Nazi veterans annual parade kicks off in Latvia's capital

[webfact]

Nazi Vets Annual Parade Kicks Off in Latvia's Capital

The annual march of the Waffen-SS Latvian Legion veterans and their supporters started in the center of the Baltic country's capital Riga on Monday, according to the city council, which approved the event.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Several hundred people are expected to take part in the parade of former Nazis, who are walking toward central Riga's Freedom Monument.

The Latvian Legion of the Nazi Germany's Waffen-SS was created in 1943. The unit surrendered in May 1945 among the other Nazi forces.

Earlier in the month, Latvian Minister of Justice Dzintars Rasnacs confirmed he would take part in the march to "honor fallen Latvian legionnaires and their faith in fighting for a free Latvia."

Full story: http://sputniknews.com/europe/20150316/1019544451.html

-- SPUTNIK 2015-03-16

[Dannyboy666]

They should of all been Executed for War Crimes, They were Quite Savage in their dealings in WW 2...

Maybe I'm being an Ass@&$%, Mr. Peter

[roo860]

Everyone of them should have been hunted down and hung, no trail.

[Costas2008]

I hope the EU are happy about their partner.

I wonder if they also join the Nazi parade.

People seem to forget very easy, about the millions killed during WWII and the Holocaust.

I don't, and I will never forget as long as I live and made sure my kids will never forget either.

[siampolee]

I would think it must be the biggest collection of ''zimmer frame parade's one is ever likely to see.

What an opportunity the hunters of the criminal of W,W,2 have, their quarry can't run fast or far.

Then once that lot are in the net a start can be made on those war criminals who have been active since say ''1945.''

Sad to say . ''That is wishful thinking.''

[LuckyLew]

Shocking that a country would allow this parade to take place every year

[3SoiDogNight]

I hope the EU are happy about their partner.

I wonder if they also join the Nazi parade.

People seem to forget very easy, about the millions killed during WWII and the Holocaust.

I don't, and I will never forget as long as I live and made sure my kids will never forget either.

Well said on the EU comments.

However, I doubt these people "forgot" anything. They know very well what they are supporting. I was amazed at the openness of hatred and racism in Eastern Europe. I've never seen so many swastikas proudly displayed and as tattoos while in Moscow. (not the same as the Thais that have no clue about the symbol)

On my 1 week visit to Moscow, I had Hitler salutes and bottles thrown at me. Twice while riding Moscow Metro which is heavily policed. This epidemic is throughout Eastern Europe including Latvia.

Neo-Nazi skinheads are so brazen in Eastern Europe that they upload their videos to YouTube showing off their murders and beatings. If convicted, they get a slap on the wrist.

Even some professionals (engineers and pilots) I've met in Russia and Ukraine refer to Jews as "those <deleted> Jews" and are very casual about their comments. It's not just the uneducated lower-class that feel this way.

BTW I'm Black so yes I would stand out in Eastern Europe. The Nazism a serious problem. Even though Hitler looked down on the Slavic people, these Eastern European Nazis see it as a White vs. non-White issue.

[bender92]

I hope the EU are happy about their partner.

I wonder if they also join the Nazi parade.

People seem to forget very easy, about the millions killed during WWII and the Holocaust.

I don't, and I will never forget as long as I live and made sure my kids will never forget either.

Well said on the EU comments.

However, I doubt these people "forgot" anything. They know very well what they are supporting. I was amazed at the openness of hatred and racism in Eastern Europe. I've never seen so many swastikas proudly displayed and as tattoos while in Moscow. (not the same as the Thais that have no clue about the symbol)

On my 1 week visit to Moscow, I had Hitler salutes and bottles thrown at me. Twice while riding Moscow Metro which is heavily policed. This epidemic is throughout Eastern Europe including Latvia.

Neo-Nazi skinheads are so brazen in Eastern Europe that they upload their videos to YouTube showing off their murders and beatings. If convicted, they get a slap on the wrist.

