Ever since we brought it up today in class, I've been thinking about the part on page 399 where the concept of holocaust was discussed. Here are a couple points that have bubbled up as important in my mind:
1. Is it a rude stereotype to automatically assume that a Jew would think the worst thing that ever happened was the Holocaust, capital H? Or is it legitimate to say, if you know someone? Or is it just that someone would be most likely to believe that the tragedy most personal to them is "the worst"?
2. If the Aztecs killed their neighboring tribes, which they did, does that make them less sympathizable (not a word...) in the face of their own wiping out? Traditionally it has been seen as the West being the perpetrator, so it's good to have a dissenting opinion on the party most at fault here, but I don't know that that necessarily precludes acknowledgement of their own personal tragedy. I know we don't mourn the Nazis, but is that more a result of their ideology and ideological actions rather than their aggressive actions? Napoleon tried to take over all of Europe in an imperialistic bid. He's now seen as a romantic figure. What is the proper way to go about thinking- and even feeling - about the Aztecs?