Wanted in Modern Europe - A Return to the Fine Old Soldierly Virtues Of Kaiser Wilhelm, Hitler and Napoleon
john fernbach
Western European nations fought between 1914 and 1945, and for everyone
who loves to think Napoleon's glorious wars of conquest during the
early 1800s, Europe's current turn towards pacifism is a sad
disappointment.
What European leader today would have the sheer guts to launch an
aerial bombardment of a defenseless village, of the sort that inspired
Picasso's "Guernica"?
Sadly, almost no one. And as a result, a real beauty has passed from
this earth. For without more atrocities like Franco's aerial
bombardment of Guernica, where we will find our new Picassos?
Again, what British prime minister today would imitate Winston
Churchill in ordering a new firebombing of a peaceful commercial city
like Dresden? Again, virtually none; the era of British greatness has
passed. A cowardly concern for the preservation rather than the
destruction of human life has overcome all too many British
politicians, and no Churchills are to be found.
Who on the European scene today would follow Hitler's controversial but
still exciting and fun-filled decision to launch V-2 rockets against
the people of London?
No one, with the possible exception of a few IRA diehards and perhaps
also Italy's Silvio Berlusconi. Not even the German prime ministers
seem to have world domination on their minds anymore.
And that's a sad, sad, sad thing, for all of us who enjoy mindless
violence and the mass killing of innocent civilians.
Where has Europe's old spirit of heroism gone? Where are the Caesars
and Alexanders of yesteryear? Where is to be found a new Frederick the
Great, another Louis XIV?
Where are the new European crusaders to come from, men of valor and
bloodlust who are willing to sack and pillage Jerusalem again in the
name of the holy name of Jesus?
You almost have to wonder if Western Europeans haven't completely lost
their appreciation for the finer things in life.
Fortunately, that's not a problem here in the United States, and
especially not in Texas.
Here, MEN still love to show that they're MEN -- preferably, by killing
other men. And women and children, too, of course. And doing it in
the grand imperial style. And fortunately, there are still manly MEN
in the Islamic world also, men of valor and violence who are eager to
wreak destruction on the American warriors thrown against them, so that
the ancient game of war, bloodshed, vengeance, rape, conquest,
reprisals and mutual destruction of civilian life can continue forever,
world without end, amen, amen.
Scotius
<fernba...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>For all people everywhere who thrilled to the two world wars that
>Western European nations fought between 1914 and 1945, and for everyone
>who loves to think Napoleon's glorious wars of conquest during the
>early 1800s, Europe's current turn towards pacifism is a sad
>disappointment.
>
>What European leader today would have the sheer guts to launch an
>aerial bombardment of a defenseless village, of the sort that inspired
>Picasso's "Guernica"?
>
>Sadly, almost no one. And as a result, a real beauty has passed from
>this earth. For without more atrocities like Franco's aerial
>bombardment of Guernica, where we will find our new Picassos?
>
>Again, what British prime minister today would imitate Winston
>Churchill in ordering a new firebombing of a peaceful commercial city
>like Dresden? Again, virtually none; the era of British greatness has
>passed. A cowardly concern for the preservation rather than the
>destruction of human life has overcome all too many British
>politicians, and no Churchills are to be found.
>
>Who on the European scene today would follow Hitler's controversial but
>still exciting and fun-filled decision to launch V-2 rockets against
>the people of London?
Actually, German and French technicians helped Iraqi ones
modify their SCUD missiles to be longer range, and be able to hit
Israel. I guess there are still some people in Europe who are not
"pacifists", and certainly the European governments are not.
>
>No one, with the possible exception of a few IRA diehards and perhaps
>also Italy's Silvio Berlusconi. Not even the German prime ministers
>seem to have world domination on their minds anymore.
>
>And that's a sad, sad, sad thing, for all of us who enjoy mindless
>violence and the mass killing of innocent civilians.
>
>Where has Europe's old spirit of heroism gone? Where are the Caesars
>and Alexanders of yesteryear? Where is to be found a new Frederick the
>Great, another Louis XIV?
>
>Where are the new European crusaders to come from, men of valor and
>bloodlust who are willing to sack and pillage Jerusalem again in the
>name of the holy name of Jesus?
>
>You almost have to wonder if Western Europeans haven't completely lost
>their appreciation for the finer things in life.
>
>Fortunately, that's not a problem here in the United States, and
>especially not in Texas.
>
>Here, MEN still love to show that they're MEN -- preferably, by killing
>other men. And women and children, too, of course. And doing it in
>the grand imperial style. And fortunately, there are still manly MEN
>in the Islamic world also, men of valor and violence who are eager to
>wreak destruction on the American warriors thrown against them, so that
>the ancient game of war, bloodshed, vengeance, rape, conquest,
>reprisals and mutual destruction of civilian life can continue forever,
>world without end, amen, amen.
You've vastly oversimplified this whole thing.
john fernbach
I hope you can somehow forgive me -- <sob>. :-)
Seriously, I know all political questions are more complex than they
first appear. And I'm not a complete pacifist, although I thought I
was in my 20s.
But I saw some pro-war poster the other day who was daming the Germans
and the French for being too "pacifist" today - and I thought, "What
the HELL?"
As it happens, my grandfather and great-grandfather both served in
World War I, and my dad served in World War II, and I thought the whole
point of Americans fighting these two wars was to push the Germans,
anyway, towards being MORE pacifistic. The last thing that my
grandfather, my great-grandfather or my father would want to see was
German rearmament -- in any form.
Ditto Japan, obviously. Following World War II, under the military
governorship of Douglas MacArthur, the US pushed through a rewriting of
the Japanese constitution that virtually forced Tokyo to renounce all
foreign military adventures, that forced the Japanese to give up the
idea of having an army.
Now we have Americans, in frustration, blaming the Germans (and a
decade ago, some were blaming the Japanese) for not being militaristic
enough. Fifty years after the US, at gunpoint, forced the Germans and
the Japanese to abandon their dreams of global empire, Americans are
griping that the Germans and Japanese are not eager to join us in
fighting for ... global empire.
What a hoot!
As for French militarism - when was the last time you saw American,
British or German commentators praising French militarism the last time
that it was really practiced successfully - namely, under Louis XIV and
Napoleon?
Shouldn't the religious believers among us being offering up prayers of
thanks to God for the fact that the Germans, French and Japanese are no
longer out to bother their neighbors and conquer the world if possible?
Shouldn't the American patriots among us be thanking God or fate for
the fact that the British people -- with Tony Blair and some old
Colonel Blimp types excepted, maybe -- mostly do not want to resurrect
the British Empire? And shouldn't almost everyone in the world be
thankful that the Europeans and the Brits are mostly engaged in trying
to make the European Community work, rather than scheming against each
other and forming rival military alliances that might launch another
world war?