I recently spoke to Nic Hamman’s economics and government classes at Circleville High School. The economics students had learned about different economic systems: communism, socialism, and capitalism. The government classes had just studied the Constitution and The Bill of Rights. Mr. Hamman’s students were attentive, engaged and respectful – he can be rightfully proud of his students!

The students learned from my direct experience the so-called “benefits” of living under both National Socialism (Nazi) and communism. Among the “benefits” my family experienced were the loss of personal rights, government confiscation of our property, arbitrary arrests and interrogation, and finally leaving our homeland. After briefly outlining my family’s history, as told in my memoir, Why Can’t Somebody Just Die Around Here?, we had great question and answer sessions.