These resources were implemented between 1995 and 2000 at Xavier Marmier High in Pontarlier. Needless to say, some are now obsolete.
Bernard Moro,
angliciste, Lycée Xavier-Marmier
| Culture d'établissement Cela fait une dizaine d'années qu'à Xavier-Marmier s'est développée une culture spécifique de l'informatique en langues, grâce à la compréhension du proviseur, Noël Andréani, et des deux intendants qui se sont succédés, Jean-Pierre Pertuy et Gérard Malfroy. Rappelons la configuration commune aux salles d'anglais (et à une salle d'allemand), devenue chez nous une tradition : téléviseur et magnétoscope, chariot mobile équipé d'un ordinateur, rétro-projecteur et plaque de rétro-projection. Ce matériel informatique sert pour le professeur, en utilisation de base, à projeter en grand écran un logiciel d'aide à l'expression développé ici et commercialisé aux Editions Didier. En utilisation plus élaborée (avec une plate-forme Multimédia et une plaque couleur), la configuration permet au professeur d'avoir accès en temps réel, avec les élèves, aux encyclopédies Microsoft Bookshelf et Encarta, de se servir du traitement de texte WORD –tableau électronique, aide à l'écriture, organisation de la prise de notes en mode plan– et d'applications hypermédia que j'ai conçues pour répondre à des besoins pédagogiques précis : lecture de la page de presse, lecture de l'image, stratégies de traduction, de lecture littéraire, etc. Dans ma salle la configuration est active en permanence. Avec une telle infrastructure il était logique de se préoccuper des potentialités pédagogiques de l'Internet, et notamment d'installer une ligne téléphonique et un modem sur l'ordinateur. C'est pourquoi en septembre 1995 j'ai déposé un projet dans ce sens auprès de la direction de Xavier-Marmier, avec un accueil tout à fait favorable. Une classe de terminale ES anglais renforcé a été le premier groupe ciblé pour l'expérimentation. Nous travaillons fréquemment avec du document CNN en semi-direct (c'est-à-dire enregistré mais exploité comme du direct). On expose les élèves à un sujet souvent bref, que l'on traite en quelques minutes avant de reprendre le fil habituel du cours. Il s'agit d'une petite dose d'anglais pur injectée régulièrement pour créer une accoutumance dans le meilleur sens du terme. Le document CNN a cependant un défaut majeur : c'est une information fugace, atomisée, souvent décontextualisée et finalement vidée de sens. Le contact avec l'Internet permet de recontextualiser cette information, de mener une réflexion qui permet de lui donner du sens et de la transformer en connaissance valide pour les élèves, c'est-à-dire susceptible d'être retenue et utilisée dans d'autres contextes.
Question provocatrice Par exemple, nous avons eu la chance de traiter avec ma classe une interview de Stephen Spielberg qui expliquait son projet Shoah. Shoah (catastrophe en hébreu) consiste dans la réalisation et la collecte d'interviews vidéo de survivants de l'holocauste dans le monde entier. Le but est de constituer une bibliothèque de documents authentiques et inattaquables qui montre une fois pour toutes la vacuité des thèses révisionnistes. Une fois exploité et compris ce document, j'ai proposé à mes élèves que nous allions voir le lendemain sur le forum CNN de Compuserve ce qui se disait sur ce thème. Un forum est un lieu virtuel où les usagers échangent leurs points de vue sur tel ou tel sujet, d'actualité ou autre. De message en message on parcourt ainsi toutes les réactions, tous les angles de vue possibles sur le sujet en question, et le plus souvent dans un anglais authentique. Mais je n'étais pas sûr de trouver un "conversation thread" –un fil de conversation– sur le projet Shoah. Il fallait donc que j'amorce la pompe en quelque sorte, en me rendant le soir même seul sur ce forum pour y déposer une question légèrement provocatrice : y a-t-il tant de gens que cela aux Etats-Unis qui soutiennent les thèses révisionnistes ? (cf. Annexe, message 1).
Connexion collective Le lendemain nous nous sommes connectés (toute la classe suivait l'opération sur grand écran), nous sommes allés au forum CNN, et avons parcouru ensemble la liste des sujets, puis opté pour une recherche par mot-clé, avec le mot "Spielberg". Mon message –sans intérêt en soi– avait effectivement engendré toute une kyrielle de réponses, lesquelles se faisaient écho les unes aux autres de manière associative, ayant oublié le stimulus initial. J'ai marqué cette série qui s'est chargée sur mon disque dur avant déconnexion. Le temps d'occupation de la ligne n'avait pas excédé deux minutes. Nous avons entrepris de parcourir les messages successifs sur le thème. Je les ai transférés sur WORD pour les rendre plus faciles à lire. Certains posaient de sérieux problèmes de compréhension, liés à des allusions culturelles que j'étais moi-même incapable de décoder (notamment un message où il était question des Protocoles des Sages de Sion, cf. Annexe, n°6).
