Posted on 12/11/2009 5:05:29 AM PST by Homer_J_Simpson
William L. Shirer, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich
From what I remember Finland is the only country that has ever repaid their entire war debt owed to the U.S. In the late 1970’s, I remember hearing about a local family of Finnish ancestry, who were quite proud that Finland had repaid the debt and they requested the town fly the Finnish flag with the American flag,for a short period of time, in order to honor/celebrate the repayment of the debt. I thought that was kind of cool.
http://www.onwar.com/chrono/1939/dec39/f11dec39.htm
Red Army division encircled at Soumussali
Monday, December 11, 1939 www.onwar.com
In the Winter War... The Soviet 163rd Division is cut off in Suomussalmi by the attacks of the Finnish 9th Brigade.
In Geneva... After Finland asks for concrete aid, “not merely words of encouragement,” the League of Nations agrees to intervene in the conflict between Finland and the USSR. This is one of the few times that the League has attempted to take a decisive stand. The League urges the Soviet Union to cease hostilities in Finland within 24 hours and accept mediation.
In the General Government... A forced labor program is instituted for all Jews.
In Berlin... Hitler meets with Vidkun Quisling, the head of the pro-Nazi Norwegian National Unity Party.
In Britain... To IRA activists, Barnes and Richards, are sentenced to death for the murder of 5 people in Coventry on August 25, 1939 at the end of the Coventry Explosion trial.
My old Panzer General II game has a “Suomussalmi” scenario. Homer’s map looks pretty much like the game map, and the Finnish strategy would be about the same.
It’s an older computer game (I still play it) but the problem with it is that it does not properly account for climate and terrain. If you try to fight the historical scenario with the actual units, the Soviets sweep away the Finns with superior firepower, and can move tanks through the forests with relative ease. It’s an operational level game with each unit representing a regiment or battalion. The game works well if you are re-creating a large scale stand-up fight in relatively open terrain, such as the Germans crossing the Meuse at Sedan or the invasion of Poland. It does not account for small unit tactics, which was the type of combat forced upon the Soviets by climate and terrain. And which the Finns obviously excelled at.
So Dr. Keppel thinks many of the degrees heaped upon people in 1939 mean “literally nothing.” I guess today they would be called “climate scientists.” Perhaps they could use their meaningless degrees for something useful, like winning a Nobel Peace Prize.
Communists penetrating the Consumer’s Union? No, couldn’t be. They’d never come up with an out-and-out communist under the guise of a “consumer’s advocate,” could they? Nah...couldn’t happen....
In the Tolvajärvi battle area, Colonel Talvela issues the order for the decisive attack.
Photo: SA-KUVA
Russian regiment shatters Finnish defences in Salla
I don’t know what it is, but when I see these daily reports I always get an urge to turn up the heater.
LOL! Yeah, me too. And with my being on blood thinners I’m ALWAYS cold.
This article starts out great, but ends with a horrifying thought -- the triumph of "one world government."
In all fairness, no doubt the good Rabbi was thinking of the yet-to-be-born new United Nations, and also no doubt, like it's "father," Franklin Roosevelt, Rabbi Glazer had no clue of the monstrosity the UN would eventually turn into.
The Good Rabbi thought the “one world government” would be a representative democracy that recognized the Rule of Law just like the United States. Many well-meaning people had the same intentions for the UN. However, the Rule of Law has historically been an anomaly as a means of government. Instead of winning out over totalitarian regimes, it instead has succumbed to them. I don’t believe the Rule of Law is alive in any nation in the world at this time.
I think FDR knew exactly what the UN was to become
No way. What FDR envisioned was the "Big Five" permanent security council members imposing peace on the rest of the world.
He did not imagine that some of the nuclear armed Big Five would permanently oppose others, and in so doing arm and encourage revolutionary proxies to fight it out for them.
Remember that Roosevelt did not outlive the Second World War, and in the end not only his body deteriorated, but his mind was fixed on problems of the past.
The post-war Cold War was way beyond his level of thinking, even in 1945.
Great post, and just one of many I much enjoy and appreciate from you.
FWIW, Britain is finally paying the last of its WWII debts (those from WWI remain unpaid).
And here's something that floored me: Germany has almost paid off its WWI reparations. They stopped with the Depression and Hitler, and started up again when the country was reunited in 1990.
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