Tiedrich re: The Holocaust

[ShazzieB]

28. I believe there are people who think the Holocaust didn't really happen.

At least not on the scale it actually did. A person doesn't have to believe none of it is true to be a Holocaust denier. Denying the true extent of it, the vast numbers of people affected, etc. are also forms of Holocaust denial.

Some of these people put a ludicrous amount of work into trying to "disprove" what history tells us, twisting themselves into ridiculous logic pretzels in the process. I've read enough about those people and their activities to be convinced that at least some of them are deadly serious about it.

Have you seen the movie "Denial," about how noted Holocaust scholar Deborah Lipstadt was sued by a British Holocaust denier? I highly recommend it, as well as History on Trial, her book about the case that the film is based on. I don't think there's any question David Irving, the denier who unsuccessfully sued her, was (and still is) absolutely convinced that his view was the "historically " correct one.

Here's a video where Lipstadt talks about what she calls "hardcore" vs. "softcore" Holocaust denial.

A partial transcript of the video (and other info on Holocaust denial), is available here: https://www.ushmm.org/antisemitism/holocaust-denial-and-distortion/explaining-holocaust-denial

EDITED TO ADD: Wikipedia also has a very informative article on the subject of Holocaust denial: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holocaust_denial