Ecriture de messages Après des recherches vaines sur Bookshelf, notre curiosité était piquée, et j'ai suggéré aux élèves de rédiger des messages destinés nommément aux signataires des diverses réponses, afin de leur demander des explications. Or les écrits du Net ont ceci du particulier qu'ils obéissent à des conventions d'écriture qui en facilitent grandement l'accès. On doit citer le message auquel on répond. La brieveté est de mise, et l'on excède rarement une centaine de mots. Ce sont donc des corpus faciles à lire pour des élèves un peu entraînés, même en seconde. Aussi, ils en perçoivent très vite les règles, et les transfèrent à leur propre écriture. Ils s'approprient également aisément les structures caractéristiques de la langue polémique (cf. productions élèves, à partir du message n°13.) Le soir même je postais un avis général sur le forum, expliquant que j'y lâchais mes élèves et que l'on veuille bien être gentil avec eux. Puis j'ai expédié l'ensemble de leurs messages, fautes comprises. Temps de connexion : deux minutes.
Réponses de L'internet La semaine suivante en cours, nous sommes allés ensemble ouvrir ma boîte aux lettres, où les divers destinataires étaient censés répondre à mes élèves. Une bonne demi-douzaine d'entre eux avaient des réponses nominales à leurs questions! (Cf. Annexe, n°20 et suivants) Leur joie de lire leurs messages de l'Internet faisait plaisir à voir. Temps de récupération des documents : une minute. Là encore j'ai transféré les contenus sur WORD, et à l'heure suivante les réponses étaient imprimées pour une lecture individuelle, ce qui a permis une réflexion affinée sur l'ensemble.
Autres scénarios possibles Lors d'une autre expérience à propos d'un sujet CNN sur le crash d'un avion dans les Everglades, nous avons suivi la même démarche initiale, à ceci près que le forum était déjà très chargé, sans qu'il soit besoin de provoquer des réponses. Nous ne sommes pas intervenus sur le forum, mais après lecture des différents messages, nous sommes sortis de Compuserve pour nous rendre ensemble sur la page CNN du Web qui traitait du sujet. En effet, CNN assure la maintenance et la mise à jour permanente de pages d'informations multimédia sur le Web, téléchargeables en quelques secondes. Ces pages sont intéressantes parce qu'elles sont largement visuelles, on y trouve des gros titres qui font écho à ce que les élèves ont entendu sur le programme satellitaire CNN, des images, et aussi du son. Nous avons ainsi importé un document dans lequel un homme-grenouille expliquait comment il avait trouvé la boîte noire de l'avion dans la boue. Dans la mesure où le texte sur la page reprend partiellement le contenu du document sonore, et visualise le lexique le plus difficile à identifier, il y a là une aide naturelle à l'écoute tout à fait précieuse, et ceux des élèves qui avaient mal compris le document CNN pur et dur ont mieux compris la version Web de cette information. A cette rentrée 96, j'explorais chez moi, à l'aide du navigateur Netscape, le site CNN consacré aux bruits de botte iraquiens. Par hasard j'y ai découvert le discours prononcé par Saddam Hussein le 3 septembre. Je l'ai immédiatement importé avec l'intention de l'exploiter avec ma classe de Terminale ES, anglais renforcé. La lecture de ce document et le commentaire qui a suivi ont été passionnants. D'abord le discours est très métaphorique, les pilotes sont des "faucons", les soldats de Hussein "la prunelle de ses yeux", etc. Les références à Dieu sont tellement nombreuses que des élèves ont abouti à la réflexion qu'il s'agissait d'une manipulation par Hussein de la fibre musulmane et croyante de son peuple. Mais une jeune beurette de la classe est intervenue pour affirmer que dans sa langue maternelle, les métaphores de ce genre, et encore davantage les références à Dieu, sont monnaie courante. Elle ne l'a pas dit dans ces termes, mais à l'évidence c'était ce qu'elle voulait dire, cette phraséologie dans le discours de Hussein était plus culturelle que manipulatrice. Mon rôle d'enseignant a été alors de faire en sorte que de formulation en formulation, l'ensemble du groupe-classe prenne conscience de, et verbalise, cette dimension culturelle. Mon rôle de modérateur, a été ensuite de souligner –en anglais évidemment– que notre premier réflexe occidental de distance devait être tempéré par l'aperçu de culture maghrébine apporté par leur camarade, et que comme souvent nous devions chercher la vérité quelque part entre ces deux pôles. Mais j'étais gêné d'avoir offert une vision des choses qui aurait été unilatérale sans l'intervention de la petite beurette. C'est pourquoi le soir même en re-explorant le même site j'ai cherché –et trouvé– le discours homologue de Clinton, que j'ai offert le lendemain à la réflexion de la classe. Ce qui a dès l'abord surpris les élèves, c'est la référence à Dieu, encore, à la fin du discours de Clinton. On ne pouvait plus ironiser sur l'un plus que sur l'autre. Ensuite je leur ai proposé de faire un "scanning lexical" sur le texte. J'ai lancé une macro-instruction de Word, –petit programme qui permet entre autres de lister et de compter en quelques secondes les occurrences des mots d'un corpus– et nous avons traité l'information brute, c'est-à-dire que ce sont eux qui ont défini qu'il y avait trois catégories lexicales de mots pertinents à dénombrer. Puis ils ont eux-mêmes, oralement, réagi aux résultats de ce travail statistique, faisant observer :
Dans toute cette phase je n'ai eu à intervenir qu'en termes de langue, pour veiller à ce que les énoncés soient corrects et intelligibles. Le raisonnement s'enchaînait d'une réaction à une autre.
