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« Too Little, Too Late? | Main | Capitalism Will Always Out »

"Allies" Seize Paris--Mass Atrocities Occur

(PONN---Pessimistic Objective News Network) August 26, 1944

Risking civic anarchy and destruction of the ancient fabled and beautiful city by Hitler's rockets of vengeance, "Allied" forces recklessly entered Paris yesterday, while ravishing French women by the thousands, and slaughtering helpless Germans, often allowing the Parisians to hang or shoot them, without even the semblance of a fair trial.

Led by the Second Armored Division of the "French Army," commanded by "Major General" Lecleric, the troops marched up the Champs Elysee, reportedly to at least scattered cheers and throwing of flowers. Of course, the Paris natives have had a rough few years, and almost anyone, even the "Allies," might at first seem preferable to the Germans, against whom there are serious but unsubstantiated allegations of human rights abuses, including "genocide."

Editor's note: can we come up with a less judgmental word? One man's genocide is another's freedom fighting.

Though General Eisenhower's spokesmen would never confirm it, there had been much concern over the past few weeks that the "Allied" forces might be bogged down in a northern French quagmire, as the Germans seemed well dug in, and were bringing up reinforcements from their eastern front against the brave and stalwart Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, the main US ally. Thus, even if Paris cannot be ultimately held, its seizure represents at least a temporary appearance of an "Allied" "victory."

Over the past few weeks, as they marched through the French countryside from Normandy, often accompanied by great destruction and civilian casualties, "Allied" troops, particularly Americans, have been engaging in dangerous propaganda tactics. They have been distributing pamphlets urging the helpless French people to rise up against the much better-armed Germans. Also, in an attempt to show that this war is not against the people of Vichy France, they have been handing out chocolate to children, and nylon st0ckings to the women, though they lack enough to feed or clothe the entire French populace.

The "Allies" and the US had been warned that Mr. Hitler would not allow Paris to be taken, and that he would destroy it before he let it happen. However, at the urging of "General" de Gaulle, they decided to go for the quick propaganda victory, instead of waiting for a more orderly French government to form.

Official US government organs put out stories of a people happy to be liberated.

Pvt. Howard Katzander, a correspondent for Yank, the Army's weekly magazine, reported on the "hundreds of thousands of men, women and children who cheered them on their way."

"There was one GI on a truck who kept pointing toward Germany, and then lifting a finger and slashing his throat," Katzander wrote. "The crowd loved him."

Such stories, if true, indicate that the American soldiers were allowed to inflame the passions of the Parisian populace, which no doubt led to many of the atrocities and murders against the unarmed German officials, and also against French who had collaborated with them. Many Vichy French officials were summarily hung or shot with their German counterparts, and the heads of many of the poor French women who had slept with the "enemy" were shaved.

Also, it was reported that many German troops were unfairly shot and strafed by aircraft and French resistance fighters as they escaped the city, even though they were in full retreat, and not firing back.

When American and British troops entered the city today, there was reportedly a great deal of wild and uninhibited sex between them and the French women. It was not clear whether any of it was consensual, as these are a people who have been subjugated by armed troops for years, and may have simply resignedly accepted more rape by the troops as an inevitable part of this long and needless war, to which no end is in sight.

Posted by Rand Simberg at November 16, 2001 04:39 PM
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Comments

You did not comment on the Few remaining Jews that were "Summering" at the Camps the benevolent Germans had provided for them

Posted by larry C. Maslow at November 17, 2001 10:48 AM

I don't believe that was common knowledge at the time among the press, though IIRC, FDR and Churchill were aware.

Posted by Rand Simberg at November 17, 2001 10:55 AM

Certain members of the French government state that they consorted with the enemy only out of fear for the safety of their people.

Posted by Norma Rubin at November 17, 2001 12:13 PM

Don't forget the so-called "French government" in exile! (Which some do not consider to be any better than the Germans.)

Posted by O at November 18, 2001 08:51 PM

"Don't forget the so-called 'French government' in exile!"

That was meant to be implied with the quotes around "French Army" and "Generals" Lecleric and De Gaulle. But maybe it could have been expanded upon.

Posted by Rand Simberg at November 19, 2001 07:55 AM

Are you the son of Howard KAtzander with the fab, house in Woodbury, and the pool in back with the tree where they shot the Smirnoff Commercial

And that 3 day party with 3 piece orchester?
or not?

Posted by Chris Schmieder at March 11, 2002 12:19 PM

Are you the son of Howard KAtzander with the fab, house in Woodbury, and the pool in back with the tree where they shot the Smirnoff Commercial

And that 3 day party with 3 piece orchester?
or not?

Posted by at March 11, 2002 12:19 PM

And you forgot to mention the most brutal and damning fact of all: in preparation for their so-called "liberation" of France the "Allied" air forces killed thousands of hapless French civilians...many, many more than may have been inadvertently killed by overenthusiastic German policing methods.

Furthermore, the overt purpose of this bombing was to destroy the French transportation system. While this barbaric policy may have had some effect on German supplies and reinforcements reaching the front, the number of French children who were forced to go without candy and school supplies can hardly be calculated.

Without question, the number of innocent French killed through this policy greatly outweighs the few who may have expired through the German police's often overly enthusiastic but culturally relevant methods.

Clearly, if the "Allied" nations feel this need to destabilize Germany and all of central Europe, they would be better advised to use more civilized methods. Instituting universal health care would do much more to overawe America's "enemies" than this misguided and macho attempt at violence.

Posted by Alex Bensky at August 20, 2002 06:41 PM

Concerning the camps not yet being general knowledge, in a talk at the Newseum around 2001, it was stated that, during WWII, the New York Times ran an average of two articles PER DAY about the status of the Jews in Germany. Most of these were small articles not on page 1. However, the facts were available for anyone who wasn't blind.

Posted by Reader at February 17, 2006 07:41 PM


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