Conscience (n.) in ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠Eichmann would have troubled him only if he had not done what he was ordered — to ship millions to their death with great zeal and meticulous care.

Conscience (n.) in ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠Eichmann's case functioned in the expected way for about four weeks, whereupon it began to function the other way around.

Conscience (n.) was ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠soothed in Eichmann by the simplest fact: he could see no one, no one at all, who was actually against the Final Solution.

Conscience (n.) made ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠Eichmann uncompromising in the last year of the war, not fanaticism — the sad and uncomfortable truth.

Adolf Eichmann (n.) offered ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠'no exceptions' as proof that he had always acted against his inclinations and done his duty — the rigor that damned him in the judges' eyes justified him in his own.

Adolf Eichmann (n.) becomes ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠a symbol, sought in every one of us — and consistency then demands we grant his own plea that he was only a scapegoat for mankind and original sin.

Adolf Eichmann (n.) boasted ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠of good order in killing — if it had to be done, better done in order — and Rumania, where S.S. men intervened against butchery so the killing could be 'civilized,' makes one wonder.

Adolf Eichmann (n.) baffled ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠the prosecution as a mass murderer who never killed — so it kept trying to prove individual murder against a man who probably lacked the guts to kill.

Genocide (n.) is ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠an attack upon human diversity as such — upon a characteristic of the human status without which 'mankind' or 'humanity' would be devoid of meaning.

Genocide (n.) is ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠not murder on a larger scale: state-employed mass murderers must be prosecuted because they violated the order of mankind, not because they killed millions — an altogether different order is broken.

Genocide (n.) appeared ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠to the Jews, thinking in terms of their own history, not as the newest crime but as the oldest crime they remembered — a misunderstanding at the root of all the trial's failures.

Genocide (n.) is ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠better named administrative massacre, which dispels the prejudice that such acts are done only to a foreign race: Hitler began with Germany's 'incurably ill,' and the principle of selection depends only on circumstance.

Judgment (n.) was ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠what saved the few, not old values or religion: they decided each case as it arose, freely, because no rules existed for the unprecedented.

Judgment (n.) he ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠exercised fully as the law asked of Eichmann: he examined each order for its 'manifest' legality, namely regularity, and had no need of conscience, since he knew his country's laws.

Judgment (n.) is ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠what we demanded of the accused: to tell right from wrong with nothing to guide them but their own judgment, completely at odds with the unanimous opinion of all those around them.

Judgment (n.) in ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠these trials was free: judges really passed sentence on the monstrous deeds alone, and only leaned on standards and precedents to justify it.

Antisemitism (n.) explains ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠only the choice of victims, not the nature of the crime: extermination was a crime against humanity perpetrated upon the body of the Jewish people.

Antisemitism (n.) in ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠Italy was unpopular because an anti-Jewish measure 'raised a problem which fortunately did not exist.'

Antisemitism (n.) blinded ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠its own victims once believed eternal and ubiquitous: thinking all Gentiles alike, they could not tell friend from foe.

Antisemitism (n.) keeps ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠its decent Jew: 'eighty million good Germans, each of whom has his decent Jew. It is clear, the others are pigs, but this particular Jew is first-rate.'

A Crime against humanity (n.) is ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠the understatement of the century when translated as a crime against Menschlichkeit, human kindness — as though the Nazis had simply lacked kindness.

A Crime against humanity (n.) differs ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠from 'inhuman acts' undertaken for some known, if criminal, purpose like colonization: its intent and purpose were unprecedented, explicable by no utilitarian aim.

A Crime against humanity (n.) is ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠not an excess in the pursuit of war but a policy of systematic murder independent of war, to be continued in peace — the only crime the tu-quoque argument could not touch.

A Crime against humanity (n.) is ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠a crime against mankind committed on the body of a particular people — not a crime against that people alone.

Deportation (n.) in ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠its first cases was a test case, an experiment in catastrophe: could Jews be made to walk to their doom on their own feet, carrying their own little valises, in the middle of the night — and would the neighbors care?

Deportation (n.) had ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠to be forever: a priest-led government demanded a guarantee that Jews taken by the Germans would stay in the East and never return to Slovakia.

Deportation (n.) looked ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠like this from Berlin in 1943: 'Day in day out the people here leave for their own funeral.'

Deportation (n.) routed ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠each trainload of Jews by absorptive capacity — the bureaucratic measure of the number a killing installation could handle.

Memory (n.) in ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠Eichmann kept only the Jews who had been completely in his power.

Memory (n.) in ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠Eichmann kept the turning points of his own career and every elating sentence, but not the turning points of history or of extermination.

Memory (n.) in ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠Eichmann ran on a separate tape for each story, and the tape proved proof against reason, argument, information, and insight of any kind.

Memory (n.) in ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠Eichmann was a storehouse of human-interest stories of the worst type: of a trip to arrange deportations, he remembered only bowling with a Minister.

A Cliche (n.) is ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠the most reliable of all safeguards against the words and presence of others, and hence against reality as such.

A Cliche (n.) such ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠as 'ghetto mentality,' German collective guilt or Jewish collective innocence makes judgment superfluous, and uttering it is devoid of all risk.

A Cliche (n.) is ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠what any sentence of Eichmann's own became: when he did construct one, he repeated it until it was a cliché.

A Cliche (n.) was ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠Eichmann's horrible gift for consoling himself, and it did not leave him in the hour of his death.

Guilt (n.) is ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠quite gratifying to feel if you haven't done anything wrong — how noble! — whereas admitting real guilt and repenting is hard and depressing.

Guilt (n.) felt ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠without having done anything specific is morally hardly less wrong than feeling free of guilt when one is actually guilty.

Guilt (n.) felt ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠by German youth was to Eichmann a landmark like the first man on the moon — so he offered to hang himself publicly to lift the burden from the innocent young. Empty talk, but elating.

Guilt (n.) and ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠innocence before the law are objective: even if eighty million Germans had done as you did, it would not have excused you.