Le Net et le Business J'avais cru pouvoir utiliser le Net au profit de mes classes de BTS autrement qu'en tant que source documentaire, en particulier pour la recherche de stages. Erreur. Le Net est saturé d'annonces et requêtes publicitaires en tous genres, et nous n'avons jamais reçu de réponse aux demandes de stages déposées sur des forums d'entreprise. Cela n'est pas surprenant : sur une moyenne d'une douzaine de messages reçus chaque jour dans ma boîte aux lettres, au moins dix sont des sollicitations commerciales que je jette sans les lire.
Modes de communication A regarder le document n°20 en annexe, (le florilège de messages d'élèves) qui n'a reçu aucune réponse malgré la qualité et la richesse de son contenu, on comprend mon erreur : j'ai voulu réunir trop d'éléments sous un seul corpus. L'ensemble est trop long, il disperse le sujet au lieu de le focaliser. Les usagers du Net sont des gens pressés, et comme on peut voir quelle est la taille d'un message avant de le télécharger, il est très vraisemblable que personne n'a pris la peine d'ouvrir un document de cette taille. Il y a donc des règles implicites à respecter :
Au cours de ces expériences, que s'est-il passé en définitive sur le plan de la pédagogie de la langue ?
Une démarche traditionnelle Les différentes phases sont les suivantes :
Cela revient à un va-et-vient classique où se succèdent prise d'information / réflexion / production des élèves, le tout dans la langue-cible.
Une communication authentique Cependant à regarder de près les messages du forum en annexe –ceux des usagers et ceux qu'ont rédigé les élèves– on mesure qu'il n'y a pas eu seulement mise en oeuvre de compétence de lecture, mais aussi appropriation du lexique pendant la lecture des messages en anglais authentique. Les élèves ont ainsi visiblement transféré le vocabulaire technique, mais aussi les structures de demandes d'explication, de partage d'indignation. Pour certains des élèves, nous n'avions jamais vu, et nous n'avonsi pas vu par la suite, une telle qualité d'écriture. Tout porte à croire que c'est l'environnement de communication authentique qui a induit chez eux une envie de se surpasser pour être compris, pour provoquer une réponse des usagers du forum. Au-delà des compétences classiques d'écriture et de lecture, cette expérience mettait en oeuvre un vrai questionnement intellectuel, une rencontre avec une autre culture dans le cadre d'une communication réaliste, personnelle, mais non angoissante puisqu'on avait le temps de lire et d'écrire. En revanche il s'agit à l'évidence d'une situation où l'enseignant lui-même part à la rencontre de l'imprévisible (comme avec CNN en direct) et doit accepter devant ses élèves de ne pas tout comprendre ni tout savoir, et, comme eux, de poser des questions pour demander son chemin dans l'autre culture. Usager de CNN, j'avais anticipé ces conditions, mes élèves savent que mon savoir est limité, et j'avais sans état d'âme la joie de partager leur questionnement et leurs surprises. Les apprenants ont toujours beaucoup d'indulgence pour l'enseignant qui se jette dans le même bain qu'eux...
Un langage spécifique Une autre réflexion que m'inspire cette expérience concerne la forme de langage qui apparaît sur les forums du Net –en particulier sur Compuserve, dont les forums sont surveillés et maintenus "propres". Il s'agit évidemment d'une forme écrite, mais qui échappe aux conventions de rigueur dans la correspondance anglo-saxonne, habituellement très contraignantes. Les locuteurs s'y expriment comme ils le feraient à l'oral, mais comme ils ont à coeur d'être convaincants et d'apparaître intelligents, ils sont aussi clairs et didactiques que possible. C'est en quelque sorte une nouvelle forme de langue, un oral scripturalisé pourrait-on dire, qui pour le moment peut sembler marginale, mais qui sera probablement l'un des vecteurs majeurs des échanges et de la réflexion dans un avenir très proche. Pour cette raison encore –mais fallait-il ajouter des arguments– nous ne pouvons nous permettre de faire l'impasse sur ce phénomène culturel.
Un matériau inédit Lors de la dernière expérience que je cite, celle de la confrontation des discours de Clinton et Saddam Hussein, ce qu'il faut retenir c'est d'abord l'extrême souplesse d'utilisation, qui permet du jour au lendemain, voire à quelque heures près, de donner aux élèves des documents brûlants d'actualité mais cependant inédits. A ma connaissance, aucun de ces corpus ne sont apparus in extenso dans la presse écrite, encore moins sur les médias. Nous avons donc affaire à une source non seulement immédiatement accessible, mais qui donne à nos élèves une perspective unique, un avantage par rapport à leurs parents ou même à leurs professeurs d'autres matières, ce qui rend l'activité en langue très valorisante. La projection collective en classe permet également de court-circuiter la phase papier, donc d'aller plus vite, mais aussi de focaliser l'attention du groupe-classe sur la même problématique de compréhension au même moment. Nous en avons tous conscience, le matériau offert sur le net, brut par définition, est à prendre avec précautions. Les angles de vue doivent être variés. Nous devons donc, lorsque nous y découvrons pour exploitation un document partisan, y chercher son opposé pour rétablir l'équilibre, et faire savoir à nos élèves que nous le faisons, afin de leur communiquer des démarches saines. La confrontation à cette multiplicité brute est l'occasion pour nous de les aider à devenir des citoyens lucides du monde de l'information.
Cette expérience a donc été à mon avis un succès, elle a ouvert pour mes élèves et moi-même des horizons d'exploration, de travail et de recherche inépuisables, et montré une fois de plus que la technologie tient une place minimale au regard de la pédagogie qu'elle permet de mettre en oeuvre.
