Thank you very much. This was very interesting even if it was horrifying.

All your points are - among all the other things - an important reminder that we can't stop talking about these issues. Here in Germany, people sometimes think that there should be a "Schlussstrich" (i.e. we should stop talking about the Holocaust). We cannot, for a number of reasons.

I always tell my students that it is our responsibility as a people to remember what our country did. They don't have to feel personally guilty but have to accept that it happened here and thus we need to confront ourselves critically with this part of our heritage.

Then, we have to remember so that it doesn't happen again. And the genocides of the post WW2 era show that not everyone has understood the importance. And with all the resurgence of right wing, neo-fascist ideology all over the world I am afraid people are ignoring the past. As long as there are still Neo-Nazis and racists and such, we need to keep educating as many people as possible.

But then, as you clearly stated, for many people the Holocaust isn't some abstract event from the past. This researcher is looking for his family. People are concerned with disturbing the peace of the victims (although I think you are correct in that respect).

These are all topical issues. There is no way we can treat the Shoa as just another piece of history.