Preventing War

Queen Victoria’s 9 children were raised to marry into the Royal families of Europe. These marriages had been viewed as alliances between countries in feudal Europe for centuries.  The strategy was to prevent wars and develop allies to attack whatever they wanted to conquer.  But it didn’t prevent World War I. The assassination of the heir to Austro-Hungary was a poor reason to invade Serbia and kick in the mutual defense treaties these countries had signed. A simple arrest, trial, conviction and hanging would have been an acceptable solution. World War I convinced Europeans that the Royals were incompetent and God was dead.

Germany’s defeat in World War I and the ruse that payment of war reparations depressed the German economy and was effective and fostered resentment.  Hitler’s promise to “get even” was well received by reckless German voters, who didn’t read his book.

Hitler borrowed money from banks to build up his military and take over Europe. His collateral was the value of everything he could steal from the countries he conquered, so the banks gave him the money.

The Nazis were elected in 1933 and Hitler was named Chancellor. He disbanded the legislature and began his military build-up. He annexed Austria in 1938, invaded Poland in 1939. Germany allied with Italy and Japan in 1940. By 1941, Germany had invaded Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, France, Denmark, Yugoslavia, Greece and Norway and the Baltics In 1941 Germany invaded the Soviet Union. In 1942 Germany invaded North Africa. Germany did not invade Spain, Turkey, Switzerland or the Middle East.

In 1943, the German advance on Russia stopped. Russians began to push Germans back.  On June 6 1944, the US landed in Normandy. On May 7, 1945 Germany surrendered.

The formation of the League of Nations after World War I to prevent war failed.  In 1945, the League morphed into the United Nations with the same goal, to prevent war, and it has also failed and is now part of the problem, not the solution. Most of the 200 member countries are third-world disasters looking for a handout. Those countries who build up their private sector local economies are making progress, the others are not.  Socialism is the disease and needs to be replaced with freedom and property rights.

The solution is an informed electorate who can’t be manipulated. Peaceful local economic progress is the goal. Each nation-state must do the work to ensure that its citizens can sustain themselves and prosper.

Our current challenges include North Korea and Iran as potential suppliers of nuclear weapons to terrorists. It includes continuing to not allow countries like Russia to take territory from neighbors like Ukraine. It includes concerns wherever countries are building their military with no apparent threat like China. It also includes protecting ourselves from terror attacks in the US and eliminating terrorist activities world-wide.

Wars occur when countries invade other countries, like Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1990. These require a quick response.

 

Norb Leahy, Dunwoody GA Tea Party Leader