Misinformed about the Shoah
January 24th, 2005
As the UN commemmorates the Holocaust, it seems that many Canadians haven’t learnt much about it in the first place:
In a poll released Monday by the Association for Canadian Studies, 35 per cent of Quebecers surveyed said they believe other nationalities – Poles, mainly – were the principal victims of the Nazis, not Jews.
That’s higher than any other province, but not by much: the Canadian average is 29 per cent.
In a separate question asked in the association’s telephone poll, only 36 per cent of Quebecers could identify six million as the correct number of Jews killed by the Nazis (the Canadian average was 31 per cent).
It seems the Holocaust-deniers have made some strides over the years.
I’d like to see the questions asked before I can judge this poll on its face, but it’s hard to fathom what lies ahead for the next generation, after those who bear witness are gone.
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Excuse me?! Poles and Germans WERE the principal victims. Polish and German Jews. Judaism isn’t a nationality.
The question should have been ‘what ethnic group’ …….?
I’ve been fighting that battle since elementary school.
“Where are you from?”
“Uhhh, here(?), why do you ask?”
“No, I mean where were you born?”
*suspicious expression* “Here, in St. Vincent’s Hospital; what are you getting at (as if I didn’t know, eh)?”
or, my favorite
“Where were your parents from?”
“Winnipeg, how about yours?”
Russia, anyone?
Danin: The Poles and Germans at the time sure didn’t consider their Jews to be Poles or Germans, so it’s not quite that clear.
Anonymous: I’m not sure how many Russian civilians got killed by the Germans. Russian soldiers are not “victims”.
I do seem to recall hearing, from perfectly reputable non-interested sources (ie, not holocaust-deniers or their vile ilk), that the old 6 million figure was just an early estimate and the later figures were a bit lower (but still multiple millions). One wonders what percentage of the “wrong” Canucks were wrong for that reason (not many, I suspect).
Of course, not knowing the poll details, that might have been the best available answer, if it’s multiple-choice.
Sari wrote:
It seems the Holocaust-deniers have made some strides over the years.
Peridically, pollsters report that some significant fraction of the populace thinks the sun revolves around the earth. They do not beleives this because Copernican-deniers have made strides over the years, they believe this because they are stupid.
Why attribute to malice and hate what can equally be attributed to stupidity? — stupidity is a lot more common than hate.
“They do not beleives this because Copernican-deniers have made strides over the years,…”
Oww, my head hurts.
” — stupidity is a lot more common than hate.”
I need to see your statistical evidence, Ikram, and they’re not mutually exclusive.