Everything associated with the konzentrationslager system in operation has a strong odor of the industrial revolution, and culture: boxcars, railroad signals, canisters of Zyklon B, long rows of furnaces, arrays of uniform barracks, trained dogs on long leashes, long rows of uniforms, and chimneys, and smoke… Arbeit is also there, the backbone of the entire system. An optimal arrangement is immediately apparent—rational, cost-effective, and highly streamlined in accordance with the demands of science and technology. A bright image of the Aufklärung materialized.

An occasional glimpse at a craftsman operating in this industrial environment spoils the picture, however. Unsatisfied with the routine, he turns creative, adds that special touch, something of an art. He is too personal in his performance, and thus he appears as a zealot, a restless survivor who refuses to conform to the order that surrounds him. He wants more than his job can possibly offer, regardless of how rational the overall design may be. A glimpse at an innovator, a monster, a dinosaur, a reptile…

Nevertheless, the post-industrial Auschwitz has been designed precisely for him, the creative meat-packer. The system is bent at accommodating precisely him, the rare individual who stubbornly demands more than a mere job. He is sensual, sensitive, and his needs are already enormous. We can expect wonders from him in the future. For he will contribute greatly to the variety of processing methods that will adorn the New Auschwitz.

Addendum I (February 24, 1981)

If anything is likely to motivate political action in the foreseeable future, it is the prospect of the New Auschwitz, the mirror image of the threadbare utopia of yesterday. As always, the stick is endowed with somewhat greater reality than its alluring reflection—the old carrot.

Addendum II (April 4, 1998)

How naïve of me. If the prospect of the New Auschwitz can motivate anything, it is the sprawling entertainment industry.