Steven,

To answer your question more fully; yes, the Holocaust should be compulsory in schools.

There have been horrific massacres in the past, occurring at present, and undoubtedly will do so in the future. However, the Holocaust was unique.

The Holocaust occurred, in living memory of many, in what was considered the most cultured and civilized country in Western Europe, if not the world. Hitler came to power in a Western democracy. He turned it on its head, becaming a dictator. His masterful use of his huge propoganda machine to manipulate a people. Also ... as an actor said, a study of Hilter’s public appearances and speeches shows him to be the supreme actor - Hitler’s use of movement, gesture, pause, inflection, tone, and lengths of consecutive sentences demonstrate just how powerful his performances were.

As Col Rouge stated: “In terms of history and social education, school should equip us to be able to distinguish the truth from the lie, between right and wrong and to give us the confidence to challenge the less than truthful ...”

We must never short-change coming generations by not providing them with these tools.

The extraordinary efficiency of Hitler’s machinery. Many people arrested and sent to gas chambers were surprised to learn they had Jewish blood, a grandparent. Then there were others caught up in Hitler’s genocide - the Gypsies. They, too, must never be forgotten.

The effect of the Holocaust has impinged upon so many areas - even if at an unconcious level. Not only in academia, government, and in how we see others, but also in arts and literature. Ernest van Alphen’s work, “Caught by History: Holocaust Effects in Contemporary Art, Literature, and Theory” establishes this as an undeniable fact.

Before the Holocaust, science was seen to be used for the benefit of mankind, and western democracy the ideal governance. We now know ...

The Holocaust is a benchmark in human history. There can never be a return to the perception of the world seen pre-Holocaust. Humanity lost its innocence.

cont ...

StG,

This well educated woman believed that the "Diary of Anne Frank" was a fabrication. Thus, this woman's perception of propoganda.

I'm quite satisfied that CJ's ferreting around turned up the actual truth of the matter which (Just like the "Universities will be disrupted for Muslims)turns out to bear little resemblance to the fruits of BDs overheated imagination. Yet Again.

As the curriculum does not deal with African or Asian history it would appear that including the Holocaust is pertinent and also that there are not waves of muslims with dynamite strapped to their chests bearing down on No.10 and demanding all vestiges of it removed from the history books.

If it was part of the course one could correct those people who continue to call it the "Jewish Holocaust" without reference to the fact that, as people have pointed out on this forum, they were not the only group upon whom genocide was practised.

Oh yeah, I know it probably sounds nit-picky but, in human terms, apart from my mother I have never had any relatives at all on one side of the family. And now she is dead, using the nom de plume I do is the only reminder left of part of who I am. Which does illustrate (albeit in a minor way, I know)that the effects of holocaust are far-reaching.

History is as important as the future because it is history which offers us the hindsight we all rely on to make decisions presently & for the future.
History, particularly the tragedy & insanity of ethnic cleansing must be presented at all levels of education.
Unfortunately, the tragic lessons of history fail to hit home & do not prevent people from committing the same atrocities over & over again. Why, because history is presented as an interesting subject which one can use to do a thesis on & make a career of it. History should not just be taught as a subject. It should be part of bringing up children & part of culture in general. Some very tragic history is cheapened by making it an exam subject to be passed & this in turn becomes the very root of history being invented rather than stated.
History must be preserved in it's factual unedited version & not sanitized & reconfigured by political correctness.
We could achieve a far better society if, for example, we didn't have those 50 year or so periods of withholding official documents.

Jack the Holocaust Denier: "On another thread you wrote that you 'oppose laws that prohibit denial of the Holocaust in Europe.' Maybe you forgot."

Er, Jack - I know this may stretch your intellectual capacity, but it's quite possible to argue for freedom of speech without agreeing with particular odious, offensive or plain silly ideas. In your case, freedom of speech means that I'd defend your right to refer to the Holocaust as the 'Holohoax', and also refers to my right to point out that you are a dolt for believing such tripe.

Like I said, you'd clearly benefit from an education.

CJ, why would you defend my right to voice my beliefs when you ridicule me for doing so? If that's the extent of your 'education', you mustn't have done very well.

I notice that anything that you disagree with is labelled as 'tripe', 'claptrap' or some other disparaging name. What a debator.

You are quite a small-minded country bumpkin.