As a reaction on the remarks of
Dead Mans Hand there's something more I'ld like to say about the perceived differences in morality between the
SS-Totenkopfverbände the Skull Head Squads, that mainly served as Einsatzgruppen (Action Squads) in the East and guarded concentration- and death camps on the one hand and the so called 'honorable'
Waffen-SS on the other hand.
That difference was not as big as it is often perceived.
Sure, the
SS-Totenkopfverbände did the dirty jobs and sure, the Waffen-SS fought fanatically. And yes, they were high quality and were feared and worthy opponents for Allied forces.
But to percieve the
SS-Totenkopfverbände as the 'bad guys' and the
Waffen-SS as the 'good guys' doesn't do justice to both!
In the thirties there wasn't a difference in mentality, just in tasks. The
Totenkopfverbände had the task to guard political prisoners in concentration camps, the SS to guard the party leadership and as
Waffen-SS to protect the country from internal(!) and external threats.
Later the
Waffen-SS expanded greatly and participated under Army command in the war, often with bravery. At the same time the
SS-Totenkopfverbände formed
Eisatzgruppen to start the Final Solution. Before the death camps started to operate, mid 1942, the
Einsatzgruppen, four, later five groups of about 3.000 men each, had already gathered and shot more then 1.000.000 Jews by hand, including women and children. This completely dehumanized them, many became extremely violant and alcoholics. The quality of these SS men went down, while their
Waffen-SS colleagues could boast about military successes.
But the
mentality of the
Waffen-SS and the
SS-Totenkopfverbände was exactly the same. The
Waffen-SS also showed extremely ruthless at suitable occasions in the East and in the West. The proof is that the
Waffen-SS had absolutely no moral problem incorporating a whole division of
Totenkopfverbände.
And why should they? Morality did not count, they had all sworn the Oath towards this one man, Adolf Hitler and put their human conscious on permafrost.
If somebody dares to state that the
Waffen-SS was 'honorable' because they did not participate in the Final Solution I have to object. It was not a matter of honor; they would have, if they had been tasked so. They were
lucky, not honorable...
Question to all:
If any given Waffen-SS unit had been ordered to get into a local ghetto and shoot every Jew on sight, men, women and children, the sick and the elderly included, is there anybody on this forum who would seriously doubt that they would have blindly followed that order? Or would they have refused to do so on moral objections?
Asking these questions is answering them; all SS men had sworn loyalty towards Hitler, that's where all they went wrong...
'Meine Ehre heisst Treue' (My honor is called loyalty).
My personal opinion:
(Waffen-)SS = disgusting lot of failed human beings...
