COMMENTS OF SOME U.S. READERS

 

 

Dissenting voices heard
despite German censorship

 

 

Readers Disagree With Sentencing of Holocaust Denier
Deutsche Welle Friday, 1 February 2008

Lawyer Sylvia Stolz was sentenced to three and a half years
in prison on charges of inciting hatred for claiming The Holocaust
was a lie. Some readers felt the sentence went against her right
to freedom of expression.


The following comments reflect the views of DW-WORLD.DE readers.
Not all reader comments have been published. DW-WORLD.DE reserves
the right to edit for length and appropriateness of content.

Whatever happened to freedom of speech, and the freedom to think?
Is this the so-called democracy promoted by the EU? If so, one can
understand when people turn to alternative forms of government.
— Arden Knapp, United States

How is it "hate" to suggest there is evidence that millions of people were
not murdered? That would be good news, not hate. Hate is accusing
Germans of being homicidal murderers and denying them a chance to
examine the evidence and offer a defence against the charges. If revisionist
arguments are wrong they should be subjected to peer review in a public
forum, not jail. — Kurt Bechle, United States

I am shocked that in what I always thought to be "liberal" and "open-minded" Europe, anyone could be convicted for voicing an opinion regarding history. Everything else historical is fair game for honest examination, why should this be an exception? Was Gallileo right or wrong to question the official teaching regarding the orbits of the earth and the sun? In the celebrated "Scopes Monkey trial," here in the US, I've always seen John Scopes portrayed as a hero who dared to question the official line. Should he have been tried and imprisoned for doing so? How is this different? People should be either allowed to question everything, or else they should be prohibited from questioning anything. If honest questioning verifies the accepted beliefs, then they'll stand on their own legs. If not, then let them crumble.
— Dominique Amarante, United States


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