Zero surprise that the NYT was complicit in knowingly/falsely offering support for a communist regime. Some things never change.
Netflix has a pretty good documentary on the Einsatzgruppen. Most people went to their grave like sheep. Over and over again people could not believe what was happening until it was too late. Other people, quite bravely, resisted without any weapons at all only to be shot on the spot. It is at times difficult to watch. I have studied this since I was in grade school and still am in a state of wonder at both sides. How could the aggressors been so evil and how could the victims been so passive? Given what had happened under Stalin I am incredulous that no one (it seems) bothered to train in self-defense.
One particularly nauseating segment is on three Jewish girls who refused to suffer the humiliation of disrobing before being shot and shoved into a pit. They physically resisted and were then beaten and of course killed. Their bravery in this final moment brings a tear to my eye. I am torn between sadness and anger that their father did not equip them with the training and tools to shoot back well before they arrived at the pit.
Nazis marched into the Ukraine and slaughtered at will, with most of the trigger pullers being locals. The population had long since been disarmed by Stalin. While they were helpless against guys with rifles, they were just as helpless by not preparing themselves psychologically.
https://www.netflix.com/title/80134093
So who is introducing a newb to shooting sports in 2019?