Echoes of History Past

Please allow me the latitude, I know it's long but I would apreciate if you would take the time to read it and perhaps comment. I came across this article some time ago and I just wanted to point out the similarities with Germany exhibited in its pre-fascist 'Nazi' state.

I would like for someone to explain:
1) How such 'hiccups' occur without certain benchmarks and
2) The phenomena that occurs when the population actually supports the nationalist ideology which 'tends' to culminate with a 'suppression' of the perceived threat which oft times leads to its own citizens.

Military training program for teens expands in US
by Mira Oberman
Sun Nov 25, 6:17 PM ET

Dozens of teens dressed in uniforms provided by the US Marines stand at attention in the gym of a Chicago public high school as a drill sergeant goes through a list of the day's do's and don'ts.

Bring your books to class. Come for extra help if you need it. And wear your uniform with pride.

"Young men, you think you can get a haircut and say I'm done for two or three weeks. WRONG," Sgt. Major Thomas Smith Jr. intones.

"Young ladies. There's been no problem with your uniforms but there is a problem with your ties. Again, I will go through it again. Wear your ties when you come to my class."

One in 10 public high school students in Chicago wears a military uniform to school and takes classes -- including how to shoot a gun properly -- from retired veterans.

That number is expected to rise as junior military reserve programs expand across the country now that a congressional cap of 3,500 units has been lifted from the nearly century-old scheme.

Proponents of the junior reserve programs say they provide stability and a sense of purpose for troubled youth and help to instill values such as leadership and responsibility.

But opponents say the programs divert critical resources from crumbling public schools and lead to a militarization of US society.

"To call these young people child soldiers might be technically inaccurate, but it does reveal the truth of it," said Oscar Castro, a spokesman for the National Youth and Militarism Program, an advocacy group.

Military recruiters already have the right to give presentations in public schools and to access databases with the contact information of all public school students whose parents do not remove their children from the list.

But they don't have nearly the same impact as daily interaction with teachers and students in uniform, Castro said.

While military officials say the junior reserve programs are not used as recruiting tools, about 30 to 50 percent of cadets eventually enlist, according to congressional testimony by the chiefs of staff of the various armed services in February 2000.

This is particularly troubling given that the programs are concentrated in low-income and minority neighborhoods, said Sheena Gibbs, a spokeswoman for the Chicago branch of the American Friends Service Committee which lobbies against the programs.

"If you want to teach discipline and leadership then do it for everyone and don't make them wear (military) uniforms," Gibbs said. "Students (at regular schools) protest that they have to still share books but the military academy has laptops."

At Chicago's Marine Military Math and Science Academy, the first public Marine academy in the nation and the fifth military academy run by the city's school district, it's easy to see how signing up for service would be a logical post-graduation step.

The hallways are lined with prints depicting historic recruiting posters and great moments in military history, like the Battle of the Bulge. Teachers in uniform lead classes in military history, civics, health, and physical fitness.

"The purpose of our school is to send all of our students to post-secondary education," principal Paul Stroh told AFP.

"What's different about this school is we take the military model of discipline, structure and leadership and put it into a high school.

"All of our students wear a uniform and all of our students are expected to be accountable for their actions."

And every morning in formation, Sgt. Major Smith draws a line between the discipline and stability of the Marines and the chaos of the high-crime, low income neighborhood where most of the students live.

"My elementary school was out of control. Everybody just did whatever they wanted," said Mariah Coleman, 14.

"Here there's discipline, but there's freedom as well. Everybody just respects each other and we get respect from the teachers."

Standing with her hands clasped firmly behind her back, Coleman wrinkles her nose at the thought of enlisting and explains that she wants to be a mathematician. She enrolled in the Marine academy because she thought it would help her get into college.

She has four years until graduation.

© AFP 2007 . All rights reserved. Users may download and print extracts of contents from this website for personal and non-commercial use only, provided they do not remove any copyright, trademarks or other proprietary notices. AFP and its logo are registered trademarks.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20071125...x5QO0yZPbZa7gF


Please read this also. The comparison mirrors our current situation right down to the age group targeted and the method of execution. How can we ignore these warning signs to the direction our nation is taking. Someone once said to me," I think that because I do it over and over I can convince myself that it is right and I'll achieve different results." Profound.


Hitler Youth

Kurt Gruber formed the first group of young members of the National Socialist German Workers Party (NSDAP) in 1926. Rudolf Hess suggested the name of the Hitler Youth (Hitlerjugend) and later that year transferred the leadership of the movement to Franz von Pfeffer of the Sturm Abteilung (SA).

Pfeffer's main intention was to train young men to fight against members of left-wing youth groups. The Hitler Youth (HJ) were taken over by Ernst Roehm in 1930 and remained as a adjunct to the SA. After Roehm was murdered during the Night of the Long Knives the group came under the control of Baldur von Schirach, the Reich youth leader.

Schirach asked Adolf Hitler to allow him to create an independent youth movement. Hitler agreed and Schirach now made several important changes to the way it was organized. In 1936 membership of the HJ was made compulsory for all boys aged 15 and 18. At the same time all other youth organizations were banned.

In 1938 there were 8,000 full-time leaders of the HJ. There were also 720,000 part-time HJ leaders, often schoolteachers, who had been trained in National Socialist principles.

For boys aged between 10 and 14 years Baldur von Schirach set up the Jungvolk. The boys had to learn semaphore, arms drill, and take part in two-day cross-country hikes. They also had to learn Nazi dogma and once they passed the necessary tests they were given a special dagger marked "Blood and Honour". The main objective of the organization was to provide Adolf Hitler with loyal supporters

Once girls reached the age of they could join the Jungmädel. At 14 they entered the Bund Deutscher Mädel. (German Girls' League). This included a year of farm or domestic service. They were trained by female guardians and their overall leader was Gertrud Scholtz-Klink.

The Hitler Youth published a series of magazines including Youth and Homeland, The Young World, The German Girl and Girls Your World. Another magazine, Will and Power, was produced for HJ leaders and female guardians.

During the Second World War the HJ were often used in air defence work. In 1940 Baldur von Schirach was replaced by Artur Axmann, as leader of the HJ.

When Germany ran short of soldiers members of the Hitler Youth were encouraged to join the 12th SS Panzer Division, commanded by Germany's youngest general, Kurt Meyer. In 1945 members of the HJ were armed and told to fight to the death.

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/GERyouth.htm

Now at least one of my concerns is the use of teens being indoctrinated into a military that is not being used to defend Americans but to carry out the agenda and purposes of a select minority to the disadvantage of those that are already struggling in the economy that exists today which is in no part due to the labor of the people. It used to be called slavery but since that no longer exists...Yet we stand silent as it approaches.

We are going to war with Iran one way or another. Not because they pose a threat to American soil but because they are a natural progression in an attempt to extend empire. There is ONLY ONE state that wants the US's involvement on Iran and it is their voices that our politicians are listening to, not ours or our vote. How many more children are we going to send to appease this group that is not in the least bit concerned of your opinion? It doesn't matter what 'intelligence' says i.e. the recent Iran report, the prevailing voices of men who profit on war condemn it and are seen as authorities. Now this exact same thing happened almost 5 years ago this spring. And not only were WMD's never found but in front of the national press club made the statement," No WMD's over here, gotta be over there, nope none there either." Pardon my Spanish but that takes cajones. Yet we as a nation continue to support the men or women of such behavior? Allow them unrestrained power to take away the very things we all hold dear?

If I were to wax Messianic I might interject," Remove the plank from your own eye that you might see to remove the speck in your brothers.". Nah I won't EVEN go there.
Anyone?