Oh yes, for sure. The reason I initially was going to vote the comment down was because I percieved it as casting blame, on children no less.
Even so, the comment is still basically true. Europe of that time was a very different place, where wanting to grow up to be a soldier and go and fight and kill fellow Europeans was a laudable ambition, not just in Germany. It doesn't make the loss of life any less tragic, but it's also important not to over-sentimentalise things because that can blind you to the stark realities.
I think all of Europe learned some valuable lessons from WW2. I hope Japan did too. Overall I'm very proud of my nation's role in history, as a Brit, but we perpetrated enough massacres and precipitated enough famines that it's tinged with a realisation that my heritage carries a fair few obligations with it as well.
Even so, the comment is still basically true. Europe of that time was a very different place, where wanting to grow up to be a soldier and go and fight and kill fellow Europeans was a laudable ambition, not just in Germany. It doesn't make the loss of life any less tragic, but it's also important not to over-sentimentalise things because that can blind you to the stark realities.
I think all of Europe learned some valuable lessons from WW2. I hope Japan did too. Overall I'm very proud of my nation's role in history, as a Brit, but we perpetrated enough massacres and precipitated enough famines that it's tinged with a realisation that my heritage carries a fair few obligations with it as well.