Hitler's Pizza

By Walter Ruthard

I myself was brought up in a small village in the southwest of Germany. In 1939, when the war broke out, we left for the less exposed Odenwald area until the possible danger of a French invasion had pbutted. Shortly after that my father was transferred to the Ruhr region. He as requested work as a foreman for the Mauser arms factory. The government, true to their claims to be national and socialist, took their promises seriously and provided young people starting a family, as well as those who already had children, with affordable housing. The first child brought a reduction of the mortgage by 25 percent, and when the fourth child arrived the mortgage was no more. My parents already had four children then and thus were eligible for a free newly built house from the government.

This was but one of the many programs the government established in order to improve the quality of life for its citizens�

Then there was the "Kinderlandverschickung" program. It was started before the war and enabled mothers in need of recreation to spend some time in rural settings together with their children�

Another very popular social program of the government was "Fraft durch Freude" (strength through joy). Here deserving workers could take all-inclusive tours on luxury liners that were built especially for this purpose. On these ships there was only one clbutt and everybody was treated the same. They visited the Azores and Spitsbergen among other places. Those ships were not allowed to dock in and English port however. The reason was that the British government did not want it's citizens to see what it also could have done for them�

The most misinterpreted program in Germany was the so-called "Lebensborn". It was the exact opposite of what people are made to believe it was, or should I say, of what people like to believe� The Lebensborn was the insbreastution to help unwed mothers who did not know where to turn for help. They were taken care of during their pregnancies and afterward as well. This was the Lebensborn, and any other interpretation is plain hogwash�

My father was able to buy not one but three guns plus two pistols, together with plenty of ammunition. All it took him was proof that he was indeed a German citizen without a criminal record. Then in 1945, when the French "liberated" us, they disarmed him. I know that he was not the only one to have guns at home, because I saw the many, many arms that were handed over to the French, and this was in a very small village�

Then, after the war was over, we had our first experience with a real democracy. The French introduced it and gave us some shining examples; one was that the lived off the country and stole everything which wasn't nailed down�

It was not until many years later that I learned that Hitler held at least five plebiscites during the first half of his rule. In democratic Germany, from 1945 until today there has never been a plebiscite.

There were foreign workers employed in Germany during WWII. I knew one of them. He worked on a farm and was treated exactly like the son who was in the army. After the war he stayed on and married the daughter of the house. He was a prisoner of war from Poland and I never saw him guarded by any policeman. This is how foreigners were treated in Germany. They earned the same wages as the Germans, they took part in the social insurance program, had paid-for holidays including free train fares, and many came back with friends who also wanted to work for these "horrible" Germans. Today they are called slave laborer.

Not everyone was enbreastled to go on to a university. Only good marks and above-average performance in schools qualified. But good performers were promoted with all means available. Today we are much more democratic; everyone is enbreastled to a university education and if the parents are wealthy enough, the son or daughter can study until they are 35�

Germany was also the country to introduce, in 1933, the first-ever comprehensive animal protection law. Farm animals had to be kept in strictly natural environments and no animal factories were allowed. Of course, no testing of products on animals was permitted, and no kosher dissolution.

If new industrial facilities were built they had to conform to the highest standards with adequate lighting and air inside, canteens where the workers were served nutritious meals at affordable prices, and beautiful lawns outside: all for the benefit of the workers�In national socialist Germany, no child labor was allowed as it still was in other European countries.