I agree completely. History is written by the victors, although alternative sources of knowledge written by the oppressed are available.
One holocaust fairytale (that gets thrown around from time to time) that I do deny is the one that claims North American involvement in WWII had anything to do with stopping the slaughter of Jews, Poles, Soviets, Roma and gay people. WWII was a struggle for power, not human rights.
Canadian soldiers fought in WWII, yet our politicians turned away a boatload of Jewish refugees who were fleeing persecution in Europe. They were sent home to their deaths. Even in the post-war period, Canadian immigration policy in relation to Jews was summed up in the phrase "none is too many"
As far as the holocaust itself...I'm not quite sure what there is to deny? The Nazis engaged in the systematic detention and slaughter of anyone who didn't fit their bullshit "Aryan" model. Those camps weren't a fabrication.
While I do concede that 'holocaust denial' as a crime is somewhat unique, on some level I do understand it, in that those narratives are often central to the philosophies of white power movements. Not exactly a sympathetic interest group to lobby any government to take that law off the books.
The academic washout Irving cited above is an excellent example, in that he assisted in the defence of a notorious racist in Canada (Ernst Zundel). When Zundel wasn't busy denying the holocaust he was participating in a white supremacist group called the Heritage Front, which targeted violent and racist propaganda to disaffected white youth. Hell, I'm old enough to remember some of my classmates talking about what they learned about 'mud people' and the Jewish conspiracy on the Heritage Front phone line. David Irving lectured at that group quite often as well. That group is still around, incidentally, although they've tamed themselves considerably.
My point is that holocaust denial often goes hand in hand with racist theory and practise, including the incitement of violence against non-Aryans. On some level it IS bizarre that questioning the holocaust is a crime, but considering the typical motives behind which that denial is espoused, I do understand why that law still exists.
as an aside...I love the irony that Hitler's actions were a large part of the reason why Israel was created. He'd have been so pissed
