"[Increase] the authority of certain physicians to be designated by name in such manner that persons who, according to human judgment, are incurable can, upon a most careful diagnosis of their condition of sickness, be accorded a mercy death."—Adolph Hitler, October, 1939

 

“Death is one of the last taboo subjects in our society,” [Felos] said. “One of [Terri’s] legacies may be that we finally have matured as a society and come to grips with this question and start to deal with it in a responsible manner.”—George Felos, March 31, 2005

 

In a recent e-mail exchange over one of my op-eds, I made mention of the Holocaust in reference to abortion and euthanasia.  My correspondent quickly responded that any such comparison between the Holocaust and modern America was completely illegitimate, because of the “unique” situation that Germany faced in the 30s.  This seemed to imply that depression era Germany was the only situation in which such atrocities could occur.  Such a thing could never happen in America.  Based on the comments of men like George Felos and on new polls by Fox News, I must humbly disagree. 

 

Terri Schiavo herself completely aside, there is something tellingly disturbing in America’s reaction to her plight:  If we are to believe the polls, most Americans not only agreed with Michael, but they want to see it happen again. Apparently they feel they are ready to deal with euthanasia in a more “responsible manner.”  If nations die by suicide, and we make the not-too-difficult assumption that mass murder implies mass consent (at least at some point in time), then we are seeing a disturbing mix revealed in American culture and politics.

 

There is a very vital question here that no one is explicitly addressing, but everyone is has implicitly answered in forming their opinions of this case. What does it really mean to be human, and what sorts of responsibilities does such a fact entail?  Is all life precious, or only life that meets certain arbitrary standards?  I have argued elsewhere that Americans are rapidly forgetting what it means to be Human, and in the recent polls, we can see just how much we have forgotten.

 

According to even the allegedly conservative constituency of Fox News, being human does not involve a complete dedication to life first and foremost. It doesn’t involve “erring on the side of life,” as so many put it. In fact, as a nation we have just settled (un)comfortably into one of Hitler’s own categories of thought.  There is now tacit belief that there is such a thing as “life unworthy of life.”  What is more, society has taken it upon itself to decide which lives are worth living, and to end the “suffering” of those whose lives aren’t. Forty-five million plus abortions testify to it.  The death of Terri Schiavo, with the clear approval of the American population, demonstrates it.  The Texas baby taken off his respirator against his mother’s wishes exemplifies it.

 

This means that the majority of Americans, at least those polled by Fox, now actually accept Hitler’s euthanasia policy on a practical level.  In fact, they have implemented a form that is even more deadly that Hitler’s original formation: Hitler, at least, required careful medical examinations and only gave that power to groups of well trained physicians who must give a unanimous decision before the verdict was carried out.  In America, it only takes an estranged husband, a lawyer from the Hemlock Society, and an activist judge, neither with any real medical training.

 

Of course, the academic left has done an excellent and thorough job over the years of somehow painting Hitler, leader of the National Socialist Workers’ Party, into a conservative corner.  This is completely understandable, if not justifiable by the facts.  Were I a “progressive liberal” and I found that I had a strong similarity to one of the most notorious mass murderers in history, and even worse, if I found that my own political agenda happened to mirror his own, then I would use every intellectual trick in the liberal playbook to convince myself and others that it wasn’t so. 

 

So, at least the Liberals are being consistent; whether they’ll admit it or not is another matter entirely.  I wonder what excuses the conservatives in Fox’s majority will use?

 

The simple fact remains that though 1930s Germany clearly faced a “unique” situation, that situation is not the only one where a holocaust type “cleansing” could occur.  Every country or people who have ever killed on a massive scale—from Russia to Cambodia to China to Rwanda—had its own “unique” set of circumstances. In every case, the groups and ideologies that would eventually begin the purges billed themselves as good and moral causes.  They were the moral progressives.  By the time the killing began in earnest, it was too late.

 

A majority of Americans have just given their stamp of approval to a classic Hitlerian definition of human life and euthanasia.  I worry to think what new “mature” stance we will be expected to take next.  No nation should be so morally self righteous as to look at Germany and say “That could never happen here!”  There were many in the Weimar Republic who would have said the same.  Instead, let us remember, “There but for the grace of God, go I.”   

 

About the Writer: Brian Melton is an assistant professor of history at Liberty University. Dr. Melton has recently finished a biography of Civil War general Henry Slocum, which is under consideration at the University of Missouri Press. He can be reached at bmelton@liberty.edu.