Holocaust discussion marred by awkward silence

Professor perturbed by uncomfortable questions

Luc Attmi
La Lune de la presse internationale

MADISON, WISCONSIN

A discussion class about the Holocaust became uncomfortable Wednesday afternoon when it was punctuated by a two minute silence in which both the instructor and students were at a seeming loss of words. History professor Greg Garius could not quickly recover from a blank inspired by surprise and disbelief after a student, Dean Eyre, asked if the Holocaust "had really happened," and, if so, where the proof could be found. In spite of the overwhelming evidence to back up Garius' assertions that the Nazi death squads had indeed killed millions of Jews, homosexuals, intellectuals and political dissidents, the discussion remained stalled for approximately two minutes and fourteen seconds while thoughts were gathered and puzzled looks were exchanged.

After Professor Garius reiterated the existence of photographic, audio, and video archives proving that there were indeed atrocities committed by the National Socialist party in Germany during the Second World War, students quickly resumed a thoughtful discussion about the consequences of the genocide. In addition to the initial uneasy silence, the questions remained uncomfortable for Garius, who was also asked by other students if he could see any parallels between current American foreign policy and recent events in the United States, and those of 1930s Nazi Germany. Garius dodged the question, reminding students that both he and the Society for the Heritage of Interational Traditional Scholars (SHITS) have urged students to ignore all recent historical events.