September 20, 2005

Simon Wiesenthal 1908 - 2005

Simon Wiesenthal died today. I have the deepest repect for the man and consider him the embodyment of all that is right when fighting evil.

Here's what dictated his life focus: at 33 Wiesenthal was taken from his home in Galicia, in what is now Ukraine, and put in a concentration camp. Later, he and his wife were thrown in a forced-labor camp. The Nazis killed 89 members of their families. Wiesenthal could name every one of the dead. Wiesenthal escaped from a camp, only to be caught and sent back. Twice in that dark time, Wiesenthal tried to end his own life. After almost four years in Nazi captivity, he was liberated by American soldiers in May 1945. He weighed 97 pounds. died in Vienna, Austria on Sept. 20, 2005. He was 96.

When asked why he spent his life hunting nazis, Wiesenthal said: "I am not a practising Jew. But I do believe."
Rest in peace.