High Life

ghostof'lectricity

Ah, Taki's nostalgic reminiscences. Another paean to the Wehrmacht as a wonderful fighting force. Taki, characteristically, elides the Wehrmacht's role in the slaughter of civilians and in the organized mass-production mega murder of the Holocaust (the convenient fiction that the brave fighters of the Wehrmacht were wholly distinct from, and innocent of, the butcheries of the Waffen-SS is just that, a self-serving fiction; no one in Eastern Europe, or anywhere in Nazi-occupied Europe, could have been unaware of what was going on). But then, Taki is friends with, and an admirer of, crypto-Holocaust-deniers like Pat Buchanan. But he doesn't want his romantic fantasies disturbed. Those blond German soldiers in their spruce uniforms, so dashing and gallant! Taki's heart skips a beat when he remembers. What a vomitogenic man (if I may coin a neologism).

GK

I think that the holocaust deniers are too preoccupied with
their own views. I have seen a French documentary of seven hours
the evidence was all there and a
book about Hitler like John Toland's would make a strong case about it. However, it was not only the Jews but millions of
other people like Ukranians etc who perished in concentration camps(10,000,000 at least)
There is a misconception that the
Jews are liars , when others(like muslims, Germans etc) are necessarily for the truth(and much nicer people than them).

Gil

Gosh, Taki, tell us more about what you would have done if you had been a German soldier in Paris? As a keen sportsman you would have probably gone to the Velodrome d'Hiver, n'est pas?

A Greek in London

The columnist is entitled to his opinion on Hitler and his henchmen. Having said that, I hope that said opinion was published in this magazine solely due to a momentary lapse in editorial oversight. Taki says that "for many, Paris 1940 to 1944 was a non-stop party". It just so happens that those not welcome to the party he seems sorry to have missed were rounded up and sent to the gas chambers. He also seems to have conveniently forgotten the many examples of German "gallantry" and "tact" (his words) in Greece, his own country; the monuments - and the graves - are still there and I would urge him to visit them. When the Greek soldier guarding the flag on the Acropolis was ordered by the Nazis to take it down and replace it with the Swastika, he obeyed, wrapped himself with it and jumped from the cliff to his death. I will not speculate on what Taki might have done in that situation; but being Greek myself, I feel obliged to express my disagreement with his views and my sadness at the Spectator's editorial policy.

David Short

This column makes me sick, and I ask all other writers for the Spectator whether they will refuse to write for the magazine while it continues to publish this person.

And I ask the Barclay brothers whether they approve.

robert

I second "A Greek in London" - lest anyone reading this bilge believe that there were not in fact many patriotic Greeks who fought to the death against the Nazi filth. It's enough to read leigh fermor, for a start - not this quisling

alkan kizildel

Manteuffel and Guderian were not field marshalls...

George Kronfli

Taki, Excellent form as ever. Ignore the Pro Zionist drivel.

David Short

George Kronfli outTakis Taki. It's 'pro-Zionist drivel' to oppose the Nazi occupation of Europe and, by extension, the Holocaust that was made possible by it.

Hmmm....I think I might just write to the Barclay brothers about this, the owners, both of whom received a knighthood from the Queen who served in uniform in this 'pro-Zionist' Second World War against all those elegant, blonde Germans!

brendan campbell

I would love to get Taki's opinion on Adolf Hitler.Does he (Taki)think that more lies have been told about Hitler than about anyone else who ever lived.And was Hitler all bad or did he have some good qualities