Even some professionals (engineers and pilots) I've met in Russia and Ukraine refer to Jews as "those <deleted> Jews" and are very casual about their comments. It's not just the uneducated lower-class that feel this way.

BTW I'm Black so yes I would stand out in Eastern Europe. The Nazism a serious problem. Even though Hitler looked down on the Slavic people, these Eastern European Nazis see it as a White vs. non-White issue.

Go to Latvia and report back.

[MobileContent]

They should of all been Executed for War Crimes, They were Quite Savage in their dealings in WW 2...

Maybe I'm being an Ass@&$%, Mr. Peter

My mum told me the same. They should have been executed in the late 40's and early 50's but 80% of the Germans supported the Nazis and we had over 250,000 members of the Waffen SS and just only 35 were executed.

Merkel of Germany and the rest of the EU will just ignore them.

[schondie]

Not sure what all the fuss is about, they chose to fight against the occupying Soviets as they perceived the Nazis to be the lesser of two evils.

Being in the SS didn't automatically make a soldier a mass murderer.

[Scott]

Off-topic posts removed.

[BlueSkyCowboy]

They should of all been Executed for War Crimes, They were Quite Savage in their dealings in WW 2...

Maybe I'm being an Ass@&$%, Mr. Peter

My mum told me the same. They should have been executed in the late 40's and early 50's but 80% of the Germans supported the Nazis and we had over 250,000 members of the Waffen SS and just only 35 were executed.

Merkel of Germany and the rest of the EU will just ignore them.

Yes, it has been 70 years since the war. How many wars did we have since then and how many people have been killed? Excluding the black guys in Chicago.

[BlueSkyCowboy]

Not sure what all the fuss is about, they chose to fight against the occupying Soviets as they perceived the Nazis to be the lesser of two evils.

Being in the SS didn't automatically make a soldier a mass murderer.

I can imagine that the Russians where the bigger evil. About 90'000 Germans surrendered in Stalingrad and less then 6000 returned home eventually. For those who want to see a tough movie about war watch a movie called "BROTHERS". It must be about 3 years old now. Talk about reality

[Dannyboy666]

Not sure what all the fuss is about, they chose to fight against the occupying Soviets as they perceived the Nazis to be the lesser of two evils.

Being in the SS didn't automatically make a soldier a mass murderer.

it wasn't about Soviets , They committed War Crimes against fellow countrymen, Google is your friend, Geez

[Dannyboy666]

Not sure what all the fuss is about, they chose to fight against the occupying Soviets as they perceived the Nazis to be the lesser of two evils.

Being in the SS didn't automatically make a soldier a mass murderer.

I can imagine that the Russians where the bigger evil. About 90'000 Germans surrendered in Stalingrad and less then 6000 returned home eventually. For those who want to see a tough movie about war watch a movie called "BROTHERS". It must be about 3 years old now. Talk about reality

I checked IMDB and saw a movie with Jake Glyllenhall or whatever his name Afgan movie, different era

[RockyBeerbelly]

What a sad and distorted world we live in when these kind of dangerous idiots can march freely in a capital city which is a member of the EU. Brussels should be ashamed....

[pkspeaker]

Just because they faught for the other side doesn't mean their 'bad' ok so stalin and the russians treated these dominated states like shit for a long time before that so they did what was in the best interest of their country and faught for germany, germans were treated as liberators when they invaded the soviet blok earlier in the war, germany was a more advanced economy and these middle states would have been better off under german rule had the war ended in stalemate .. ie. If the us had not gotten involved.

[attento]

Just because they faught for the other side doesn't mean their 'bad' ok so stalin and the russians treated these dominated states like shit for a long time before that so they did what was in the best interest of their country and faught for germany, germans were treated as liberators when they invaded the soviet blok earlier in the war, germany was a more advanced economy and these middle states would have been better off under german rule had the war ended in stalemate .. ie. If the us had not gotten involved.

