The moral atrocities against Jews by the Nazi’s prior to and during WWII are well documented. But the policies of Hitler and other leaders of the Nazi party were carried out by those who, in other circumstances, would be considered “normal” people. Physicians who had thriving practices where they cared for patients prior to the war, for example, were part of horrific medical experimentation conducted at prison and death camps.
How can something like this happen, where individuals – even “good” people – don’t stand up for what is morally unethical? Was this some type of brain washing? An overnight switch in cultural thinking? A slow slide down a dark pit? Something else? What might you have done to uphold moral integrity as a physician or a hospital administrator during that time? Is there anything happening today, albeit maybe not as drastic, that concerns you?
