ABSTRACT
In pursuit of an utterly racist policy during World War II, the Germans murdered millions of unarmed civilians in cold blood; obeying merciless ideological imperatives, the Soviets also massacred millions of helpless people. Like the others, the Japanese slaughtered millions during World War II, but not strictly because of racism or ideology. The Japanese believed themselves superior to other Asians and by policy severally punished resistance in occupied countries. The military rulers of Japan were also ardent national socialists, in the sense of believing in total national control over the country's economy and resources and centralized direction of the people's welfare. The Japanese required labor to help man the factories in Japan; and in occupied areas, it was needed to build roads and railroads, to construct fortifications, and to be general beasts of burden for the army. The Japanese army often fought "slaughter battles," officially reporting the number of Chinese soldiers killed and rifles captured afterwards.
