[MadIvan]

The German political class has lost its collective mind.

Regards, Ivan

The flag of Canada...before the trouble started.

[MadIvan]

Bump!

[goldstategop]

Believe me the leverage they exert is minuscule beside the fury of their bellows.

[Support Free Republic]

God bless our troops. Come home safe, and soon.

[wideawake]

Although it was unutterably stupid of the Germans to take the stance they did, it was even stupider of the Russians.

[Mike Darancette]

I was reminded of the days when I lived in proto-Stalinist East Berlin and would cross the Wall into the West only to run into demonstrators protesting against the "illegal American occupation" of the city.

I wonder how many protests against the "illegal Soviet occupation" were held in East Germany, Poland, Hungary, Czechlosovkia, the Baltic Countries .....?

[StockAyatollah]

Germans claim to have learned the lessons of history, but on the streets of Berlin today the irony that their country is turning its back on the United States in favour of the likes of France, Russia, China and Syria -- countries engaged in places such as Ivory Coast, Chechnya, Tibet and Lebanon -- indicates that they haven't learned quite as much from the past as they would like to think.

Excellent point. Where are all of the protests by the euro-weenies about those invasions?

[afz400]

"They have to be removed by other means," she replied.
The only other way is to get another country to do the fighting for them, like the French do.

[Mister Baredog]

I stopped a young student with a "Shame on You Mr. Bush" poster and asked him why he was there. 'To protest against American imperialism," he said earnestly. And what of the pictures of Iraqis pulling down the statue of Saddam Hussein? "Didn't you see the looting

Ignorance is bliss. The Iraqis sure seem to be happy even if "the world" isn't. I live in Los Angeles, less than 10 years ago we were plagued by 3 days of riots and looting because our fine "black community" didn't like the verdict in the Rodney King trial. Yes I said LOOTING, LOOTING, LOOTING (so what)

[headsonpikes]

Red Ensign bump.

[Billthedrill]

What has happened in Germany happened in the United States for a time under the Clinton administration - the ascension of a 60s-bred ruling class steeped in internationalism, its members convinced of their own moral and intellectual superiority, and utterly opposed to nationalist identity, sovereignty, and independence. Their efforts on behalf of peace through world government wouldn't be so bad if their model for that government weren't centralist, bureaucratic, elitist, and coercive, a sort of EU writ large.

It won't work - it is already creaking under its own unwieldiness and inflexibility, and is supremely subject to being suborned by a determined "maximum leader." Chirac sees himself in that role in Europe. Clinton sees himself in that role worldwide. It is essentially a large organization full of representatives of smaller organizations, themselves representatives of still smaller ones - it is the model from which the Soviet Union was built. The attraction it has to a self-proclaimed elite is that it allows a very small number of people - a vanguard - to wield an inordinate amount of power - oh, for the purposes of good, of course, but that is a self-defined good that its supposed beneficiaries, poor unenlightened souls, find rather dubious. The principal problem is that it can promise peace and prosperity but cannot deliver, and so with the German government of the moment, so with its East German predecessor built on the same ideological hopes, so with the Soviet Union itself.

[dfwgator]

Time to lecture these guys on the Berlin Airlift and the 31 US Servicemen who lost their lives to keep Berlin from starving from the RUSSIANS.

[expatguy]

bump

[mass55th]

From my WWII desk calendar:

On this day in 1945, the Soviet government announces that German citizens are to be shipped into Russia to help rebuild the cities, railroads, and roads their army destroyed.

Hmmm. Maybe we should start shipping in Germans, Russians and Frenchmen to rebuild Iraq...especially Russians and Frenchmen since they were so helpful to Saddam's regime after the sanctions were in place.

[EaglesUpForever]

"Our history has told us that all war is wrong."

Someone pointed out that while france has malicious intent in their "anti-war" stance (i.e., they would love to see Israel destroyed and enjoyed oil and nuclear deals with Saddam), Germany's opposition to the war is more truly "anti-war" (in the sense of "all war is wrong") and a bit less "pro-Saddam." Can almost forgive these misguided souls.

[JDGreen123]

Great article and analysis. Of course we forced pacifism on Germany and Japan and now we might need both as military allies. It is kind of scary to see the clouds swirling. Are we looking at the expansion of this war to "world war" status?

We see the allies forming: US, UK, Israel, Japan, Some Eastern European Countries. We also see the axis forming: France, Germany, Russia, North Korea, the Muslim World. I am not sure where China would fit. They could be on either side or could sit it out and claim the leftovers. This could get ugly in a hurry if sparks continue to fly.

[VOA]

bump

[xm177e2]

"I am proud to be German again," she told me. "Our history has told us that all war is wrong." War against dictators too? "They have to be removed by other means," she replied.

I thought that's what Neville Chamberlain said?

[Petronski]

"Our history has told us that all war is wrong." War against dictators too? "They have to be removed by other means," she replied.

This is no doubt a position designed to place moral distance between herself and Nazism, but look at the result: All war, even war against dictators, is wrong. That means the Allied war effort in WWII was wrong, which means Hitler would have been left in power, in possession of his spoils (i.e., Europe).

This poor stupid fool has spun herself into a logical paradox and doesn't even know it.

Abject pacifism IS an alliance with tyranny.

[Havoc]

What this is really all about is political leaders in socialist countries trying to save face because they don't like the notion of people rising up in a manner of war to fight against oppression and abuse. It isn't about anything so noble as wanting to spare innocent lives - it's about protecting their poshly pampered butts. And it's part and parcel to socialists and communists - even of philosophers and religions and clubs. Keep them dumb, tired, confused and angry at someone else. Misinform and disarm. It's why our forefathers said Congress shall make no law abridging the right to hold and bear arms. Our forefathers recognized that there is a right and a need for people to be able to take up arms against oppression. And it's what makes us unique in the world - and dangerous to Democrats.

[Cacique]