1945 And All That

Why do we teach so much more of the history of Nazi Germany in Britain than they do in Germany?

Well, in Germany, they are lucky enough to be able to teach their own subsequent history of the germination, growth and florescence of Christian Democracy and Social Democracy, successfully combining high employment with low inflation, a strong financial sector with a strong manufacturing base and with the strong democratic accountability of both, a leading role on the world stage with a powerful commitment to peace and with a complete absence of weapons of mass destruction, academic excellence with technical proficiency, superb public transport infrastructure with personal freedom and close-knit rural communities, visible and effective policing with civil liberty, and very high levels of productivity with the robust protection of workers, consumers, communities and the environment.

Why should this be impossible in and for Britain, when the reverse is so very obviously more than possible? When do we get to resume ours, interrupted all the way back in 1979? In 2015, with any luck. Seventy years after victory over the Third Reich, and a complete generation after victory over the Soviet Union. In the meantime, what was either of those struggles really for? Why did we bother?