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Re: An Interesting Hypothetical Question

Anonymous — Tue, 9 Jul 2013 23:12:47 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 07/10/2013 03:12

ppnw wrote:

but man, those hispanics are dumb and poor

I don't think this really needs to be brought up.

Re: An Interesting Hypothetical Question

Defago — Tue, 9 Jul 2013 22:13:35 GMT

Author: Defago

Posted: 07/10/2013 02:13

ppnw wrote:

but man, those hispanics are dumb and poor except Defago, i want him inside me

Re: An Interesting Hypothetical Question

Anonymous — Tue, 9 Jul 2013 21:44:40 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 07/10/2013 01:44

Jasonconfused wrote:

Damn purps, you really have a hard time staying off my cock, don't you?

it's just too good

Re: An Interesting Hypothetical Question

Jasonconfused — Tue, 9 Jul 2013 21:39:26 GMT

Author: Jasonconfused

Posted: 07/10/2013 01:39

ppnw wrote:

but man, those hispanics are dumb and poor

Damn purps, you really have a hard time staying off my cock, don't you?

Re: An Interesting Hypothetical Question

Anonymous — Tue, 9 Jul 2013 21:24:33 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 07/10/2013 01:24

Jasonconfused wrote:

This. My Modern Japanese History class could all seem like fiction to Western culture but we have to keep in mind how different people around the world are.

but man, those hispanics are dumb and poor

Re: An Interesting Hypothetical Question

Jasonconfused — Tue, 9 Jul 2013 20:48:15 GMT

Author: Jasonconfused

Posted: 07/10/2013 00:48

Jackwc wrote:

Well, the Japanese do have a rather different view of suicide than most, considering the practice of banzai charges and seppuku and all, so that'd be pretty believable.

This. My Modern Japanese History class could all seem like fiction to Western culture but we have to keep in mind how different people around the world are.

Re: An Interesting Hypothetical Question

CellarDoor — Tue, 9 Jul 2013 18:29:24 GMT

Author: CellarDoor

Posted: 07/09/2013 22:29

I'm just back from Poland, and I can say it's one of the saddest countries I've ever been to. The history is overwhelming. I mean Warsaw was basically 80% destroyed during WWII and everything now standing was rebuilt after the war.

Anyhow, I see what the OP was trying to say. I've seen many movies and visited many important places surrounding WWII and I still can't fully imagine the extent of the horrors committed.
Even after the 7 hours of 'Shoah', it's just unbearable to picture the death camps actually working, or ordering the destruction of a complete city like Warsaw.
The whole period is like all evil let loose, from the bombing of Dresden (I'm thinking Slaughterhouse 5), the Berlin aftermath (Germany Year Zero), unit 731, Hiroshima... It's terrifying how all that happened in such a short period of time.

Re: An Interesting Hypothetical Question

Jackwc — Tue, 9 Jul 2013 18:10:03 GMT

Author: Jackwc

Posted: 07/09/2013 22:10

andy_hunter wrote:

kamikaze pilots defied all human instincts

Well, the Japanese do have a rather different view of suicide than most, considering the practice of banzai charges and seppuku and all, so that'd be pretty believable.

Re: An Interesting Hypothetical Question

junodog4 — Tue, 9 Jul 2013 14:51:05 GMT

Author: junodog4

Posted: 07/09/2013 18:51

The sad thing about Hitler and The Nazis was that it is quite believable. That level of ultranationalism has arisen time and time again throughout human history. What made Germany unique was the level of efficiency, industrialization and infrastrucutre in a modern and educated society. Given the right circumstances, the rise of Hitler and the subsequent events could have occured just as easily in other nations, and if we aren't aware, could happen again. Viewing WWII as a unique event leads us to believe it couldn't happen again, and breeds complacency.

Re: An Interesting Hypothetical Question

Anonymous — Tue, 9 Jul 2013 14:49:47 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 07/09/2013 18:49

Hitler didn't just get powerful by screaming a bunch of gibberish. He had to appear as a nice guy first. He did a whole lot of stuff for the German community like building school playgrounds and such, while slowly putting hat of Jews into the minds of Germans. At least that's what I was taught. I wouldn't doubt that, either. Not beause Mom told it to me, but because it indeed is farfetched to think Hitler could just get up and scream a bunch of stuff and expect a huge following.

Anybody ever seen the movie Defiance starring Daniel Craig? Great movie.

Re: An Interesting Hypothetical Question

andy_hunter — Tue, 9 Jul 2013 13:24:57 GMT

Author: andy_hunter

Posted: 07/09/2013 17:24

Puncture Repair wrote:

I thought this thread was easing into holocaust denial for a moment.

