On August 31, 1939, groups of SS officers staged “attacks” on several German border outposts. Near a radio station near the village of Gleiwitz (modern day Gliwice, in Polish Silesia), a group of operators “captured” the station and broadcast militant Polish propaganda, and then dumped a group of recently-executed prisoners, dressed in Polish uniforms, around the station and other border outposts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The bodies, and the attacks, were “false flag” photo ops designed to let the Germans claim to the world press that the invasion of Poland – which occurred hours later<\/a>, and which started the European phase of the largest, bloodiest conflagration in human history – was provoked by Poland. It was patent balderdash, but within Nazi German is was pretty much gospel. <\/p>\n\n\n\n “Poland provoked us!”<\/p>\n\n\n\n It’s a situation familiar to anyone who’s dealt with domestic abuse; the abuser never <\/em>believes it’s their fault. <\/p>\n\n\n\n So “Big Left” wanted violence. They welcomed<\/a> it. They begged for it in as many words, over and over:<\/p>\n\n\n\n