Posted on 02/05/2018 1:19:13 PM PST by GoldenState_Rose
"It is the greatest success in the history of American foreign policy," Mark Stoler, editor of the George C. Marshall Papers in Lexington, Va. "And it plays to the best American instincts helping those in need.
"In the process, it clearly turned America into the world's superpower. It was the key component of American Cold War strategy. And it was an immediate psychological booster shot to Europe. Marshall's message was: 'Here is a lifeline that you can take advantage of. America is going to be the leader here and accept that mantel of leadership.'"
Georges Bidault, France's prime minister during the plan, said it "prevented the French economy from coming to a standstill. There has never been a finer, more farsighted gesture in history than the Marshall Plan."
Franz Bluecher, vice chancellor of West Germany during the aid avalanche, said, "Without the Marshall Plan we wouldn't have been able to recover."
Specifically, "the Italian government began restoring railroads and building bridges," wrote Prentzas. "The French government began building dams to produce electricity ... and updating the technology in its coal mines. Denmark modernized its steel mills. The Netherlands created additional farmlands through land-reclamation projects. . .. The most celebrated Marshall Plan project in Greece was the restoration of the Corinth Canal."
The governing body of the European Recovery Program closed shop by saying, "Never in human history has so much been spent by so few with such great results."
(Excerpt) Read more at investors.com ...
Now he saw a crawling Continent. "Warfare had demolished factories and other industrial facilities throughout Europe," wrote G.S. Prentzas in his 2011 book, "The Marshall Plan." "More than half of housing in large cities had been destroyed. Thousands of bridges and countless miles of roads and railroad tracks had been ruined. ... Nearly 20 million faced starvation."
Then there was this SOS from Winston Churchill, Britain's wartime prime minister: "A vast, quivering mass of tormented, hungry, care-worn and bewildered human beings gape at the ruins of their cities and homes and scan the dark horizons for the approach of some new peril, tyranny or terror."
Marshall also saw the peril namely the Soviet Union and in his Harvard speech called for America to ride to the rescue: "It is logical that the United States should do whatever it is able to do to assist in the return of normal economic health in the world, without which there can be no political stability and no assured peace."
He made clear, added Stoler, that "politically, culturally, strategically, militarily, it's in America's interests to rebuild Europe."
The primary result of the Marshall Plan was unmasking European elites for the arrogant ingrates they truly are.
Unfortunately, we did a lousy job of keeping them as customers in need of our products.
Right.....ef em.
“The Marshall Plan Led Europe Back From The Dead”
And the European Union will lead it back to ruin.
Indeed. Germany kept most of its socialist laws enacted by Hitler. Georges Marshall was a traitor, a Sovietist who promoted what would become the EU at the expense of the US
They were customers in need of our products because their industry had been pounded into non-existence. Any recovery would inevitably result in more self-sufficiency.
Much like myself, Marshall is a proud VMI alumni. As a cadet, I remember giving some German tourists a tour of VMI. In front of the George C. Marshall statue they became noticeably excited. I asked what they were saying and a woman explained, they’re saying “Thank you Marshall.”
Any relation?
I always become wary when proposals and events are characterized as “the greatest ever” and their promoters praised as saints.
Yes, Europe was certainly destroyed after WWII. Great advances in production would naturally occur because once you hit zero, the only way to go is up.
I simply don’t know the details of the Marshall plan to say how effective it really was. I guarantee you that journalists writing about it today know even less.
Europe will die.
The Marshal plan made the assumption that Europeans and Americans shared common values and a common culture. That assumption may be very wrong today. If asked, Americans would take great pause before they again sacrificed blood and immense treasure to rescue modern Europe from its mistakes.
Europe never recovered from the Great War.
I had the high privilege of living in Gen. Marshall’s house, in Leesburg, Virginia, for seven years, from ‘95 to 2002. I learned a lot about the man. Truly his greatness was in:
Selflessness.
Modesty.
Intelligence.
Rock-solid integrity.
Regrettably, the EU ruling elite is now selling out their nations to the IslamoNazi invasion.
We wasted our money helping rebuild them
I know about a dozen Dutch and Belgian chaps 40 to 50 years old and only 1 couple has but 1 child. Their importing the muzzies is a huge huge mistake. Within 20 years we will be back in Europe, saving them yet again
they will definitely need the Islamics repatriated or otherwise removed
but will USA rescue Europe again?
there are several reasons to think maybe not...
1. they’re suiciding themselves by letting the Muslims in
2. there’s always a pretty significant minority of Americans who do not support helping any allies or foreigners, this reflects the “avoid foreign entanglements” advice of yore.. call it isolationism or whatever one wishes... it exists, and
3. by that time, America itself will be in deep doo doo (the Muslim invasion is CONTINUING even NOW under President Trump! and you can go see them almost any day practicing at the rifle range)
Too bad that the nation that suffered the most during the war, Poland, didn’t get to be a recipient.
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