148 Chapter 6
Germanleaderthathe wouldnot plungeintoany waragainstotherEuropeanpowers,
but wouldinsteadpromotepeacethroughtradingwiththemand othernations.Laterthat
night,Watsonattendeda banquetthrownby JosephGoebbels,and the awardceremony
wasa surprisethatthe Nazissprungon Watson,intendingfor himto feelflattered.
Watsonwashappywiththe medal,too,untilthe Novemberof 1938,amidstreportsof
NazigangsassaultingJewsandvandalizingtheirstores.At thatpoint,Watsonnaïvely
wrotelettersto the Naziregime,beggingthemto put a stopto the mayhem.In 1939,
Watsonwrotea letteraddresseddirectlyto Hitler,admitting“a loss of goodwill to your
country” andpleadingthathe respectrights“in dealingwiththeseminorities.” Rather
thanprovidethatletterto the Führer,the Naziregimereturnedthatletterto IBM’s U.S.
officeunopenedand unread.On March7, 1939,IBMsentoff a secondletterto Hitler,this
one signedby ByneWaters,whoworkedas Watson’s secretary.She enclosedthe original
letterwiththis secondone.Thatletterwas not returnedto IBMin the USA.
On June6, 1940,Watsonmailedthe Nazimedalbackto Hitler,enclosingit witha letter
whereinWatsonrebukedhimfor havingstartedthe warin defianceof his verypromise
to avoidit. On the matterof the medal,the letterstated,“In viewof the presentpoliciesof
yourGovernment,whichare contraryto the causesfor whichI havebeenworkingand
for whichI receivedthe decoration,I am returningit.’” Followingthatgesture,Watson
denouncedHitlerpublicly.Thereon,correspondencebetweenIBMNewYorkandDe-
homaggrewincreasinglyrancorousuntilthe USA’s entryintothe warcompletelyse-
veredcommunicationbetweenthe twofirms.Oneof Dehomag’s internalmemosstated,
“Thisstupidstepof Mr. Watson’s opensup a numberof possibilities.It is not improbable
that sucha stepmayharmthe companyand all of us veryseriouslysooneror latersinceit
mustbe consideredas an insultto the Fuhrerandtherebyof the Germanpeople.” That
samememosurmised,“It appearsMr. Watsonis surroundinghimselfwitha groupof
JewswhofledEurope” andthatsuchJewsmustbe “beginningto affecthis mindand
impedehis judgment.”^118 EdwinBlack’s smearson IBMfail,as do the radicalLeft’s
repeatedeffortsto affixcapitalismwithsomeculpabilityfor the ThirdReich’s ascension.
All in all, concludesJoachimFest,“To call Hitlera toolof capitalism,as Marxisttheory
does,is merelyto fall backon beliefin demons.Marxistorthodoxyis proneto such
simplifications.Suchdemonologyis, as it were,‘the anti-Semitismof the Left.’”^119 The
Nazis’ anti-Semitism,indeed,can largelybe attributedto the genuinehatredfor capital-
ism amongthe citizensof the AxisPowers.
NOTES
- A. Kelly1981,107.
- A. Kelly1981,107; G. L. Mosse1985,tradepaperback,79; and Poliakov 1974 U.S.version,294.
- Poliakov 1974 U.S.version,294.A. Kelly1981,107,translatesthe topicof the contestas, “Whatcan
we learnfromthe theoryof descentwithregardto domesticpoliticaldevelopmentand statelegislation?” - G. L. Mosse1985,tradepaperback,79, pointsout thatSchallmeyercontributedto AlfredPloetz’s
eugenics-themedperiodical. - ThatSchallmayerwonis pointedout in A. Kelly1981,107;and G. L. Mosse1985,tradepaperback,
- A. Kelley1981,108; and G. L. Mosse 1985 tradepaperback,79.
- G. L. Mosse1985,tradepaperback,79.
- A. Kelly1981,108.
- Poliakov 1974 U.S.version,295.
- A. Kelly1981,108; and Poliakov 1974 U.S.version,294.
- A. Kelly1981,108.
- Poliakov 1974 U.S.version,295,citingand quotingfromNaturund Staat,Beiträge zur Naturwissens-
chaftlicherGesellschaftslehre,EineSammlungvon Preisschriften, Jena1903,pp. 1-24. - A. Kelly1981,108.