this is an important enough issue in Porsche's history that it shouldn't be hidden?

I view the situation as history just as you would look at at a football game after it has been played, its history. At no point did I mention any living person by name (that's is history they are gone and their actions speak for them). I believe that mass genocide is not a political solution.
As a fact, Germany's attack towards the East allowed Russia to seize all the territory it overran and began a cold war that we are still involved with. al

Well said Al.

I thoroughly agree. This is a discussion of history, much as we might prefer it to be otherwise. Al's comments reflect a sad truth, but truth it is and not opinion. P{lease allow this discussion to continue as it is shedding light on a topic, albeit dark, that should be understood.

Thank you.

Mark

Mark Reich wrote: Please allow this discussion to continue as it is shedding light on a topic, albeit dark, that should be understood.

Not just understood, but never denied nor forgotten.

Agreed - my sentiments exactly. L'Shana Tovah!

This will give an idea of what happened during the war.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anton_Pi%C3%ABch

It also indicates why French officials were not happy with the people running the KdF facility during the war, i.e. Anton Piech and Dr. Porsche.

I don't think the whole story from this period has been told, at least in English. If anyone has more information or book recommendations, I'd be keen to find out more.

Some first-hand accounts of what it was like working at the KdF factory during the war:

http://www.spiegel.de/international/ger ... 52371.html

The company paid Karolczak 150 reichsmarks a month for his efforts, but withdrew income tax, health insurance, and even a charge for the food that Karolczak describes as "meager." In the end, he says, "I was left with 60 marks."

Is that forced labor or just good old Socialism? Or, is that a distinction without a difference?

A must read for anyone interested in the history of WWII is Inside the Third Reich by Albert Speer.
From 1946 to 1966, while serving the prison sentence handed down from the Nuremburg War Crimes tribunal, he wrote 1,200 manuscript pages of personal memoirs that were turned into the book.

“Speer, the Minister of Armaments and War Production under Hitler, the man who had kept Germany armed and the war machine running even after Hitler's mystique had faded, takes a brutally honest look at his role in the war effort, giving readers a complete view of the inside of the Nazi state. “

Speer also reveals many of the "premises which almost inevitably led to the disasters" of the Third Reich as well as "what comes from one man's holding unrestricted power in his hands. “

The attached picture is a color photo by Walter Frentz, one of Hitler’s personal photographers, taken during a weapon's exhibition at Rügenwalde/Pomerania on March 18 or 19, 1943 showing Hitler, Ferdinand Porsche (in civilian dress), and Albert Speer.

Some of us “socialists” are still alive and well. We know that history is always written by the victors, the truth about WWII has never been told and never will be. And we’re very proud to be German!