OK, but try explaining that to an 18-year-old kid whose buddy / father figure / platoon sergeant has a gun to his head. Difficulty: You get to be an anonymous intellectual half a world away who might not ever find out if he makes the wrong choice. I think I can pull up 20 or 30 million data points from the last century that say it's an unrealistic expectation.

I think judges see that.

Not everyone was given death penalty in Nürnberg either.

I think the most important fact was they ruled that "just following orders" wasn't a blanket excuse.

What about all the civilians who no doubt contributed economically and indirectly to the Nazi regime simply by not opposing or fighting them?

They were punished quite severely by Germany's reparations at the end of the war. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_reparations_for_World...

What about the American companies who built war machinery for the Nazis?

Does that mean the people who did oppose the Nazis had to pay reparations too?

Such is the cost of being a citizen of a country that goes to war unfortunately. It's also a lesson in why everyone should be vigilant about stopping their leaders doing evil things. Some modern leaders should take note.