An Imaginary Speech

Can you imagine this speech being made by an Israeli leader?  One made as yet another war the Arabs have foisted on to Israel is coming to an end?

“It might be said that we are judging the enemy by an unfair standard if we refuse to admire its current desperate struggle, its refusal to accept defeat, its resistance to the last man, the last bullet and the last drops of blood, or to recognize the heroism enshrined in this. History has always celebrated this kind of ultimate resistance as memorable and heroic – and now all of a sudden, for them, it is held to be meaningless or criminal. This line of argument is false. The perpetuation of the war by our enemy  beyond defeat to annihilation has nothing to do with heroism, but is in fact a crime committed against the Arab people by its leaders. The people’s suicidal struggle is not voluntary but has been extorted through moral and physical terror – by rulers who pretend that the Arabs are bleeding for their honour and self-preservation, when the fact is that they are giving their utmost and more for the survival of the scoundrels who drove them into this war and who refuse to abdicate at any price, including that of their absolute ruination.”

No, I couldn't imagine it either.

But that speech was indeed made.

It was broadcast over the BBC on March 20, 1945 by Thomas Mann and directed at Germany.

And this is how it reads:

“It might be said that we are judging Germany by an unfair standard if we refuse to admire its current desperate struggle, its refusal to accept defeat, its resistance to the last man, the last bullet and the last drops of blood, or to recognize the heroism enshrined in this. History has always celebrated this kind of ultimate resistance as memorable and heroic – and now all of a sudden, for Germany, it is held to be meaningless or criminal. This line of argument is false. The perpetuation of the war by Germany beyond defeat to annihilation has nothing to do with heroism, but is in fact a crime committed against the German people by its leaders. The people’s suicidal struggle is not voluntary but has been extorted through moral and physical terror – by rulers who pretend that the Germans are bleeding for their honour and self-preservation, when the fact is that they are giving their utmost and more for the survival of the scoundrels who drove them into this war and who refuse to abdicate at any price, including that of Germany’s absolute ruination.”

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