ufo

GermansRGeniuses said:

Hell, they even forgave Von Braun for his Nazism (he took it VERY seriously)

Click to expand...

Uh.... no. He did take his membership in the Nazi party and his officer's status in the SS seriously, yes. But it was because he would probably not have been allowed to continue his work had he not joined the party or the SS.

A para-phrased quote:

"I was officially demanded to join the National Socialist Party. At this time (1937) I was already technical director of the Army Rocket Center at Peenemünde ... My refusal to join the party would have meant that I would have to abandon the work of my life. Therefore, I decided to join. My membership in the party did not involve any political activities ... in Spring 1940, one SS-Standartenführer (SS Colonel) Mueller ... looked me up in my office at Peenemünde and told me, that Reichsführer SS Himmler had sent him with the order to urge me to join the SS. I called immediately on my military superior ... Major-General Dr. Dornbeger. He informed me that ... if I wanted to continue our mutual work, I had no alternative but to join."

The source for this is an unknown webpage. Regrettably I did not always keep track of such things very well. However, these statements are echoed in a number of printed sources, both as quotes from the man himself and from his colleagues.

Werner von Braun was a Nazi only in the sense that he belonged to the party, and nothing more. And despite his association with the SS, he absolutely abhorred that organization.


Fade to Black...

That is what I have read also in different sources on the net, I do not know of the validity of it all though. I can believe it is true, he loved the rocket science and his real dream was to build a space station. He had already drawn up ideas and designs for one. If I recall though they were very far fetched though. I believe that Von Braun even was the directer of NASA for a while.

Von Braun was NASA's chief scientist for some time and was not as unsullied as is thought he was directly responsible for selecting some of the slave labour used at Peenamunda etc.

That I also have heard.