I was very weary that my original might be misconstrued as Holocaust denial. Hopefully everyone understands that's clearly not what I am saying.

ppnw wrote:

I'd like to know what seems 'not possible' about WWII.

Nothing's impossible about WWII because it actually happened. What I'm saying is if the war never happened would people believe human beings would be capable of the cruelty, bravery and innovation which went on for those 6 years. That war brought out the best and worst of humanity however I don't believe humans believe in their own capabilities to that extent. That's what this thread is about.

Re: An Interesting Hypothetical Question

Anonymous — Tue, 9 Jul 2013 12:50:45 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 07/09/2013 16:50

I'd like to know what seems 'not possible' about WWII.

Re: An Interesting Hypothetical Question

Anonymous — Tue, 9 Jul 2013 12:49:31 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 07/09/2013 16:49

Puncture Repair wrote:

I thought this thread was easing into holocaust denial for a moment.

I had a similar thought.

It's very easy for me to agree with the OP though, since despite the documented evidence there's still people who deny it. If WWII hadn't actually happened, I really doubt anyone would believe it was possible.

Re: An Interesting Hypothetical Question

Anonymous — Tue, 9 Jul 2013 09:10:18 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 07/09/2013 13:10

I thought this thread was easing into holocaust denial for a moment.

You have a good point though - I think it's one of those "you can't make this shit up" kind of scenarios. It seems absurd that one figure could affect nearly an entire nation's psyche, but it's helped teach the world that democracy isn't always safe. There's so much deep analysis that can be made as to why the events of WW2 unfolded the way they did that simply wouldn't be found in normal fiction.

Re: An Interesting Hypothetical Question

Anonymous — Tue, 9 Jul 2013 09:10:06 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 07/09/2013 13:10

I guess it depends on what you mean by "believable". I mean, World War II impacted American culture so greatly that it's impossible to imagine the world without it having happened. It's also hard to pin down exactly what is meant by "World War II". If we hypothetically assume the war did not happen, then we would have to hypothetically deny several of the contributing factors to the conflict, which could get really arbitrary.

Maybe I'm being too literal. Either way, I imagine the technological developments you mentioned would have been created sooner or later whether WWII had occurred or not. As for Hitler coming to power, I personally have a hard time imagining Hitler as a real person. He just has this mythic aura surrounding his entire being (not in a good way, obviously). However, I can't say that I'm surprised he came to power. He was incredibly intelligent, and Hindenburg was incredibly old. I imagine that Hindenburg, in his old age, felt powerless to resist the constant pressuring and ultimately felt he had no choice but to instate Hitler as Chancellor. The rest is history.

No, if any aspect of WWII is unbelievable, it's the fact that a man like Hitler existed in the first place.

Re: An Interesting Hypothetical Question

andy_hunter — Tue, 9 Jul 2013 08:53:08 GMT

Author: andy_hunter

Posted: 07/09/2013 12:53

itsit wrote:

I reckon one of the most unbelievable things is that Hitler got away with some of the dumb shit that he did. That and all the appeasements the allies made before the war/

Yeah I forgot about that and then the fact they just let Stalin take half of Europe after the war. It was most insane chapter of human history. Not to mention all how it all started with the First World War which was fought over the most tenuous reasons.

Re: An Interesting Hypothetical Question

alelsupreme — Tue, 9 Jul 2013 08:45:11 GMT

Author: alelsupreme

Posted: 07/09/2013 12:45

I reckon one of the most unbelievable things is that Hitler got away with some of the dumb shit that he did. That and all the appeasements the allies made before the war/

An Interesting Hypothetical Question

andy_hunter — Tue, 9 Jul 2013 08:21:31 GMT

Author: andy_hunter

Posted: 07/09/2013 12:21

Say if World War II never actually happened but someone wrote all the events of the war in a piece of fiction would it be a believable story?

There are a lot of things which would seem very far-fetched if it weren't for the fact they actually happened. Like I find it astonishing that someone as insane as Hitler could come into power, new technology invented during the war (atomic bombs, V-2 rockets) sound like science fiction, kamikaze pilots defied all human instincts and the remarkable comeback of the Allied Forces to win the war seems a little too good to be true. Obviously all these things happened for logical reasons but would an author be able to explain these reasons in a credible way? How would the book be received? And would it be too complex to follow?

I'd be interested to hear what other people think about these questions. Personally I think its too good a story to be believable as fiction. I don't know how I'd feel about the war if it only existed to me in a textbook, the fact that I've met people alive during the war and seen film footage, buildings and memorabilia from the war make it undeniable.