6 ms·

I'm not sure why being reminded of the horrors of the past would make you feel guilty.

by robert_foss 4y ago

hans1729 4y ago
"Why does confrontation with horror make you feel uneasy?" ...
- tokai 4y ago
  guilty != uneasy Don't argue like that. It is very disingenuous.
  - synu 4y ago
    As a meta comment, this sort of verbal judo to put words in peoples mouths is really becoming common. Whenever I see a comment start with something like “It sounds like you are saying” I know I’m in for a wild ride.
- kome 4y ago
  ok, but so what? sometimes memory has to be painful, it means it feels real, alive. public spaces are naturally a container of public memory, traumas, joy etc. it makes me feel connected with the history of the place, i don't see it as an "affront". And affront to whom??
fnordpiglet 4y ago
Survivors guilt can be severely debilitating for some people. I can also see folks who are severely depressed, bipolar, or other conditions that involve irrationally strong responses to negative stimulus would be impacted by a constant reminder of horror. I think I agree with the author here - I don’t know I would appreciate my home being marked as the site of an atrocity. Our homes are for the living and the future. It’s good to be aware, and I’m not diminishing the tragedy or the need to keep the memory of it alive to prevent it happening again and to remember the victims. But it feels an awful lot like turning your community into a cemetery, instead of having a cemetery for your community.
- nlitened 4y ago
  Read enough twitter threads, and you find people for whom eating morning cereal can be severely debilitating. In my opinion, people are able to learn to deal with uncomfortable things in their lives.
Freak_NL 4y ago
There have been a few cases in the media; though not necessarily focused on feelings of guilt. One couple in Amsterdam¹ lost their child and suffered a strong emotional response whenever people outside would gawk at their house with a solemn look after encountering the Stolperstein placed in the pavement there (they were branded neo-Nazis on social media for daring to speak out). 1: https://www.volkskrant.nl/nieuws-achtergrond/echtpaar-staakt-juridische-strijd-tegen-gedenksteen-holocaustslachtoffer~ba133a48/ https://www.volkskrant.nl/nieuws-achtergrond/echtpaar-staakt...
amelius 4y ago
You are living in a home that would otherwise perhaps still be occupied by the people (or their families) that were taken away.
- wongarsu 4y ago
  The average German moves house 6 times in their life. Unless it's a rural village it's very unlikely they would still live there. And now, 77 years after the war, most of them would have died of old age. Of course guilt doesn't have to be rational.
dislikedtom 4y ago
this guilt aspect is quite weird for me. Surely we younglings that have NOTHING to do with this, won't have to feel guilty.

I'm not sure why being reminded of the horrors of the past would make you feel guilty.

hans1729 4y ago

"Why does confrontation with horror make you feel uneasy?" ...

tokai 4y ago
guilty != uneasy Don't argue like that. It is very disingenuous.
- synu 4y ago
  As a meta comment, this sort of verbal judo to put words in peoples mouths is really becoming common. Whenever I see a comment start with something like “It sounds like you are saying” I know I’m in for a wild ride.
kome 4y ago
ok, but so what? sometimes memory has to be painful, it means it feels real, alive. public spaces are naturally a container of public memory, traumas, joy etc. it makes me feel connected with the history of the place, i don't see it as an "affront". And affront to whom??

fnordpiglet 4y ago

Survivors guilt can be severely debilitating for some people. I can also see folks who are severely depressed, bipolar, or other conditions that involve irrationally strong responses to negative stimulus would be impacted by a constant reminder of horror. I think I agree with the author here - I don’t know I would appreciate my home being marked as the site of an atrocity. Our homes are for the living and the future. It’s good to be aware, and I’m not diminishing the tragedy or the need to keep the memory of it alive to prevent it happening again and to remember the victims. But it feels an awful lot like turning your community into a cemetery, instead of having a cemetery for your community.

nlitened 4y ago
Read enough twitter threads, and you find people for whom eating morning cereal can be severely debilitating. In my opinion, people are able to learn to deal with uncomfortable things in their lives.

Freak_NL 4y ago

There have been a few cases in the media; though not necessarily focused on feelings of guilt. One couple in Amsterdam¹ lost their child and suffered a strong emotional response whenever people outside would gawk at their house with a solemn look after encountering the Stolperstein placed in the pavement there (they were branded neo-Nazis on social media for daring to speak out). 1: https://www.volkskrant.nl/nieuws-achtergrond/echtpaar-staakt-juridische-strijd-tegen-gedenksteen-holocaustslachtoffer~ba133a48/ https://www.volkskrant.nl/nieuws-achtergrond/echtpaar-staakt...

amelius 4y ago

You are living in a home that would otherwise perhaps still be occupied by the people (or their families) that were taken away.

wongarsu 4y ago
The average German moves house 6 times in their life. Unless it's a rural village it's very unlikely they would still live there. And now, 77 years after the war, most of them would have died of old age. Of course guilt doesn't have to be rational.

dislikedtom 4y ago

this guilt aspect is quite weird for me. Surely we younglings that have NOTHING to do with this, won't have to feel guilty.