|
Today in History: Julius Streicher gets his just deserts
 Julius Streicher (February 12, 1885 -- October 16, 1946) was a prominent Nazi prior to World War II. He was the founder and publisher of Der Stürmer newspaper, which became a central element of the Nazi propaganda machine. His publishing firm also released three anti-Semitic books for children, including the 1938 Der Giftpilz (The Poison Mushroom), one of the most widespread pieces of propaganda, which purported to warn about insidious dangers Jews posed by using the metaphor of an attractive yet deadly mushroom. After the war, he was convicted of crimes against humanity and executed. . . .Streicher was hanged in the early hours of October 16, 1946, along with the nine other condemned defendants from the first Nuremberg trial (Goering, Streicher's nemesis, committed suicide only hours earlier). Streicher's was the most melodramatic of the hangings carried out that night. At the bottom of the scaffold he cried out "Heil Hitler!" When he mounted the platform, he delivered his last sneering reference to Jewish scripture, snapping "Purim-Fest 1946!" The Jewish holiday Purim celebrates the escape by the Jews from extermination at the hands of Haman, an ancient Persian government official. At the end of the Purim story, Haman is hanged. Streicher's final declaration before the hood went over his head was, "The Bolsheviks will hang you one day!" For those of you cynics who think "there ain't no justice," consider the following: The consensus among eyewitnesses was that the hanging of Julius Streicher did not proceed as planned, and that he did not receive the quick death from spinal severing typical of the other executions at Nuremberg. Cue world's smallest violin. Kingsbury Smith, who covered the executions for the International News Service, reported that Streicher "went down kicking" which may have dislodged the hangman's knot from its ideal position. Smith stated that Streicher could be heard groaning under the scaffold after he dropped through the trap-door, and that the executioner intervened under the gallows, which was screened by wood panels and a black curtain, to finish the job. . . . Serves 'im right. Posted by: Mike 2008-10-16 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=252837 |