If someone decided they hated your family, and then rounded them up, at gunpoint, before torturing and finally killing them, would you ever cease trying to bring that person to justice?
I’m guessing most sane people would answer ‘no’. Let’s face it: most of us, if G-d forbid faced with such a loss, would have to be physically restrained from hunting down the perpetrator and throttling them with our bare hands.
We would want, indeed we would yearn for, a day of reckoning.
Yet surprisingly, many of those who agree with the above sentiments when applied to their own loved ones, expect the suspected Nazi murderer, John Demjanjuk, to be let off.
On this very blog, someone has stated that to extradite him is ‘cruel’, given his ‘frail condition’. And let’s be clear on this: it is not, as that same person has said, , ‘you jews‘ that are responsible for this latest development. It is GERMANY that is extraditing Demjanjuk, because prosecutors there believe they have overwhelming evidence that this man killed 29,000 innocent people.
Since when does a murderer – whether of one or one million people – get to escape justice purely on the basis that he – unlike his victims – was fortunate enough to reach old age? What an astonishing argument for anyone to use – yet use it they do.
Would those same people ever seek to generalise this ‘reasoning’? Is that how they would ever envisage a nation’s justice system operating? Presumably not.
Yet, again, when it’s Jews that have been the murdered souls, and when it’s a suspected Nazi who is facing his day of reckoning, somehow it’s deemed more moral to condemn the relatives of the victims for desiring justice, as opposed to agreeing that the murderer must be held to account.
I have no respect for those who argue that this man should be left alone to die of old age. He showed no mercy, no justice, no humanity to those 29,000 innocents. I see no reason why he should be entitled now to what he denied them.
A Jew With A View 
I have to agree completely. As I have watched this play out over the years I kept saying the same thing. It is the disease of humanism that causes this sickness that makes people over look such heinous crimes. It is also a sad commentary on the world in which we live in.
And let us not forget that his 29,000 victims were also in a ‘frail condition’.
While I agree with your sentiments, the passage of time does create practical problems at lest as far as earthly justice is concerned.
Remember this man had a previous convection in Israel more then twenty years ago, which was overturned due to confused eye witness accounts even then.
We are now talking about events which happened sixty four years ago. it is as though a trial connected with a first world war atrocity had taken place in 1982.
Even if again convected and this time the convection is substantiated, I fear it will not stop “creeps saying, “the holocaust never happened.
Yes, it does seem strange that it’s taken this long, but I’m guessing those prosecuting wanted to be 100% sure of his identity.
I suspect a lot of people will agree with your points. I personally somewhat disagree – on the basis that many of this man’s innocent victims were equally old, and equally frail, and that didn’t stop him from murdering them.
I also think that sometimes, justice must be *seen* to be done. Not because it would act as a deterrent, but just because a person must be held accountable for their actions and their crimes, in this case.
But I really do welcome your posts and again, I think many others will agree with your thoughts – many thanks for posting!
The actual issue is that it took so long. At 89 years there isn’t a lot left that you can do to the guy, even if you now jail him for life, well, he’s had his life now and the dregs of his dotage are not much to make up for his crimes, and it’s hardly a deterrent for anyone else, who cares if they nab you at 89 anyway?
I firmly blame the 1950s PTB for this fiasco, they let him slip through the net (like thousands others) and now we get to mop up the sorry pointless mess!