From time to time I post a guest blog. I found this true story so alarming and fascinating, that I feel compelled to post it. It is about losing freedom. Since Blog posts are supposed to adhere to a certain length to be favored by search engines (Google) I split it into three parts. I want folks to see it and read it. It’s that important.
Can History Repeat Itself?
We have heard the adage about history repeating itself. Even if it doesn’t repeat, it often rhymes. Check out this AMAC article by respected historian, Victor Davis Hanson. It’s eye opening.
She survived Hitler
This story is about Kitty Werthmann, a person who lived it. She was a ten year old Austrian school girl attending a Parochial school in 1938. She survived a life under Adolph Hitler. Her story begins now:
“I cannot tell you that Hitler took Austria by tanks and guns; it would distort history.”
If you remember the plot of The Sound of Music, the Von Trapp family escaped over the Alps rather than submit to the Nazis. Kitty wasn’t so lucky. Her family chose to stay in her native Austria. She was 10 years old but bright and aware. And she was watching.
Hitler Was Elected By A Landslide
“We elected him by a landslide – 98 percent of the vote,” she recalls.
She wasn’t old enough to vote in 1938 – approaching her 11th birthday. But she remembers.
“Everyone thinks that Hitler just rolled in with his tanks and took Austria by force.”
No so.
Hitler was welcomed to Austria.
“In 1938, Austria was in a deep Depression. Nearly one-third of our workforce was unemployed. We had 25 percent inflation and 25 percent bank loan interest rates.
Farmers and business people were declaring bankruptcy daily. Young people were going from house to house begging for food. Not that they didn’t want to work; there simply weren’t any jobs.”
My Mother Was a Christian
“My mother was a Christian woman and believed in helping people in need. Every day we cooked a big kettle of soup and baked bread to feed those poor, hungry people – about 30 daily.”
“We looked to our neighbor on the north, Germany, where Hitler had been in power since 1933,” she recalls. “We had been told that they didn’t have unemployment or crime, and they had a high standard of living.”
“Nothing was ever said about persecution of any group – Jewish or otherwise. We were led to believe that everyone in Germany was happy. Almost all of us wanted the same way of life in Austria. We were promised that a vote for Hitler would mean the end of unemployment and help for the family. Hitler also said that businesses would be assisted, and farmers would get their farms back.”
98% Of The People Voted For him
“Ninety-eight percent of the population voted to annex Austria to Germany and have Hitler as our ruler.”
“We were overjoyed,” remembers Kitty, “and for three days we danced in the streets and had candlelight parades. The new government opened up big field kitchens and everyone was fed.”
“After the election, German officials were appointed, and, like a miracle, we suddenly had law and order. Three or four weeks later, everyone was employed. The government made sure that a lot of work was created through the Public Work Service.”
Equal Rights For Women!
“Hitler decided we should have equal rights for women. Before this, it was a custom that married Austrian women did not work outside the home. An able-bodied husband would be looked down on if he couldn’t support his family. Many women in the teaching profession were elated that they could retain the jobs they previously had been required to give up for marriage.”
“Then we lost religious education for kids.”
