According to Sidney Kirkpatrick in Hitler’s Holy Relics, Nürnburg was bombed to what can only be described as an excessive degree. This has been largely eclipsed by and forgotten due to the Dresden fire-bombings which followed six weeks alter.

Kirkpatrick writes about a G-2 intelligence report that names one particular day when the campaign reached its apogee. On january 2, 1945, the city took more hits from allied bombers than all of Britain had received from German bombers throughout the entire war.

While over 500 British planes took part, this nonetheless seems a hyperbolic suggestion, and one that the Inquisition has been unable to verify. The best suggestions the Inquisition can find are that 90,000 high explosive bombs and 2.5 million incendiaries rained down upon Briatin in the war, making it inconceivable that Nürnburg was pelted with the same number in one day.

It is undeniable that the city did indeed suffer greatly at the hands of allied aerial bombardments. Its medieval core was demolished, several thousands were killed and over a hundred thousand were made homeless.

Aerial attacks were a blunt instrument that invariably killed, and still kill, civilians. Military targets were referred to, but the true intention was submission of the populace and loss of support for the Nazi regime. A worthy aim, but a horrendous, machiavellian approach.

Bibliography
Hitler’s Holy Relics, Sidney Kirkpatrick, Simon & Schuster, 2010
Bozo Sapiens

Law, Liberty and Morality

The preface, written in 1963 by HLA Hart, to his published series of lectures on the meeting of morality and law, describes succinctly the painful process of separating religion and law which we in Ireland are still living with. The process can trace its roots at least as far back as the Enlightenment, but still remains a prickly issue in nearly all countries globally where there is perceived to be a dominant religious orthodoxy. Professor Hart s speaking about British Law.

In the words of the professor:

“The Suicide Act 1961, though it may directly affect the lives of few people, is something of a landmark in our legal history. It is the first Act of Parliament for at least a century to remove altogether the penalties of the criminal law from a practice both clearly condemned by conventional Christian morality and punishable by law. Many hope that the Suicide Act may be followed by further measures of reform and that certain forms of abortion, homosexual behaviour between consenting adults in private, and certain forms of euthanasia will cease to be criminal offences; for they think that here, as in the case of suicide, the misery caused directly and indirectly by legal punishment outweighs any conceivable harm these practices may do. But the fate of the recommendations of the Wolfenden Committee does not encourage the belief that such reforms are likely in the near future. As our history only too clearly shows, it is comparatively easy to make criminal law and exceedingly difficult to unmake it.”

The law itself is not always a moral creature, but Professor Hart goes on to say that given the stick judges will apply a rigorous beating with it, against any wickedness.

In days when we are enacting laws against financial institutions, upholding proscriptions in support of religious beliefs, bringing in tariffs that are enshrined in law and generally upsetting the applecart, we should take heed. These changes will be around for a long time to come.

Bibliography
Law, Liberty and Morality, HLA Hart, Oxford Paperbacks, 1969

The Inquisition has previously discussed grey area military tactics such as false flag attacks. After the Bay of Pigs fiasco, the US tried to curry sympathy in international circles by suffering an apparent attack from an agressor. Operation Northwoods was setup to make the appearance of a Cuban operation against the USA. Dan Lewis recounts the operation’s details at Now I know…

But time, tactics and media awareness had moved on since the Nazi “event” at Gleiwitz; covert ops by Americans against Americans? Sounded crazy, and so it was deemed.

Recently in the news, Silvio Berlusconi’s bunga-bunga parties have caused something of a furore across the various spectra of political media, both here in Europe and abroad. His actions have been seen as unbecoming of a politician, much less a head of state. In this day and age, they probably are.
But anyone hearing about them in an earlier Italy, during the renaissance, that time of a great flowering of learning and creativity, would have had a much less elevated response. In fact they would have sounded fairly boring.
Cesare Borgia was the son of a pope (after the Gregorian reforms), Alexander VI, and was made a bishop at 16, later a cardinal at 18. Cardinals are considered princes of the Catholic Church and among their duties is the election of popes. As a pope, having one with filial obligations supporting you must be reassuring. It is fairly obvious why one of Alexander’s first duties was to elevate his son.
Anyway, Cesare did not like the life of a priest. The Church at the time was a strong, military, sovereign state with the Pope as de facto king. So between them father and son did what any others who felt unbound by duty or expectation would do – they married Cesare off into the French aristocracy, which was a mutually beneficial alliance for both countries. They also granted him lands in Italy, raising his star even further. He became the commander of the Papal Armies and in effect was answerable to nobody – cue a string of murders and the party, described below, that he threw for his father and sister.
Bear in mind that what follows is in official recorded history. In short, these are the bits they did not mind if you heard. It is recorded by Johann Burchard, the Vatican’s Master of Ceremonies from 1483 until his death in 1506.
“On Sunday the last day of October 1501 there took place a supper attended also by fifty honest prostitutes, those who are called courtesans. After supper they danced with the servants and others who were there. They did so clothed at first, later naked. After supper, the lighted candelabra, which had been on the table were placed on the floor and chestnuts placed among them, which the prostitutes had to pick up as they crouched between the candles, crawling. The Pope, the Duke (Cesare) and Lucrezia, his sister were looking on. At the end they displayed prizes; silk mantles, boots, caps and other objects which were promised to whoever could fuck these prostitutes the greatest number of times.”

Bibliography
Johann Burchard, the Vatican’s Master of Ceremonies, and chronicler
Lapham’s Quarterly refers to the party in a modern context
Johann Burchard’s chronicle of Alexander VI’s court
The Borgias, Christopher Hibbert, Constable, 2011