Bernard Moro |
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Les documents qui suivent sont des messages envoyés par, ou à, des élèves à partir du forum CNN de Compuserve. Seuls deux messages sont de moi, l'un pour initialiser l'échange, l'autre pour attirer l'attention des autres usagers sur l'aspect pédagogique de la démarche
Compuserve Forum on the Shoah Project
Hello,
Have you heard of Spielberg's project of building a database of holocaust survivors' testimonies in the aftermath of his film Schindler's list? How do you feel about these revisionist theses on the Net, stating that the Holocaust never occurred?
Are there that many people thinking that in the States, or is it just part of Net hype?
Thanks for your replies
Bernard Moro, 18 March, 19:37
2.
Bernard,
Spielberg's project to videotape the recollections of Holocaust survivors is a wonderful idea. The Project is called the Shoah Visual History Foundation, and can be reached at 800-661-2092.
As far as the doubters, there are some, but they are few, far between, and definitely not filling their cereal bowls full.
Jack Wilmeth, 18 March 22:00
3.
Bernard,
>> Are there that many people thinking that in the States, or is it just part of Net hype? >>
To the great majority of this country, there is no question about the Holocaust.
But there are a few, who will try to prove that only a few million, maybe 2-3 million, Jews were killed - as if that were not many - and then propose that that number were simply the result of the war.
These people are usually considered the lunatic fringe.
>>Have you heard of Spielberg's project of building a database of holocaust survivors' testimonies in the aftermath of his film Schindler's list? >>
No, but collections of Holocaust survivors' testimony have been done by many people and groups. I was a part of one such project at the Monterey Institute of Foreign Studies, the civilian school, back in 1978.
It was an informative and frightening time.
Paul Donley, 18 March 22:34
4.
>> As far as the doubters, there are some, but they are few, far between, and definitely not filling their cereal bowls full. <<
Unfortunately, Jack, you are quite sadly wrong. The Institute for Historical Review(read revision)gets money from some very interesting people and continues to produce meetings around the country. Mr. Buchanan has offered some interesting questions both as to the numbers killed and whether that gas really could do the murder job.
I wish I could agree with you, but facts do not permit it.
Joe Honick, 19 March 00:05
5.
Joe,
I think there are non-believers in anything for that matter.
Jack Wilmeth, 20 March
6.
Of course that's true, but the alliances that have been propagandizing against the Holocaust are very insidious. That's what makes it different. If there is one thing that joins the White Supremacists with Louis Farrakhan, it is the focus against Jews. Anything that counts as history they can revise. Farrakhan is still selling the idea of the blood libel from the fraudulent Protocols of the Elders of Zion which the white supremacists believe to be a seminal work.
Joe Honick, 20 March
Joe,
7.
>> the alliances that have been propagandizing against the Holocaust are very insidious.<<
And quite frightening when you think about how many people are doubtful of so many things.
I want to make it clear that I have no doubt about the Holocaust, and only wonder if the common six million figure might be low.
Jack Wilmeth, 20 March, 23:30
8.
You are quite correct, Jack. I was not questioning you at all though. If the six million were off a few hundred thousand or so, would it make a difference as to the publicly committed policy of genocide?
Joe, 21 March, 00:17
9.
>>>"The Institute for Historical Review (read revision) gets money from some very interesting people and continues to produce meetings around the country."<<<
I would be interested in any information you might have on where funding for this group is coming from.
Thanks.
David T. Fuhrmann, 20 March 09:39
10.
David, I obviously do not have access to absolute details on their records. What I do know is what the IHR does and purports to do and that they have sufficient continuity to indicate substantial funding. Citing specific names in this environment is problematic; however, I would point you to two places for some documentation: the Anti-Defamation League of B'Nai Brith in Washington, D.C.; the IRS which can point you to sources for groups claiming to be non-profit organizations.
I don't know where you are located, but if you have access to a Lexis/Nexis program, you can probably "dial up" the group for more information.
You may recall the IHR is and was the group that offered a $50,000 award for anyone who could prove the Holocaust actually occurred. A man in the Los Angeles area took on the challenge and won in court, as if it should have been necessary. When the IHR lost, it refused to pay off, and the winner took them back to court and won again. Whether they ever actually paid off, I cannot recall, but the actions are and were quite in keeping with their record.
Joe Honick, 20 March 20:24
11.
It's absolutely amazing how some people can contend that the Holocaust never happened. The Nazis were very meticulous in their record keeping, down to the point of assigning serial numbers to their inmates. They also shot extensive film footage of the camps for their own records, and these films later came back to haunt them. Then there are the camps themselves - how can any apologist account for their existence?
As far as the 6 million figure goes, that's really only part of the story. The Nazis were responsible for the deaths of over 30 million people if you include the casualties in the USSR (20+ million) and the rest of Europe. Even if the death camps are left out, that still leaves nearly 25 million killed in the war.
Of course, as bad as the war was, the death camps were a certainly among the most depraved chapters in the history of the 20th century, although, unfortunately, other horrors have occurred in this century alone. The Gulag (the Belomor Canal in particular) and the "Killing Fields" of Cambodia are two that come to mind. The Pinochet regime in Chile was not far behind...
