The most telling thing for me, in thinking of this over all the years
that my family has owned VW's (our first, before me, was in 1951, but I
mostly remember our 1955 bus) was that the Post-war Volkswagen "miracle"
was orchestrated but the Dutchman Pons, whose country definately suffered
at the hands of Hitler, and the success of VW is largely due to him.

I think it is great that VW could underwrite a critical look at themselves.
I'm sure that they were quite unclean during the war, but the original
idea of the VW, and its inspired design were not responsible for any
atrocities.  Porsche, himself, started out as a designer of war machinery,
designing dirigible engines for Austro-Daimler, I recall.  As another listee
points out on this thread, many, many technological items have their birth
in war or weapons.  Automobiles and airplanes, while existing before WWI
were vastly improved during that war, and again were improved during WWII.
VW was not alone, but they are the most lasting legacy of that time.  They
bear the name, for good or bad, of a Hitler program.

Rockets were advanced in WWII so that we were able to put a man on the moon,
and we (kinda) forgave Werner von Braun for his wartime activities in order
to push ourselves into space.  Each day we watch TV, we need to remember
that we are able to do this because of German atrocities during WWII.

The actions of many Germans during the years of the Third Reich were
unforgivable, but let us make sure that we honor those who suffered by
letting as much good as possible come out of the madness, always trying
to ensure that such things never happen again.

I hope that all of those personally responsible for the suffering done in
that war have suffered themselves.

malcolm