[Captain Kirk]

The vanquished has traditionally been expected to bear the brunt of the expense the victor went through in kicking the vanquished’s buttocks

Perhaps but it was Wilson, through his 14 points, who promised that the WWI peace would not be based on a traditioanl peace based on revenge. When the Germans agreed to the armistice, they stipulated that it was on on the basis of Wilson's 14 points. Of course, the allies, who continued their starvation blockade throughout the treaty negotiations, had different ideas and the Germans knuckled under. The "stab in the back" motif soon took hold and, well, we know what happened next.

[allmendream]

Well paying the costs of the war is one thing, militarily enforced economic slavery in perpetuity is another.

Japan got a much better deal than they ever expected, especially after we dropped a second bomb on them to reiterate “What part of UNCONDITIONAL surrender were you having a problem understanding?”.