John C. Lind, 21 March 01:34
To all,
I am a teacher of English in a French high school, and as we had worked with a class of 10th-graders on the Larry King Show involving Stephen Spielberg and his Shoah project, I thought it would be a good idea to expose them to the conversation thread showing your reactions regarding the project. They were extremely interested, and this in turn generated a few responses from them, which I am simply relaying to those of you who wrote the successive messages. Their responses I simply channeled through my Compuserve ID, but they are signed by the respective students who actually authored them. Please respond.
Your answers will travel through my computer and word processor to my students. Please reply to them individually if you can.
Within a month's time I intend to go with them directly from our classroom onto the CNN forum for a chat, either through messages, or possibly through a direct exchange in a conference room.
Many thanks to all.
Bernard. 7 April 1996
Hello,
As a young French student, I have not understood the meaning of "the fraudulent protocols of the Elders of Zion".
I am interested in the Shoah Project and your answers will help me a lot in my mind evolution.
Thanks for your reply.
Vincent Longchampt
7 April 1996
14.
Mr Honick,
What is the meaning of these expressions :
-Lexis / Nexis program
-the Anti-Defamation League of B'Nai Brith
-the ... Protocols of the Elders of Zion.
Humanfully, I actually don't understand how anybody can consider the Holocaust as a detail in the WW2 or as a simple result of the war, in my feeling the genocide was and is really frightening bearing in mind the value of life.
On what right, can a man permit to consider himself as being superior to another man?
Pascale Charpy
French student
7 April 1996
Paul,
<< I was a part of one such project at the Monterey Institute of Foreign Studies, the civilian school, back in 1978.>>
I would be interested in having more details about your experience; the reactions of the survivors in front of their past...
I'm shocked by the fact that now, some people claim that the genocide has never existed. What do they think of the traces left, like extermination camps, the testimonies of a lot of survivors?
Céline Delacroix
French student
7 April 1996
16.
To all
As French students in the average of 18, we want to have more details about some concepts noticed in the messages you left in the Net about Spielberg's project.
What is the meaning of Protocols of the Edler Zion?
What is a Lexis-Nexis programm?
We think that even if there is no proof of these facts, they have been real and must be recognized as going against orders of humanity and are frightening.
The Net allows us to have new ideas from another country than ours, thanks to this freedom of expression.
So, thanks for your answers.
Nathalie Maraux,
French student
7 April 1996
(Please reply through Bernard Moro)
17.
Joe,
I don't really understand the link between Louis Farrakhan and this protocol. Could you explain exactly the meaning of "Elders Of Zion". I would be interested in any explanation.
David Frosio
French student
7 April 1996
(Please reply through Bernard Moro)
18.
Joe,
<<You may recall the IHR is and was the group that offered a $50,000 award for anyone who could prove the Holocaust actually occurred. >>
I wonder how the IHR was going to win its challenge despite the fact that there are today a lot of testimonies and proofs which were discovered during and after the war.
Xavier Blondeau
French Student, 18.
(Please reply through Bernard Moro)
19.
Joe,
What are the dossiers of the Institute for Historical Review based on? From whose and what testimonies?
Natalene Frey, 20.
French student
(Please reply through Bernard Moro)
To all
I cannot understand how people can believe that the Holocaust has not happened. I went to visit Auschwitz and a man told us his story in the camp and after that it is very difficult to tell your feelings because you are very shocked and you cannot say that the genocide has not happened.
Laetitia Hauck, 17.
It is absolutely amazing to see how many people are doubtful concerning the Holocaust.
To my knowledge, and according to what I have seen in Auschwitz during a trip to Poland, I couldn't think that this butchery never happened. After this experience, in my mind, the nazism is synonymous of death and destruction.
David Frosio, 19.
I would like to know if all the doubters are racists like the White Supremacists or Louis Farrakhan, or are part of them. I have no doubt about the Holocaust, we have proof, like the extermination camps, the testimonies of people, and the Klaus Barbie trial.
Gaelle Mauprez, 18.
I would like to know from what could the Institute for Historical Review pretend the Holocaust has never occurred?
Indeed, I don't understand how someone can deny the existence of the Holocaust in that there are survivors who testify and moreover many persons involved in the genocide have been judged in the Nuremberg trial.
Catherine Bohin, 20.
During World War 2 the Nazis were so proud of deporting and killing Jews that they claimed it loud to the whole world.
So how can they now deny the Holocaust?
Natalene Frey, 20.
My feeling is that nobody has the right to deny the Holocaust. The proofs are not necessary to believe in that. I think that there are too many people who have suffered to forget the Holocaust. And the fact that they testify must be a relief for them.
Alexandra Loye, 19.
We know that in Poland a lot of proofs exist (for example in the museum of Auschwitz). So, in front of this massacre and these pieces of evidence, how can revisionists deny these facts?
I mean, with which elements can they demonstrate their affirmations?
Virginie Troutet, 19.
Personally, regarding this subject, I am not doubtful as to the existence of the Holocaust and the figure of six million killings, maybe more.
In September 1995, I went to Poland with other students. We visited the concentration camp of Auschwitz and it was a moving and frightening moment and place. Without talking of photos showing tortures or thin children, the walls talk of themselves; there is a heavy atmosphere.
And when you see two or three million of old shoes collected by the Nazis, thousands of clothes or personal objects, thousands of hair preserved in the museum, you can't doubt any more of the truth of the facts.
Séverine Prince, 18.
