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From: alan@sdcrdcf.UUCP (Alan Algustyniak)
Newsgroups: net.politics
Subject: Re: Wisdom of European Heads of State
Message-ID: <1499@sdcrdcf.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 26-Nov-84 16:34:56 EST
Article-I.D.: sdcrdcf.1499
Posted: Mon Nov 26 16:34:56 1984
Date-Received: Thu, 29-Nov-84 03:46:26 EST
References: <6166@mcvax.UUCP> <3171@ucbvax.ARPA> <47@uwvax.UUCP> <106@talcott.UUCP> <679@erix.UUCP> <2797@ucbcad.UUCP> <358@whuxl.UUCP>
Reply-To: alan@sdcrdcf.UUCP (Alan Algustyniak)
Organization: System Development Corp. R+D, Santa Monica
Lines: 29
Summary: 

>> If the weapons are in Western Europe, it is because the elected heads of
>> state of these countries saw fit to have them put there.
>> 	Wayne
>
>It is the past "wisdom" of such leaders that led to World Wars I and II.
>tim sevener whuxl!orb

Tim, i'm surprised at you for making such an obviously untrue stmt. You
are usually very clever at distorting the facts.  Perhaps you just weren't
thinking when you let this slip thru.

First of all, both Wayne and you are making a mistake by putting the
responsibility for the "weapons in Western Europe" on the leaders. As
Wayne stated, they're elected.  It is the wisdom (insert your own
quote marks as you see fit) of the *people*. In last year's elections,
the anti-defense groups made the election a mandate on the Pershing
missle issue. The people elected leaders who would act to install them.

The circumstances leading to WWI had nothing to do with a build-up of
weapons, and little to do with "wisdom" of the leaders.  WWI started
very sloppily. I refer you to "The Guns of August" by Margaret Tuchman.

WWII started because the leaders of the past did *not* have the wisdom
to keep their country prepared to defend itself, both in terms of
modern and plentiful weaponry, and in terms of morale.  The type of
thinking Wayne refers to, if applied to 1937 Europe, would have
*prevented* WWII. It was the *opposite* thinking that led to WWII.

	sdcrdcf!alan