Neo Nazis

Looking at the news on the TV, William Joseph "B.J." Blaskowicz isn't sure whether he's angry or sad.

It's occurred to him that the two emotions have been intwined for him for decades. Seeing Nazis run the world, doing Nazi things to non-Nazi people? It's liable to make anyone pissed off. But of course, he isn't anyone, or at least that's what most people say. Blaskowicz. Blasko. The Terror Billy. The Liberator. The man with more titles than kills to his name (in fairness, he knows he's got more kills, but who dares to count?) As a veteran of the Second World War, of the Second American Revolution, and what people call the Third World War as the Fourth Reich crumbled, he's in a small, elite club that shrinks by the day.

Maybe that's why this has happened. Maybe, as the 21st century comes to pass, and people already forget the horrors of the Nazi regime, others are free to indulge in a hateful philosophy. Or maybe the philosophy never left at all. That's why he's able to turn on the TV and see reports from Roswell. Of Neo Nazis marching down the street shouting "Jews will not replace us!" As if there's anywhere near enough Jews left in the world for that to happen. As if he, a man with a Jewish mother, and nearing the end of his life, could hope to replace these fine, upstanding Aryans.

It's been said that you can kill a person, but not an idea. Having killed more Nazis than he can count, but failed to kill the ideology that gave rise to them, B.J. is inclined to agree.

It's weird, sitting here, on the couch. Alone. Feeling cold, despite it being the height of summer. It's weird, seeing people in Roswell mourn the destruction of the Oberkommando. That the day he destroyed the joint, and sent the Nazis flying off in their saucers and rockets, should be seen as anything other than a cause for celebration. Yes, there'll be people who'll mourn their passing. Who'll miss being in positions of power, who'll miss a restored era of slavery, of the good ol' days when Jews, coloureds, and queers knew their place, but surely, surely they had to be few and far between, right? Not like this. Not a rally, with people screaming against the wind. With people protesting the taking down of Nazi statues, as part of the country's history. Yes, a few decades of terror, what a wonderful history that was.

Of course, as the newscasters point out, it's not that these new Nazis, these Neo-Nazis, are unopposed. People from all walks of life have come out to protest against them, and thankfully, greatly outnumber them as well. Jews may not have replaced the Neo-Nazis, but good, decent people have as well. If this was the end of it, he'd be willing to turn the TV off and get some lunch. But it isn't. And while both sides aren't moral equivalents, he's noticed something in recent years.

The Fourth Reich crumbled in 1992; the culmination of a struggle that began in 1939, and for people living in Germany, even before that. That's 53 years of global war against a single enemy. Now, over a decade later, he senses that people are itching for the next fight. That people have become so used to living with an enemy, that they'll conjure enemies out of nowhere, to continue The Struggle. Maybe humans need something to strive for. But he's noticed how the term "Nazi" has become an insult for people who most definitely aren't Nazis. He's noticed how the eradication of one strain of ideological purity has given way to another. And while no doubt pain exists in the world, he can't help but remember the words of Nietzsche. Of fighting monsters, lest one become a monster themselves.

So far, nothing he's seen has come close to the horrors of Nazism. He doubts that anything in his lifetime ever will. But blind faith, blind fanaticism...an entire country, an entire world, had to pay the price for that. And people can eat their own.

Maybe he's overreacting. After all, there's Neo Nazis on the street. They're dressed in nothing resembling the bulky armour of the Reich, but are rather normal. Not acting normal, or sounding normal, but looking normal. And that's more terrifying than anything. And for now, he's firmly on the side of those who wants these people off the streets.

But there's always another war. There's a dozen wars going on in the world right now. Wars that he can't fight in, as his body gives way to the touch of time. But if this war is won...

What will the next one be?

A/N

So, something I want to admit - in the time between drabbling this up and actually posting this, certain events have occurred that have given me pause. That said, I have decided to put it up, because in the current context, while Nazis and the alt-right are worse, the regressive left isn't above reproach either. Let's at least be greatful that the world Wolfenstein depicts never came to pass, and that the actual Nazis were defeated in 1945.