Schacht is a disappointment because of another thing. If I would have had the terrible secrets of crimes committed by the Nazis in my hands, which Schacht said he possessed, then I would not have participated for ten years in a conspiracy. And I wouldn't participate in an Attentat solely in 1944, which incidentally was to be committed not by Schacht but by others - a cowardly Attentat at that, which meant placing a bomb under Hitler's table and then running off. If Schacht felt as nauseated by the Nazis as he now claims, he would have had to draw a pistol himself and shoot the man responsible for these dastardly actions, I mean Hitler himself. Anything else is unthinkable, with the knowledge that Schacht had.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Criticism that Schacht should have acted more decisively against Nazis if he truly knew their crimes.
- In plain terms
- Knowing crimes implies you should have stopped them directly.
- What can you take from it?
- Moral knowledge demands direct action against injustice.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- What is the duty of knowledge?
- When is resistance possible?
Another view
Direct action was often impossible or lethal under total regimes.
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