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Not sure what point you are trying to make? They brought over Nazi scientists and put them to work on rocketry for NASA.

by serge2k 10y ago

iammyIP 10y ago
What does it mean to be a nazi scientist? I would argue most of these people were pretty a-political and just happy that they got their science projects funded, so they were primarily german scientists that did their rocket science in germany during the nazi era and did not care about much else. That's a big difference to some political people like from gestapo or ss, which soaked up all of the ideology.
- allendoerfer 10y ago
  I hope apolitical people today at least care about world wars and genocide. I don't think those who did care were super-human and while I have no strong feelings about these scientists - particularly because the US did not wait a second to rehabilitate them and use them for its own good - I think everybody from that time has to blamed for not caring, because others were.
- maxxxxx 10y ago
  The rocket guys saw the slave workers that died for their toys. They were not just apolitical.
- bootload 10y ago
  "What does it mean to be a nazi scientist?" The FBI sure did a lot of background investigation on Von Braun. If you read the documents, [0] there is no doubt the FBI and the other agencies recognised Von Braun as a rocket scientist, Nazi party member and an SS Major (non-active & honourary) in the German Army. [1] In 5/16/'61, a further background check was done on Von Braun by the FBI and passed on to the director. There are lots of references to unsavoury connections such as the SS Horseback riding school (33-34), member of MDSAP (39-45) and working in German Army Ordinance (39-45). Met with Hitler twice and awarded the Iron Cross. Despite all this, the records continually note Von Braun to be a person who is 'loyal', 'discrete' and of high 'integrity'. Von Braun was moved to the US under protective custody in '45 and as long as he kept his nose out of any political activity and wasn't a communist, he and his team was deemed useful to the US Missile and Space agencies. So yes, Von Braun was an opportunist at best, and a Nazi and a scientist. Here's a re-union of his Peenemunde team at Marshall Space Flight Center in '87. [2] [0] https://vault.fbi.gov/Wernher%20VonBraun/ https://vault.fbi.gov/Wernher%20VonBraun/ [1] https://vault.fbi.gov/Wernher%20VonBraun/Wernher%20VonBraun%20Part%202%20of%207/view https://vault.fbi.gov/Wernher%20VonBraun/Wernher%20VonBraun%... [2] https://archive.org/details/MSFC-8774200 https://archive.org/details/MSFC-8774200
- mcguire 10y ago
  Technically, Werner von Braun was an SS Sturmbannführer, and while he does seem to have been more or less apolitical, he also seems to have been happy to use concentration camp labor to build V2s.
mcguire 10y ago
Well, technically, they put the scientists to work for Army Missile Command. (The Von Braun building on Redstone Arsenal is Army, not part of the Marshall Space Flight Ctr.) After the NRL's Vanguard blew up, Von Braun &co used their Jupiter platform to put the US response to Sputnik in orbit---it was a weapons platform originally intended to be a ballistic missile platform. They went to work for NASA later.

Not sure what point you are trying to make? They brought over Nazi scientists and put them to work on rocketry for NASA.

by serge2k 10y ago

Not sure what point you are trying to make? They brought over Nazi scientists and put them to work on rocketry for NASA.

iammyIP 10y ago

What does it mean to be a nazi scientist? I would argue most of these people were pretty a-political and just happy that they got their science projects funded, so they were primarily german scientists that did their rocket science in germany during the nazi era and did not care about much else. That's a big difference to some political people like from gestapo or ss, which soaked up all of the ideology.

allendoerfer 10y ago
I hope apolitical people today at least care about world wars and genocide. I don't think those who did care were super-human and while I have no strong feelings about these scientists - particularly because the US did not wait a second to rehabilitate them and use them for its own good - I think everybody from that time has to blamed for not caring, because others were.
maxxxxx 10y ago
The rocket guys saw the slave workers that died for their toys. They were not just apolitical.
bootload 10y ago
"What does it mean to be a nazi scientist?" The FBI sure did a lot of background investigation on Von Braun. If you read the documents, [0] there is no doubt the FBI and the other agencies recognised Von Braun as a rocket scientist, Nazi party member and an SS Major (non-active & honourary) in the German Army. [1] In 5/16/'61, a further background check was done on Von Braun by the FBI and passed on to the director. There are lots of references to unsavoury connections such as the SS Horseback riding school (33-34), member of MDSAP (39-45) and working in German Army Ordinance (39-45). Met with Hitler twice and awarded the Iron Cross. Despite all this, the records continually note Von Braun to be a person who is 'loyal', 'discrete' and of high 'integrity'. Von Braun was moved to the US under protective custody in '45 and as long as he kept his nose out of any political activity and wasn't a communist, he and his team was deemed useful to the US Missile and Space agencies. So yes, Von Braun was an opportunist at best, and a Nazi and a scientist. Here's a re-union of his Peenemunde team at Marshall Space Flight Center in '87. [2] [0] https://vault.fbi.gov/Wernher%20VonBraun/ https://vault.fbi.gov/Wernher%20VonBraun/ [1] https://vault.fbi.gov/Wernher%20VonBraun/Wernher%20VonBraun%20Part%202%20of%207/view https://vault.fbi.gov/Wernher%20VonBraun/Wernher%20VonBraun%... [2] https://archive.org/details/MSFC-8774200 https://archive.org/details/MSFC-8774200
mcguire 10y ago
Technically, Werner von Braun was an SS Sturmbannführer, and while he does seem to have been more or less apolitical, he also seems to have been happy to use concentration camp labor to build V2s.

mcguire 10y ago

Well, technically, they put the scientists to work for Army Missile Command. (The Von Braun building on Redstone Arsenal is Army, not part of the Marshall Space Flight Ctr.) After the NRL's Vanguard blew up, Von Braun &co used their Jupiter platform to put the US response to Sputnik in orbit---it was a weapons platform originally intended to be a ballistic missile platform. They went to work for NASA later.