An all time classic:)
Posted on 04/25/2026 5:44:09 AM PDT by MtnClimber
Beginning with Woodrow Wilson’s justification for getting America into WWI, America has been the world’s policeman, a role that escalated after it was the only wealthy nation standing in 1945. However, it’s not 1945 anymore. The Cold War is over, allegiances have shifted, and Europe is not Europe. That’s why it was simply awesome today when Secretary of War Pete Hegseth explicitly told Asia and Europe (although he was clearly speaking to NATO) that the “time for free-riding is over.”
In 1916, when the “Great War” in Europe was already in its second year, Woodrow Wilson won reelection in part by pointing out that he’d kept America out of the war and promising that he would continue to do so. However, for myriad reasons, by 1917, Wilson could no longer maintain that promise.
However, Wilson, a high-minded, racist, eugenics-believing progressive, needed a high-minded reason for tossing young American men into those bloody trenches. America, he said, was a savior. “The world must be made safe for democracy,” and America was the one to do it.
There was no room for self-interest:
We desire no conquest, no dominion. We seek no indemnities for ourselves, no material compensation for the sacrifices we shall freely make.
Instead, virtue would be its own reward:
We are but one of the champions of the rights of mankind. We shall be satisfied when those rights have been made as secure as the faith and the freedom of nations can make them.
Those same principles have guided American warfare ever since. Yes, we entered WWII after Japan attacked us and Germany then declared war on us, but in the aftermath of a war that cost us over 400,000 American lives, we dedicated ourselves to rebuilding a shattered Europe and protecting it from Soviet domination.
(Excerpt) Read more at americanthinker.com ...
Hordes.
An unfortunate messenger.
“All those who purchased the air defense systems know with certainty that they are actually no good.”
And Venezuela & Iran are examples of your statement being correct.
I am of the belief Iran had some Chinese components in their air defense systems also.
The EU is more of a threat to us than Russia ( or China) is.
An all time classic:)
And most do not pay their fair share. Instead, they have generous welfare programs. IOW, the USA has been subsidizing their socialism for the mohammadans.
Every military decision the UK, France, Spain, Turkey, etc. make will be strongly influenced by fear of their muslim population uprising. Do we want important military decisions based on fear of extremist radical muslims? It’s those nations that allowed themselves to surrender to islam. We shouldn’t be having to defend it.
Given the Euroweenies’ stupidity, they’ll probably enlist the migrants🙄
Everybody knows that Russia in no threat to Europe.
The war with Ukraine and in Iran has shown with no doubt that aside from missiles, the Russian weapons and air defense systems are ineffective. All those who purchased the air defense systems know with certainty that they are actually no good.
*********
More importantly, Russia is no threat to the USA and is not our enemy.
In the “be careful what you wish for,” Germany has budgeted an increase in defense spending to 3.5 percent of GDP. This will swamp the combined defense spending of France AND the United Kingdom.
To France and the United Kingdom, part of the bargain ending WWII was that the U.S. would secure peace in Europe, pacifying Germany and providing the bulk of defense against Russia and the Warsaw Pact.
This bargain turned Europe into something of a protectorate of the U.S. They (the Europeans) became increasingly comfortable with having their defense subsidized by the U.S. in return for occasionally joining in our military adventures such as the First Persian Gulf War. This bargain turned into a joke following the fall of the Berlin Wall, when Europe generally cut back on its defense spending.
France and the U.K., two members of the P5, cut their defense spending to 2 percent of GDP. This spending was barely enough to maintain their defense infrastructure, and it was not enough to support any meaningful deployment of forces overseas.
France, for example, was not able to support Mali against radical Muslim insurgents. And, as a consequence, Russian mercenaries came into that country.
The U.K. has so far been only able to send one warship to the Middle East (a destroyer, sent to Cyprus). One stinking warship!
Other countries practically demobilized. Germany’s defense spending went down to 1 percent of GDP. Germany sold off most of its tanks and shrank its army to one corps.
With its huge budgeted increase in defense spending, Germany will become one of the most powerful countries in the world. WAY more powerful than Russia (except Russia has thousands of Soviet-era nuclear weapons).
As to whether Germany will be happy with the several hundred nukes of France and the U.K. is an open question.
Another open question is whether Russia is now thinking, like Japan thought, that the window is fast closing for it (Russia) to attack Europe. Japan, seeing the appropriations for the U.S. Navy attacked us, to try to knock us out of the war before we even got in. It almost did. But, Japan only woke a sleeping giant. A sleeping giant that was already in the process of constructing a two-ocean navy.
Well, the sleeping giant that is now in the process of building up the most powerful ground force in the world is Germany. And, the question is whether Russia will act now or else allow Germany to build up that ground force.
Lol, author doesn’t know that it’s conga line, not Congo line.
Unless she’s talking about some new sub Saharan shipping route...
Merz has admitted in private that they can't raise an army in Germany because it will be majority Muslim. The Germans aren't having kids and the Muslims are.
It would seem that: Hey, hay, ho, ho’, Shia Islam has got to go.
Qom and Karbala.
> More importantly, Russia is no threat to the USA and is not our enemy.<
Right on, brother.
NATO was formed to protect Europe from the USSR. The USSR does not exist anymore. Heck, the Soviet states are fighting amongst themselves.
Keeping NATO is like paying for boat insurance after you no longer own the boat.
EC
The direct distance between the US and Iran is approximately 7,000 miles.
Sitting here 7,000+ miles from this dumpster fire called Iran, it is patently absurd to surrender stable prices, a growing economy, and cheer on the loss of blood and treasure for a buncha jackwagons in power who try to look Sinister but can’t deliver running water in Tehran.
Maybe Hegseth could use another movie quote to further this cause. Like this one…
Western culture is getting wiped out by Islam via mass migration - and that has to be reversed - but beyond that there is a balance of power that’s going to tip toward China soon unless we stop it.
I think that is what this Iran war is really about.
I don’t care what happens to Europe. It doesn’t affect my life.
Just because Germany claims they’re going to rebuild the military over the next 15 years doesn’t mean that’s going to happen. As it stands now they don’t have the money. And their Muslim problem is getting worse, not better.
I seriously doubt that their expectations of rebuilding the military have much chance at all of coming to fruition.
It’s going to take a lot more than just the money they don’t have, it’s going to take an industrialized economy. They don’t have that anymore. They have genuinely de-industrialized. And that is continuing, it has not stopped or reversed.
If you haven’t been watching the news, Germany is re-arming and will be the largest ground force since Hitler.
Yes, and the only reason these European countries can afford their stupid green energy scams and subsidizing a gazillion Muslims is because they have to spend almost nothing on their own defense.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.