The Story of Stalag 3B, Part II.

Unfortunately, the Blogger video sharer is a space hog, and will not let me add text.

So here is where I will give a little context.

The Soviet Union did not sign the Geneva Convention regarding the treatment of prisoners of war. The Nazi war machine was all too happy to exploit this, and Soviet war prisoners were treated abominably. Whereas the Germans generally, if not always, followed Geneva protocols for Western soldiers whose nations had signed the Convention. Including Jewish prisoners, albeit with gnashed teeth and some efforts to cull Jewish soldiers for the extermination camps. Such efforts were met with heroic resistance from their gentile comrades-in-arms. While I cannot call up the link, a German-speaking American officer told the Nazis much the same at another Stalag, snarling at the shocked Nazis: "I will not--I am an American officer!" 

In German. He was tortured for his trouble, but did not relent.

So now you have some background for why the Germans were culling Soviet prisoners through slow starvation, and why several courageous Americans refused to stand idly by. 

Another aside: shortly after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the chaos disrupted once-reliable (in socialist terms) supplies of food and other necessities to a large nursing home for Soviet veterans of the Great Patriotic War. I believe it was just outside of St. Petersburg.

Once word got out, Western nations rushed supplies to the home. 

The Soviet veterans inspected the first shipment to arrive--and howled in outrage.

The supplies were from the Federal Republic of Germany, and they refused to touch the Nemietski crap, even if it meant they would suffer.

Shortly thereafter, another shipment arrived. The veterans inspected the shipment, and saw that it came from America.

No problem--they accepted it. The Americans had been their allies during the death struggle with the Nazis, and the Cold War was no obstacle.