"Terminale ES2" French students in Pontarlier, France
(Please reply through Bernard Moro)
>> As a young French student, I have not understood the meaning of "the fraudulent protocols of the Elders of Zion".
I am interested in the Shoah Project and your answers will help me a lot in my mind evolution.
Thanks for your reply.
Vincent Longchampt
French student
(Please reply through Bernard Moro) <<
I am both delighted and flattered that it appears M. Moro's eleves are writing to me and am happy to respond. I will have to say as a caution that you must also seek out additional resources for your information. many of them are right their in your country, if they are willing to chat about the subjects.
Now, as to the fraudulent Protocols of the Elders of Zion. This was a document, they were created by anti-semitic Russians to spread rumors that Jews were seeking to take over the world and that they used the blood of Christian children in their rituals. This became known as the blood libel. It is a scurrilous piece of work that, most unfortunately, has found favor in Japan, Egypt and other Arab countries where the book continues to sell well to this day.
Joe
22
>> What are the dossiers of the Institute for Historical Review based on? From whose and what testimonies?
Natalene Frey, 20.
French student
(Please reply through Bernard Moro) <<
Natalene, the dossiers of the IHR are based upon fraudulent materials that have been around for some years and sponsored by neo nazi groups. What they fail, however, to even admit is that the very information that indicted and convicted the Nazis came in their own words from such people as Adolf Eichmann and others and the records captured at the end of the war. Of course much else was adduce to puncture the IHR fraud from eye witnesses and survivors.
It is interesting as well to know and to note that some Americans of high stature helped to contribute to these historical revisions by their acceptance of anti-semitic propaganda from the 1920's forward to WWII. Among those people was Henry Ford.
Joe
23.
Sophie Tissot,
>>How could a senator have been elected having such convictions? Do the electors know everything about his beliefs?<<
Please rest assured that Mr. Buchanan has never held an elected office in this country. The electors have spoken, and he has been cast aside, at least for now.
Jack
24.
Sophie, Patrick Buchanan has never held any political office and is not a senator. Yes, many do know much about his beliefs. However, as with people like the IHR, he and his colleagues have been trying to reconstruct his own history and to condemn those who do expose him for what he really is.
joe
25.
"Please rest assured that Mr. Buchanan has never held an elected office in this country. The electors have spoken, and he has been cast aside, at least for now."
Pat's delivery is what turns off people, in my opinion. Many of his ideas on immigration and taxation are very popular with voters. It's his tone that needs to be changed, to a lower volume.
Mark Hutcherson
26.
>> Pat's delivery is what turns off people, in my opinion. <<
What strikes me is the consistently angry tone that his delivery has. It gets tiresome and drives away more people than it attracts....
JCLind http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/jclind
27.
"Let's get him on a couch and a shrink in the room with him! ;-)"
Sounds like a good idea to me. :-)
Mark Hutcherson
28.
>> I wonder how the IHR was going to win its challenge despite the fact that there are today a lot of testimonies and proofs which were discovered during and after the war.
Xavier Blondeau
French Student, 18.
(Please reply through Bernard Moro) <<
Xavier, the answer is that they did not win, and they remain a fraudulent expression of the Holocaust denial.
Thank you for writing. Where in France do you live? What city?
Joe
29.
Bernard,
Thank you for the very interesting posts from your class. the subject and the related items are of great interest to me, and to many others here.
Please rest assured that the doubters of the Holocaust are few and far between, albeit somewhat vociferous at times. Like so many topics in today's instant media, the loudest noise often gets the coverage .
The average American does not believe that reports of the Holocaust are a hoax, any more than we believe black russian helicopters are based in Mid-America, nor that there is a secret Tri=Lateral government or a Zionist Occupation Government. Unfortunately, these specious theories do get some press, and some noise is made, but....
Good luck with your class. We would be very pleased to have your group "visit" us here for a conference.
Best always,
Jack
30.
Céline,
PD> I was a part of one such project at the Monterey Institute of Foreign Studies, the civilian school, back in 1978.>>
Céline > I would be interested in having more details about your experience; the reactions of the survivors in front of their past...
>>
I kept a copy of the tapes and my own transcripts of the interviews for years, but in the course of things, they have been lost. Sadly. Our interviews of these ladies and gentlemen were a lesson in human dignity, even after so many years had passed.
i am afraid that the only way that you could possibly obtain a useable copy would be to write to the Monterey Institute of Foreign Studies at this point.
31.
Céline >> I'm shocked by the fact that now, some people claim that the genocide has never existed. What do they think of the traces left, like extermination camps, the testimonies of a lot of survivors? >>
It is a sick exercise in revisionist history, simply, by people who are desperate to find what Hitler presented to the Germans back in the 30' - a scapegoat for their (perceived) helplessness in the face of difficult and confusing times.
We have a strong movement in this country for that sort of thing right now.
I had a friend back in high school who was an avowed Nazi - at least as much as a teenager can be an avowed anything. His efforts to show that there was a "Myth of the Six Million" (the name of a popular pamphlet) were sincere, but misguided. At the very least, he showed that there were probably a minimum of 2.5 to 3.5 million jews killed. Which is, of course, still a horror.
He was strongly influenced by his father.
I have often wondered about what his reaction would have been if he had been able to face these strong, vulnerable people and question them as I had.
The most common reaction, which I don't remember whether my friend ever expressed, is that it is a Worldwide Jewish Conspiracy to mislead.
