Father Knows Best
Member
I heard an interesting story on the radio this morning. It began by noting that Israel and Hezbollah are fighting in Lebanon (described by some as a "proxy war" for the U.S. vs. Iran), the U.S. is battling insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan, the North Koreans are test firing missiles over Japan, Iran is hurriedly marching toward membership in the nuclear club, bombs are going off in Bombay, untold battles are being waged in Africa, etc., etc. Of course, let's not forget the numerous terrorist attacks on the U.S. and elsewhere over the last decade or so, from the bombing of the USS Cole, to 9/11, to the Madrid train bombings, Malysian nightclub bombings, and more.
The commentator then noted that throughout the 1930s, Winston Churchill was loudly proclaiming that war was coming. He shouted from he rooftops that Nazi Germany was re-arming, that Japan was preparing to take China, and that Fascist Italy had designs on Abyssinnia. Not many listened to him, and the west infamously decided to pursue a policy of appeasement. Neville Chamberlain's "peace in our time" speech is a good example.
Of course, it turned out that Churchill was right. Today, we generally recognize September 1, 1939, as the beginning of World War II. That was the date on which Germany invaded Poland, triggering England and France to declare war on Germany as a result of mutual defense treaties among those nations.
But even then, did anyone realize that WW II had begun? The evidence suggests that few did. There is no record of anyone referring to the wars in Europe and the Pacific at that time as "World War II." The first reference appears to be a statement by President Truman in September 1945, after the war was over! So it was only in retrospect that the general public and historians agreed that the events of 1939-45 were a "World War", and labelled them as such.
Newt Gingrich has been saying that World War Three has already begun. Others such as Senator Rick Santorum and commentator Bill O'Reilly have been saying either that we are already at war against Islamic Fascism, or that war is imminent. I heard a speech by Senator Santorum a few weeks ago where he made a compelling argument that our grandfathers stood up against state-sponsored secular fascism in WW II, and our fathers stood down communism in the cold war, but the test of our generation will be how we respond to religious fascism, most prominently displayed by the radical Islamic fundamentalists that seek to impose their will on the world.
What say you? Are we already at war? Will we look back someday and agree that World War III began on 9/11/2001? Or has it not yet begun? If the latter, can we still avoid war, or is it inevitable?
The commentator then noted that throughout the 1930s, Winston Churchill was loudly proclaiming that war was coming. He shouted from he rooftops that Nazi Germany was re-arming, that Japan was preparing to take China, and that Fascist Italy had designs on Abyssinnia. Not many listened to him, and the west infamously decided to pursue a policy of appeasement. Neville Chamberlain's "peace in our time" speech is a good example.
Of course, it turned out that Churchill was right. Today, we generally recognize September 1, 1939, as the beginning of World War II. That was the date on which Germany invaded Poland, triggering England and France to declare war on Germany as a result of mutual defense treaties among those nations.
But even then, did anyone realize that WW II had begun? The evidence suggests that few did. There is no record of anyone referring to the wars in Europe and the Pacific at that time as "World War II." The first reference appears to be a statement by President Truman in September 1945, after the war was over! So it was only in retrospect that the general public and historians agreed that the events of 1939-45 were a "World War", and labelled them as such.
Newt Gingrich has been saying that World War Three has already begun. Others such as Senator Rick Santorum and commentator Bill O'Reilly have been saying either that we are already at war against Islamic Fascism, or that war is imminent. I heard a speech by Senator Santorum a few weeks ago where he made a compelling argument that our grandfathers stood up against state-sponsored secular fascism in WW II, and our fathers stood down communism in the cold war, but the test of our generation will be how we respond to religious fascism, most prominently displayed by the radical Islamic fundamentalists that seek to impose their will on the world.
What say you? Are we already at war? Will we look back someday and agree that World War III began on 9/11/2001? Or has it not yet begun? If the latter, can we still avoid war, or is it inevitable?
