Plenty of Nazi scientists and war criminals were given amnesty in the US after the war in exchange for their knowledge.

> Plenty of Nazi scientists and war criminals were given amnesty in the US

Let me remind you that ALL the Allies war criminals were also basically given amnesty everywhere, just because they were victors.

if you think that's fair, well that's your call.

I wasn't justifying it.

I don't think it was right.

You're alluding to the atomic bombings? Sorry, honestly not familiar with this argument.

Torture, rape, mass executions of civilians and prisoners of war, the usual.

The atomic bombings are the most prominent examples, but there were also the horrible. 'conventional' bombings of German cities like Dresden.

And fire bombing of most of Japan, knowing very well that they would torch hundred of thousands of civilians including women and children.

And the ongoing killing of prisoners who surrendered (a US army speciality in the Pacific, no prisoners, just kill them all)

We would be ok with granting amnesty to lower level FARC scientists, but the Hitlers, Eichmanns, Goebbelses, Goerings, Heydrichs, Himmlers, Hoesses and Mengeles of the FARC must see some jail time.

Plenty of high-ranking Nazis had good careers after the war and were not punished. In Germany and everywhere else. Look at Wernher von Braun, the "father of the moon rocket".

> Plenty of high-ranking Nazis had good careers

My point was that plenty (and the majority) of Nazis were killed during the war. You know, the ones who actually fought on the battleground. If we call the regim Nazi Germany and Hitler had more than 90% popularity, then you should assume that most of the fighters were Nazi as well. Which proves my point.

We evan had a nazi soldier become a Pope. But you're right, none of the allies war criminals was punished.

Do you say that Joseph Ratzinger was actually a Nazi, or just that he was a German soldier in Second World War? There's quite some difference.

The German army was just German army, not specifically a "Nazi army" even though the country was lead by Nazis and even though modern click-baiting headlines equate the two.

As far as I know, Ratzinger had nothing to do with National Socialism beyond what was compulsory and unavoidable under pain of death in Nazi Germany (i.e. being drafted).

> The German army was just German army, not specifically a "Nazi army"

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clean_Wehrmacht

German army was not "clean". They were involved in various atrocities. Other armies also were not "clean". But saying that each and every conscript soldier serving in German army was a Nazi is hyperbole. Even if you did not like Nazis, it was perfectly understandable to like their main adversary, the Soviet army, even less, and fight for your homeland.

That's just a poor article. The English Wikipedia in general is a horrible source on anything related to the Nazis.

He was conscripted into the Hitler Youth, which I think was required by law at the time.