Based on the nature of our current political debate, which includes most of the country as the scap...
(message was interrupted)
32.
Paul,
An excellent reply. Thanks
Jack
Transcript of Saddam Hussein's speech to Iraqis
September 3, 1996
Web posted at: 9:00 p.m. EDT (0100 GMT)
(CNN)--In the name of God, the most gracious, the Most Merciful; oh, great people; oh, honorable members of our armed forces; oh, sons of our glorious Arab nation; oh, honorable people of the world:
Once again, the hopeless cowardly Americans were back to repeat their cowardly act hiding behind a technological advance that God, most gracious, wanted it to be their curse and cause for shame. The aggressors came back launching their failed cowardly raids to commit a damned third attack which has very significant implications. The courageous resistance and great steadfastness of the noble Iraqi people gave the aggressors what they deserved. They will be taught a lesson and their wanton attack will be resisted.
The missile attack on Iraq took place around 9 o'clock this morning, 3rd of September 1996, corresponding to 20th Rabi' Athani 1417 Hijri. This is going to be a glorious day. The Iraqi people will, in the name of God, add to their honorable record. It will be a day when the cowardly aggressors will be condemned by both history and the whole world, having been condemned by God Almighty.
Oh, Iraqi people and members of the brave Iraqi armed forces, the apple of our eye, this is another day you can call your own. So, resist them as you have done. God Almighty wishes you to take your pride of place under the sun and on the heights of your good land. We have come to expect you -- and your people and the Arab nation are calling upon you -- to resist them and teach them a new lesson full of meanings their weak and empty souls do not know. Oh, men of our air defenses and our air hawks, from now on consider as non-existent their damned imaginary no-fly zones above 36 parallel and below 32 parallel. Strike with efficiency and competence, in the name of God, any of the aggressors' planes which violate the air space of your great country and everywhere in Iraq, now and in the future.
The free peoples of the world and the sons of our glorious Arab nation can rest assured that proud, glorious and defiant Iraq is safe. Iraq is as powerful as high mountains. It will not be shaken by the winds of evil; neither will it be frightened, God willing, by the hiss of vipers.
The sons of the Land of Two Rivers were more than a match to the enemy; they downed a large number of its missiles.
God foiled the aggression and the aggressors and, thanks be to God, we only suffered light losses in the failed attack. May God bless the souls of our honorable martyrs.
God is greater, God is greater.
May the cowards be defeated.
Clinton's statement on the U.S. strike on Iraq
September 3, 1996
Web posted at: 11:20 a.m. EDT (1520 GMT)
The following is a transcript of U.S. President Bill Clinton's statement Tuesday on the situation in Iraq. The statement was given in the Oval Office, and was followed by questions from the media.
"Three days ago, despite clear warnings from the United States and the international community, Iraqi forces attacked and seized the Kurdish-controlled city of Irbil in northern Iraq. The limited withdrawals announced by Iraq do not change the reality. Saddam Hussein's army today controls Irbil and Iraqi units remain deployed for further attacks.
These acts demand a strong response and they have received one. Earlier today I ordered American forces to strike Iraq. Our missiles sent the following message to Saddam Hussein: When you abuse your own people or threaten your neighbors you must pay a price.
It appears that one Kurdish group which in the past opposed Saddam now has decided to cooperate with him. But that cannot justify unleashing the Iraqi army against the civilian population of Irbil. Repeatedly over the past weeks and months we have worked to secure a lasting cease-fire between the Kurdish factions.
The Iraqi attack adds fuel to the factional fire and threatens to spark instability throughout the region. Our objectives are limited, but clear: to make Saddam pay a price for the latest act of brutality; reducing his ability to threaten his neighbors and America's interests.
First, we are extending the no-fly zone in southern Iraq. This will deny Saddam control of Iraqi airspace from the Kuwaiti border to the southern suburbs of Baghdad and significantly restrict Iraq's ability to conduct offensive operations in the region. Second, to protect the safety of our aircraft enforcing this no-fly zone, our cruise missiles struck Saddam's air defense capabilities in southern Iraq.
The United States was a co-sponsor of United Nation's Security Resolution 986, which allows Iraq to sell amounts of oil to purchase food and medicine for its people, including the Kurds.
Irbil, the city seized by the Iraqis, is a key distribution center for this aid. Until we are sure these humanitarian supplies can actually get to those who need them, the plan cannot go forward and the Iraqi government will be denied the new resources it has been expecting. Saddam Hussein's objectives may change, but his methods are always the same: violence and aggression against the Kurds, against other ethnic minorities, against Iraq's neighbors.
Our answer to that recklessness must be strong and immediate, as President Bush demonstrated in Operation Desert Storm, as we showed two years ago when Iraq massed its forces on Kuwait's border, and as we showed again today.
We must make it clear the reckless acts have consequences, or those acts will increase. We must reduce Iraq's ability to strike out at its neighbors and we must increase America's ability to contain Iraq over the long run.
The steps we are taking today will further all those objectives. Time and again, Saddam Hussein has made clear his disdain for civilized behavior. He brutalized his own people, attacked his neighbors, supported terrorism and sought to acquire weapons of mass destruction.
Our policy is equally clear. When our interest in the security of our friends and allies is threatened, we will act with force if necessary. That is what we did this morning in Iraq.
