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This is the "UfA Tonwoche" newsreel, issue 468, aired on 23 August, 1939.

One week later, Germany launched the Poland offensive.

Translated by yours truly. My farewell gift to Voat, and housewarming gift to Poal.

EDIT: Updated links with numerous typo fixes and small edits. Download again if you grabbed them before.

  • Short version:
  • Full version:

The short version is just the good stuff. The full version is the entire newsreel and has a few minutes of random segments before the good stuff. A curious glimpse of history. The WEBM versions have the subtitles baked in and are a bit more compressed. The MKV versions have embedded soft subtitles, so they can be turned on and off, and the video and audio didn't need to be re-encoded and are the best quality I could find. You'll probably need to download the mkv version to view it.

To my knowledge this has never been available in English to the general public. Not before the war, not during, and not after. Not until now.

Why did Germany invade Poland?

A question that often comes up when discussing WW2. Even in places like this, people rarely know or have good answers. Even more rare than answers are sources. As with any war, the victors put a lot of effort into burying and discrediting any just cause their enemy might have had.

This video lays out the German perspective, the situation they were in, the history that led up to it, and why they had to act.

It explains how the territories in question, which Germany "invaded", were still part of Germany merely 20 years prior, before the Treaty of Versailles of 1919, and had been German for hundreds of years before that. It shows that Germans still lived on that land, and spoke German, and wanted to be German, and to be part of Germany. They had no interest in being Polish. They were just told one day that they must be. It shows German refugees fleeing those regions, their own homeland, that their ancestors had lived on for hundreds of years, because of the hunger and poverty and violence they suffered under Polish rule. Many of them testify that they are forbidden from teaching their children German, their own language, or sending them to German schools. Those who disobey are imprisoned or sent to Russia.

Is it all just Nazi propaganda and lies? Maybe. I can only show it to you. It's up to you to decide what's true.

But ask yourself: Why has nobody shown this to you before? Why was it hidden away? Why would sharing this in Germany likely land you in a cell next to Mrs Haverbeck?

PS: No hard feelings for any Poles or Brits here. If you're reading this, you probably weren't around back then. And, bear in mind, they didn't have internet or places like this. If you never saw anything like this until today, imagine how hopelessly clamped down and controlled the information available to the average Pole or Brit was at the time. They had no chance to see the other side of things. That's how they were able to pit us against each other. Let's not let that happen again.

PPS: I don't plan to share this anywhere else. So, if you want more people to know about this, then that is up to you.

It is not enough to merely believe. If you want to change the world, then you must be willing to act.

This is the "UfA Tonwoche" newsreel, issue 468, aired on 23 August, 1939. One week later, Germany launched the Poland offensive. Translated by yours truly. My farewell gift to Voat, and housewarming gift to Poal. **EDIT: Updated links with numerous typo fixes and small edits. Download again if you grabbed them before.** - Short version: [WEBM](https://files.catbox.moe/gtcodq.webm) [MKV](https://files.catbox.moe/7g05gl.mkv) - Full version: [WEBM](https://files.catbox.moe/beapbu.webm) [MKV](https://files.catbox.moe/yt9vo5.mkv) The short version is just the good stuff. The full version is the entire newsreel and has a few minutes of random segments before the good stuff. A curious glimpse of history. The WEBM versions have the subtitles baked in and are a bit more compressed. The MKV versions have embedded soft subtitles, so they can be turned on and off, and the video and audio didn't need to be re-encoded and are the best quality I could find. You'll probably need to download the mkv version to view it. ------------- To my knowledge this has never been available in English to the general public. Not before the war, not during, and not after. Not until now. > Why did Germany invade Poland? A question that often comes up when discussing WW2. Even in places like this, people rarely know or have good answers. Even more rare than answers are sources. As with any war, the victors put a lot of effort into burying and discrediting any just cause their enemy might have had. ------------- This video lays out the German perspective, the situation they were in, the history that led up to it, and why they had to act. It explains how the territories in question, which Germany "invaded", were still part of Germany merely 20 years prior, before the Treaty of Versailles of 1919, and had been German for hundreds of years before that. It shows that Germans still lived on that land, and spoke German, and wanted to be German, and to be part of Germany. They had no interest in being Polish. They were just told one day that they must be. It shows German refugees fleeing those regions, their own homeland, that their ancestors had lived on for hundreds of years, because of the hunger and poverty and violence they suffered under Polish rule. Many of them testify that they are forbidden from teaching their children German, their own language, or sending them to German schools. Those who disobey are imprisoned or sent to Russia. ------------- Is it all just Nazi propaganda and lies? Maybe. I can only show it to you. It's up to you to decide what's true. But ask yourself: Why has nobody shown this to you before? Why was it hidden away? Why would sharing this in Germany likely land you in a cell next to Mrs Haverbeck? ------------- PS: No hard feelings for any Poles or Brits here. If you're reading this, you probably weren't around back then. And, bear in mind, they didn't have internet or places like this. If you never saw anything like this until today, imagine how hopelessly clamped down and controlled the information available to the average Pole or Brit was at the time. They had no chance to see the other side of things. That's how they were able to pit us against each other. Let's not let that happen again. PPS: I don't plan to share this anywhere else. So, if you want more people to know about this, then **that** is up to **you**. ## It is not enough to merely believe. If you want to change the world, then you must be willing to act.

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[–] • 1 pt

For a contemporary analogy, consider this alternate timeline:

  • In 1999, towards the end of his term, Bill Clinton hands over Texas and Oklahoma to Mexico "for diversity" or whatever
  • Overnight, Americans living in Texas and Oklahoma are told they now live in and are subjects of Mexico
  • Their citizenship is annulled, they are now Mexicans instead and cannot leave or visit family without a visa
  • Obviously, actual Mexicans immediately flood in and take over the region, declaring it is now theirs
  • They behave towards the (former) Americans as you can well imagine
  • Over the next two decades conditions for Americans in that region worsen drastically
  • Food shortages and violence become more and more common
  • They are forbidden from teaching their children English
  • They must only speak Spanish, or else the parents get thrown in jail or worse
  • By 2018, former Americans begin fleeing into Kansas and Louisiana as refugees
  • They are sick and miserable, many of them look half-starved
  • They tell horror stories of abuse, watching loved ones being murdered, torn to pieces, fed to dogs by cartels
  • Trump attempts to negotiate with Mexico, but they are standoffish
  • Trudeau in Canada encourages all this, telling Mexico he's got their back (he doesn't)
  • In 2019, all diplomacy having been rejected, Trump orders US troops to march into Texas and Oklahoma to protect Americans there
  • The Media calls this "Trump invades Mexico" and condemns it
  • Canada declares war but doesn't help Mexico. Eventually gets Europe and China to join in to attack from all sides.
  • Israel profits

How would you feel about all this? How would you feel if you were stuck in Texas or OklahomaMexico? How would you feel if members of your family were stuck there, and you on the other side?