BEN CARSON IS OUT OF HIS EVER LOVING MIND

Dr. Carson believes that if Germany’s Jews had only been armed, they could have prevented the Holocaust

Everyone laughs at Vice President Joe Biden’s gaffes. Well, Ben Carson has made a few gaffes himself on the presidential campaign trail. In the latest one he blew his cork.

While discussing his gun views on CNN Thursday, Carson was asked, “But just to clarify, if there had been no gun control laws in Europe at that time, would 6 million Jews have been slaughtered?” Carson answered:

“I think the likelihood of Hitler being able to accomplish his goals [of exterminating the Jews] would have been greatly diminished if the people [Jews] had been armed. I’m telling you there is a reason these dictatorial people take guns first.”

That was about as ridiculous a statement one could have made. There’s no way armed Jews could have prevented the Holocaust. I think I know a little more about Nazi Germany and the Holocaust than Dr. Carson does.

When Hitler came to power in 1933 there were some 533,000 Jews living in Germany. By 1939, before the start of the Holocaust, about 304,000 Jews had left Germany in order to escape the persecution by the Nazis. My parents and I left in 1936. How can anyone in their right mind even fathom that 218,000 Jewish men, women and children armed with handguns and hunting rifles could have fought off the armed forces of the Nazis?

Let’s take a look at what happened when armed Jews resisted German efforts to transport Polish Jews to Nazi death camps. On the 19th of April, 1943, armed Jews in the Warsaw ghetto began an uprising against the SS police which had been removing Jews from the ghetto for shipment to the death camps. The Jews were armed with revolvers, rifles, light machine guns and hand grenades. At first the Jewish fighters were able to stop the German SS police units, but when the Germans called in the Waffen SS, it took only a few days put down the revolt which ended on the 16 th of May with 13,000 Jewish fighters killed. And how many Germans were killed during the month long uprising? About 20.

Carson’s argument reminds me of the ridiculous claims made by many pro-gunners that the only reason Japan did not invade the U.S. after Pearl Harbor is because the Japanese High Command knew that American citizens were armed. The truth is that logistically it was impossible for Japanese ground forces to invade our shores. Their army was tied up in China and Southeast Asia. Even had they had the manpower to invade us, they would not have been able to adequately supply such an operation. And that is why Japan did not invade the U.S. Our armed citizenry had nothing to do with it.

As for Hitler disarming the German people, Carson got that all wrong too. Actually strict gun controls were put into effect well before Hitler came to power. The truth is that in 1938 Hitler completely deregulated the acquisition and transfer of rifles and shotguns, as well as ammunition, and the legal age of purchase was lowered from 20 to 18. However, Jews were banned from possessing firearms.

I suggest that Dr. Carson return to doing what he is really good at, neurosurgery. Presidential material he just ain’t!