Yes, a little knowledge of the sad and difficult history of the Latvian people in the early 20th century might enlighten some attutudes,

[khwaibah]

They should fell at home in Chiang Mai.

[winstonc]

I hope the EU are happy about their partner.

I wonder if they also join the Nazi parade.

People seem to forget very easy, about the millions killed during WWII and the Holocaust.

I don't, and I will never forget as long as I live and made sure my kids will never forget either.

Well said on the EU comments.

However, I doubt these people "forgot" anything. They know very well what they are supporting. I was amazed at the openness of hatred and racism in Eastern Europe. I've never seen so many swastikas proudly displayed and as tattoos while in Moscow. (not the same as the Thais that have no clue about the symbol)

On my 1 week visit to Moscow, I had Hitler salutes and bottles thrown at me. Twice while riding Moscow Metro which is heavily policed. This epidemic is throughout Eastern Europe including Latvia.

Neo-Nazi skinheads are so brazen in Eastern Europe that they upload their videos to YouTube showing off their murders and beatings. If convicted, they get a slap on the wrist.

Even some professionals (engineers and pilots) I've met in Russia and Ukraine refer to Jews as "those <deleted> Jews" and are very casual about their comments. It's not just the uneducated lower-class that feel this way.

BTW I'm Black so yes I would stand out in Eastern Europe. The Nazism a serious problem. Even though Hitler looked down on the Slavic people, these Eastern European Nazis see it as a White vs. non-White issue.

you seem to be throwing that old chestnut about blacks again get over yourself man..are jews black..??? because they dont like them do they...you seem confused my forever oppressed brother..

[smotherb]

Everyone of them should have been hunted down and hung, no trail.

Well, without a trail, how would you hunt them down?

[MW72]

Just because they faught for the other side doesn't mean their 'bad' ok so stalin and the russians treated these dominated states like shit for a long time before that so they did what was in the best interest of their country and faught for germany, germans were treated as liberators when they invaded the soviet blok earlier in the war, germany was a more advanced economy and these middle states would have been better off under german rule had the war ended in stalemate .. ie. If the us had not gotten involved.

Yes, a little knowledge of the sad and difficult history of the Latvian people in the early 20th century might enlighten some attutudes,

"these middle states would have been better off under german rule had the war ended in stalemate"

Hitler wasn't interested in any stalemate. He believed in total victory or total annihilation for the German people. If they weren't fit to win then they didn't deserve to survive.

"they did what was in the best interest of their country and faught for germany, germans were treated as liberators when they invaded the soviet blok earlier in the war"

Yes the Germans were treated like liberators due to the oppression suffered under Stalin. Hitler had the opportunity of a great recruiting tool but because of his ideology he sent in the SS to slaughter the Slavs as well as the Jews. Whilst they may have believed that what they were doing was in the best interests of their country it turns out that that wasn't the case. The ones that joined the SS were just as culpable as the Nazis.

"Yes, a little knowledge of the sad and difficult history of the Latvian people in the early 20th century might enlighten some attutudes,"

How very true.

[Fat Haggis]

Not sure what all the fuss is about, they chose to fight against the occupying Soviets as they perceived the Nazis to be the lesser of two evils.

Being in the SS didn't automatically make a soldier a mass murderer.

it wasn't about Soviets , They committed War Crimes against fellow countrymen, Google is your friend, Geez

So did many allied soldiers dannyboy, many waffen SS commited war crimes whilst many others fought like professional soldiers, and acted as such.

Google isn't the only search engine, there is thousand of decent literature out there that doesn't portray all waffen SS as criminals.

[pkspeaker]

Oh that's just freken great, so 80% of Germans should have been executed because they supported their country during a war.

A few other points, The deaths of 6 million Jews + some others is always used to 'prove' just how terrible Germany was during wwii.

