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The Forgotten Realities of World War II
Townhall.com ^ | May 14, 2015 | Victor Davis Hanson

Posted on 05/14/2015 4:52:09 AM PDT by Kaslin

May 8 marked the end of World War II in Europe 70 years ago -- a horrific conflict that is still fought over by historians.

More than 60 million people perished -- some 50 million of them in Eastern Europe, the Soviet Union and China.

The prewar Soviet state in the 1920s and 1930s had killed perhaps 20 million of its own citizens in purges, exiles, collectivizations, forced famines and show trials. Then it lost an estimated 25 million soldiers and civilians to the German army on the Eastern Front. Hitler's Germany by late 1942 had occupied almost 1 million square miles of Soviet ground.

The Soviet Red Army would eventually be responsible for three quarters of Germany's WWII casualties, but at a cost of approximately 9 million dead of its own combatants. Nevertheless, the Allied defeat of the Axis powers is more complicated than just the monumental and heroic sacrifice of the Soviet soldier.

World War II started largely because the Soviet Union had had assured Hitler that the two powers could partner up to divide Poland. With his eastern rear thus secure, Hitler then would be free to fight a one-front war in the West against the European democracies.

(Excerpt) Read more at townhall.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Editorial; Foreign Affairs
KEYWORDS: ww2
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1 posted on 05/14/2015 4:52:09 AM PDT by Kaslin
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To: Servant of the Cross

Ping


2 posted on 05/14/2015 4:52:47 AM PDT by Kaslin (He needed the ignorant to reelect him, and he got them. Now we all have to pay the consequenses)
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To: Kaslin

The Forgotten Realities of World War II?????

It destroyed Europe.

It destroyed cultures that had lasted thousands of years.

It turned today’s modern European countries and men into flaming and worthless wuss.

And now they import muslims because they can’t even be bothered to have babies.


3 posted on 05/14/2015 4:56:56 AM PDT by 2banana (My common ground with terrorists - they want to die for islam and we want to kill them)
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To: Kaslin

bfl


4 posted on 05/14/2015 4:58:23 AM PDT by bert ((K.E.; N.P.; GOPc.;+12, 73, ..... No peace? then no peace!)
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To: Kaslin

Declaring war on the United States doomed Hitler


5 posted on 05/14/2015 4:59:13 AM PDT by rman04554
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To: Kaslin

“World War II started largely because the Soviet Union had had assured Hitler that the two powers could partner up to divide Poland. With his eastern rear thus secure, Hitler then would be free to fight a one-front war in the West against the European democracies.”

I still don’t understand how we can avoid publicly discussing the failures of France/Britain to declare war on the Soviet Union after their seizure of half of Poland (complete with Katyn massacre and all), or explain our support for the USSR despite the fact that they provided no help against Japan while we fought our bloodiest battles against them.

WWII was a hoax perpetrated on the American public; at least Churchill knew he’d been had when the cause for fighting (the invasion of Poland) was left unresolved after six years of war and countless British/Commonwealth deaths...


6 posted on 05/14/2015 5:01:28 AM PDT by kearnyirish2 (Affirmative action is economic warfare against white males (and therefore white families).)
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To: Deb; Sir Napsalot; Kaslin; neverdem; EXCH54FE; 2ndDivisionVet; Rummyfan; smoothsailing; Hojczyk; ...
I read this article and I surmise that VDH was compelled to write this article since that "horrific conflict ... is still fought over by historians."

It is simply astounding to fathom that such obvious historical facts and realities could simply be "forgotten" by today's "historians"? Rewriting history ... it is what liberals do.

VDH ping ...

7 posted on 05/14/2015 5:02:16 AM PDT by Servant of the Cross (the Truth will set you free)
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To: 2banana

Actually that started after the first World War; those cultures/governments were overthrown and replaced with extremes of the right and left. The lack of babies was the reason given by many French after their country fell in six weeks. Pope Benedict XV was correct when he said WWI was the suicide of Europe.


8 posted on 05/14/2015 5:03:14 AM PDT by kearnyirish2 (Affirmative action is economic warfare against white males (and therefore white families).)
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To: kearnyirish2

Britain considered going to war against the Soviets during the Soviet-Finnish winter war.

The Soviets also attacked Romania and took Bessarabia (now known as Moldova) by force.


9 posted on 05/14/2015 5:07:16 AM PDT by rfreedom4u (Chris Stevens won't be running for president.)
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To: Kaslin

I believe the United States supplied fully 1/3 of the USSR’s GNP in order to turn the war against the Germans.


