fundamental has changed in
the German character; the
Germans pick up this under-
tone, and clearly resent the
idea of holding today's
leaders accountable for yes-
terday's inhumanity.
The Germans exude a con-
fidence that grates on the
nerves of the Jewish par-
ticipants. In private discus-
sions after these sessions,
one hears the word
"arrogance," a term the
Jews are embarrassed to use
in public, yet which keeps
creeping into their
vocabulary.
Jewish participants pose
an endless series of "what
if" questions; the Germans
point out that the future is
unknowable for every
nation, and that each coun-
try must be judged on the
basis of its recent behavior,
not its deeds in the past.
For example, Jewish ac-
tivists keep pointing out
that the drive to unification
is taking place under
favorable economic cir-
cumstances. What happens
if Germany's economy turns
sour in the midst of this na-
tionalistic revival? Will old
demons emerge once more to
turn the German populace
into a howling mob?
The German officials
clearly bristle at the sugges-
tion that German society
could resume its barbarian
past at the first sign of econ-
omic distress. Yet they con-
sistently refuse to address
the question, or to deal with
its essential premise — that
the mixture of German na-
tionalism and economic
hardship have traditionally
been one of the world's most
incendiary combinations.
The Jews in these dia-
logues are clearly timid
about turning their concerns
into accusations; there is a
sense that if unification is
inevitable, there is no
percentage in, coming across
as obstructionists.
Yet the German response
at these dialogue sessions
does little to stem the feeling
that something profoundly
disturbing is taking place
here.
The Jewish participants
are hobbled by a deep am-
bivalence. They want to be
pragmatic in a context in
which German unification is
inevitable — but they cannot
get past the visceral images,
the wrenching memories.
They are driven by ghosts
from the past — which
makes it difficult for them to
articulate what they want in
a way that the German
representatives can under-
stand.
And this, in turn,
frustrates the Germans.
What, exactly, do you want
of us, they seem to be ask-
ing? Why can't you deal with
the world as it is today?
What more does Germany
need to do to prove itself a fit
participant in the commun-
ity of nations?
And just beneath all this is
yet another dark presence: it
doesn't really matter what
the Jews think, anyway. No
nation is prepared to stop
German unification. West
Germany is riding a power-
ful wave; Jewish complaints
are just little specks of
debris bobbing along the
surging tide.
The dialogue is important,
but it does not accomplish
what either side wants. The
Germans have heard it all
before, and they're clearly
tired of responding to the
same arguments. The
American Jews have said it
all before, and they're
frustrated that suddenly,
Germany has taken on a
whole new reality that may
take the country out of his-
tory's penalty box. El
Happy & Healthy
Passover
mit
Anti-Semitism
Is On Sale
London (JTA) — A docu-
ment implying that Czar
Nicholas II was assassinated
by a Jew was put on sale by
the famous Sotheby's gallery
here, despite protests from
Jewish groups that it was
perpetuating a discredited
anti-Semitic canard.
It was withdrawn after
failing to get the minimum
bid of 350,000 pounds —
about $370,000.
But Sotheby's intends to
put it on the market again at
a later date.
Dr. Michael May, director
of the London-based In-
stitute of Jewish Affairs, the
research arm of the World
Jewish Congress, called
Sotheby's attitude "slightly
unhelpful."
The WJC complained that
the auction house accepted
the document without
taking into account that it
was commissioned for and
used by anti-Semites.
The document is part of
what are called the Sokolov
Archives. Nikolai Sokolov
was sent by the anti-
Communist White Russians
in 1918 to investigate the
Bolsheviks' killing of the
czar. He named one
"Yankel" Yurovsky as the
killer.
"Yankel," the Yiddish
diminutive of Ya'acov, was
long used by Russian and
Polish anti-Semites as a
derisory reference to Jews.
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THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
41