Consider this-

* It was not Germany's intention to exterminate jews when they started wwii in order to create an empire (something that Napoleon's France and countless others had done throught history) This is something that happened AFTER the US entered the war and began to carpet bomb Germany. I have talked to 2 people who lives in German occupied Europe during wwii (one was in belgium and one in Amsterdam). They both said the same thing, at the begining of the war things were normal, as the war progressed and Germany started loosing, the situation became dark and there were massive food shortages. In fact the majority of the people that died in the concentration camps died of hunger and disease, not gas chambers.

* The US sent Japanese-Americans to concentration camps during wwii, would they have survived if say, Japan had developed an A-bomb and anihalated many american cities? We can't know that.

* As early as 1942, Germany was willing to negotiate an end to the war, the Allies would only accept unconditional surrender.

* The German Army was professional in the early days of the war when they were winning, ie. Their invasion and occupation of France did not include massive war crimes. Stalin had killed 8 million Ukranians prior to Germany's liberation of that country, I call it 'liberation' because most Ukranians (as Latvians) saw Germany as a liberator, again early on, they weren't so bad, better than Stalin.. and the fact that Stalin had committed these war crimes pretty much gave Germany a PASS to invade the Soviets.. I mean shit, we invaded Iraq and that has killed a million people for WMDs that weren't there and in retaliation for a terrorist attack that was carried out by Saudi Arabians(those people that are currently supporting ISIS).

* Robert McNamera once said that "If we had lost the war, (wwii) we would have all been tried as war criminals." In regards to the US Carpet Bombing of Axis countries during wwii.

* Germany's logic in starting wwii went something like this- The British, French, and even the US were imperialists and were dominating countries all over the world, so who are they to say we can't dominate eastern europe? AND, the Soviet Union was a disaster and was oppressing and killing millions of eastern europeans who wanted to be liberated so were going to bring them our 'better' non-communist system.. When you look at it from their perspective, it wasn't really that insane from a political perspective.

They should of all been Executed for War Crimes, They were Quite Savage in their dealings in WW 2...




Maybe I'm being an Ass@&$%, Mr. Peter

My mum told me the same. They should have been executed in the late 40's and early 50's but 80% of the Germans supported the Nazis and we had over 250,000 members of the Waffen SS and just only 35 were executed.

Merkel of Germany and the rest of the EU will just ignore them.

[PattayaPhom]

The alternative was a concentration camp or slave labour camp. I believe only about 10% were actual volunteers.

[Enoon]

Sounds like it would have been a great opportunity for young Thais to go and show respect for elderly folk, whilst wearing the styles they like so much.

[Wat dee]

Not sure what all the fuss is about, they chose to fight against the occupying Soviets as they perceived the Nazis to be the lesser of two evils.

Being in the SS didn't automatically make a soldier a mass murderer.

Being SS doesn't mean youre automatically nazi. There were SS-soldiers that had nothing to do with the dark side of the ideology.

[zaZa9]

The alternative was a concentration camp or slave labour camp. I believe only about 10% were actual volunteers.

Exactly

All these comments from people who never saw the war , or had the priviledge to be born of parents who experienced it seperated from the whole mess by seas or Channels

There was virtually no choice for these veterans who would have been mere boys back then , and like the Fins , who came out so badly off by the end of the war , while having been embroiled in it near the start , Stalin was the great enemy , and anyone opposing that monster ( who annihalted 10 million of his own ) was the greatest of enemies to their own small nations

They are peaceful democracies today ( unlike Russia ) and even their own leaders recognize the sacrifices those kids made!

[Oziex1]

Banish them to the pages of history, but lets not forget for the winners of war they get to write the history, and for the winners there are no war criminals only heroes.

Having said that ,Fk I'm so glad they were defeated, they were insane and WW2 quite possibly the only recent war truly worth fighting. Everything else just political scams.

Veterans of all theaters and eras of conflict please don't confuse my words for disrespect, you guys did what you had to do and deserve the greatest respect from all.

Politicians?

[transam]

Not sure what all the fuss is about, they chose to fight against the occupying Soviets as they perceived the Nazis to be the lesser of two evils.

Being in the SS didn't automatically make a soldier a mass murderer.

You reckon..........