I know the thoughts and prayers of all Americans are with our military men and women who are conducting this mission.
God bless them and the nation they are se
Word frequency, Clinton's speech:
nationalities |
war |
form |
iraq 10 saddam 7 iraqi 6 kurdish 3 irbil 3 neighbors 5 our 7 united 3 people 3 city 2 following 3 states 2 hussein's 2 hussein 2 we 10 region 2 america's 2southern 3 border 2 iraq's 3 kurds 2 our 2 |
strike 3 forces 3 acts 3 attacked 2 seized 2 army 2 strong 2 missiles 2 threaten 2 pay the price 2 against 4 fire 2 objectives 3 security 2 |
clear 5 must 5 today 4 change 2 pay the price 2 objectives 3 ability 4 will 5 increase 2 |
Les expressions ci-dessous ont été tapées à l'écran pour permettre aux élèves de me donner leurs instructions de classement en anglais
This goes into column ...
This (word /expression) obviously goes under the heading...
it must be in...
Lors d'une autre "sortie" sur le Net, nous avons fait l'explication d'un message usenet absolument odieux à propos du clonage, puis exploré les insidieux méandres de la prose du Ku Klux Klan. Sous le titre Aryan Logic, ces deux documents ont fait partie de la liste des textes du Bac de la classe…
The purpose of this lesson is to confront neo-nazi prose, from the most
blatant to the most subtle type, and denounce the hate messages in it.
Beyond Cloning
The following is an Internet posting by one Rad, in the aftermath of the news that Scottish scientists had cloned a sheep.
From "Rad" <gconrad@sprynet.com>
Organization Hillary Haters International
Date 24 Feb 1997 23:30:34 GMT
Newsgroups alt.fan.rush-limbaugh, alt.politics.nationalism.white, alt.politics.white-power, comp.ai.genetic, sci. bio.microbiology,
tw.bbs.sci.biology
Message-ID <01bc22aa$e513dc40$a8b4aec7@default>
I have long been interested in the use of genetic science to aid in the preservation and advancement of the Aryan people in the face of Jewish genocidal efforts against us (abortion, integration, immigration, quotas, etc).
The news from Scotland is quite exciting. But is cloning needed? I feel that the prime use of genetic technology, from a pro-Aryan point of view, should be in the mass production of white people using animals as bearers of human fetuses.
Here's how it might work:
A special breed of pig is created with a nine-month gestation period and a wide vaginal opening. This pig would also be supplied with human mitochondrial DNA (if needed). Eggs from these pigs would be removed and de-nucleated. A single sperm each from two prime Aryan males is injected into each egg. The eggs are then implanted in the pig. Nine months later, the pig gives birth to a dozen or so healthy Aryans.
Of course, these sperm must be sorted to increase the number of X sperm vs Y sperm, or males will outnumber females by 2:1 as shown:
XX Female
XY Male
YX Male
YY Nonviable
Or perhaps the individual sperm can be precisely sorted from the beginning, giving the desired male/female ratio and avoiding the YYs altogether.
An interesting aspect of this procedure, for all you feminists out there, is that it requires no human females at all. Though they would certainly be employed in the raising of these new Aryans. Hopefully, they will be reared in an environment devoid of Jewish myths (Christianity, Marxism, Feminism, etc.) and other harmful influences. Pure education in math, science and objective history would be stressed as well as proper English. We might even resurrect the Aryan religion.
Hail Zeus!
Rad
The Klan Political Agenda
1.America First!
The very first responsibility of our government is to protect the welfare (jobs, health, future) of AMERICANS —not those in Mexico, Vietnam, Somalia, Haiti, or some other third world country. It is time to take America back.
2.Drug testing for Welfare Recipients.
Not everyone who is on welfare is taking drugs. We are aware of that, but there are many, especially in housing projects in large urban areas, who are taking drugs. If they have enough money for drugs, they don't need your money. If a welfare recipient is a drug user, their welfare check, food stamps, public housing, and etc.
* should be cut.
3. Protect America's Birthright.
If the Klan were in political power laws would be enacted that would prevent American industry and property from being sold to foreigners. America should be owned by Americans — not Japanese, Arabs or Jews.
4. Do away with Affirmative Action Programs.
People in America should be hired, promoted or given scholarships based on ability, not because they have the right color of skin or because we feel sorry for them or because we are trying to appease some kind of self-inflicted guilt.
5. Protect American Jobs.
Americans are loosing
* jobs to foreign nations because our industry is moving to Mexico to obtain cheap labor which is often only 60 or 70 cents an hour. American industry is also enticed to move to Mexico in order to save millions because of non-existing environmental laws. The criminals in Washington have passed NAFTA and are now selling us out with GATT.
6.Close our Border.
The flood of illegal aliens coming across our borders needs to be stopped. If we can put 43,000 soldiers in South Korea to protect their borders, 500,000 soldiers in Saudi Arabia to protect their borders. Why cannot we put troops on our borders to protect our country from the invasion of illegal aliens? We must protect the future of our children, not the future of the children of Mexico.
7. Outlaw homosexuality and interracial marriages.
Until 20 or so years ago, nearly all states had 'sodomy' and miscegenation laws and statutes that were strictly enforced. Since that time they have been repealed or are ignored, the results are obvious with the plague of AIDS now ravaging our land. Both of these abominations against God and nature must be stopped if America is ever to return to the great Christian nation it once was.
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