10 posted on 05/14/2015 5:07:55 AM PDT by GOP_Party_Animal
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To: 2banana

That’s all true.

Europe was at its peak in 1900. The world was its oyster, only challenged by the U.S. And Japan.

But they decided to commit continental suicide not just once, but twice to make sure the job was done.

And look at them! Just shells milking the last bit of dignity of nations that took centuries of great people to build.


11 posted on 05/14/2015 5:09:29 AM PDT by VanDeKoik
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To: VanDeKoik

The suicide was all about deposing royalty

the history of the 20th century is all about replacing royalty


12 posted on 05/14/2015 5:11:41 AM PDT by bert ((K.E.; N.P.; GOPc.;+12, 73, ..... No peace? then no peace!)
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To: rfreedom4u

Anyone looking for reasons why so many Europeans (outside of Germany) supported the Nazis need only look at the inaction of the Western allies in the face of Soviet aggression leading up to WWII. Nobody thought the Nazis were angels, but if they would prevent the disasters visited on Spain and Finland then many (especially Eastern Europeans, living in the shadow of the USSR) would have made any deal with the Devil to prevent it.

In the end, all Britain got out of it was losing their empire...


13 posted on 05/14/2015 5:13:55 AM PDT by kearnyirish2 (Affirmative action is economic warfare against white males (and therefore white families).)
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To: GOP_Party_Animal

Including HUGE amounts of factory machinery, trucks and trains and enough food to feed their entire population for the whole second half of the war. They would have had no chance without our help. Their army would have starved in the field for lack of food and transportation to get the food to them.


14 posted on 05/14/2015 5:19:40 AM PDT by TalonDJ
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To: Kaslin
World War II started largely because the Soviet Union had had assured Hitler that the two powers could partner up to divide Poland.

One just as correctly could say World War II started largely because Britain and France had had assured Hitler that he could illegally occupy the Sudetenland without interference from them.

Oh, and one more thing. Replacing "the Sudetenland" with "the Rhineland" in the above statement would also give a true statement. So it's a bit disingenuous to blame it all on the Soviet Union (ugh, it hurt to type that).

15 posted on 05/14/2015 5:22:10 AM PDT by Leaning Right (Why am I holding this lantern? I am looking for the next Reagan.)
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To: Kaslin
The prewar Soviet state in the 1920s and 1930s had killed perhaps 20 million of its own citizens in purges, exiles, collectivizations, forced famines and show trials.

Demographic calculations make this unlikely.

If you look at the rate of population growth from 1914 to 1950, the US and USSR are surprisingly similar. I don't see any way to get these numbers if many tens of millions (I've seen as high as 60M asserted) were murdered in addition to the tens of millions that died in the two world wars and the civil war.

16 posted on 05/14/2015 5:24:56 AM PDT by Sherman Logan
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To: Kaslin
The prewar Soviet state in the 1920s and 1930s had killed perhaps 20 million of its own citizens in purges, exiles, collectivizations, forced famines and show trials.

Demographic calculations make this unlikely.

If you look at the rate of population growth from 1914 to 1950, the US and USSR are surprisingly similar. I don't see any way to get these numbers if many tens of millions (I've seen as high as 60M asserted) were murdered in addition to the tens of millions that died in the two world wars and the civil war.

17 posted on 05/14/2015 5:26:47 AM PDT by Sherman Logan
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To: Kaslin

bump for later


18 posted on 05/14/2015 5:42:14 AM PDT by Nowhere Man (Mom I miss you! (8-20-1938 to 11-18-2013) Cancer sucks)
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To: kearnyirish2

That was the reality of the La La land appeaser Neville Chamberlain who has an awful lot in common with our fearless leader today.


19 posted on 05/14/2015 5:52:24 AM PDT by ImJustAnotherOkie
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To: Kaslin

VDH’s cousin Victor Hanson was killed in the battle of Okinawa, in the fighting on Sugar Loaf Hill, maybe on May 19, 1945. My father was in the 22nd Marines and was wounded on Sugar Loaf Hill during the night of May 14/15. Victor Hanson was in the 29th Marines so my father did not know him. A friend of my father’s recently celebrated his 98th birthday—he was in the Marines and on Okinawa but was an engineer so not on the front lines in the fighting for Sugar Loaf Hill.


20 posted on 05/14/2015 5:58:27 AM PDT by Verginius Rufus
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