Franklin Roosevelt: The Truth

Franklin Roosevelt was one of the most influential and loved presidents that America has ever had.
He had a great will and a great charisma that helped him accomplish all of the goals that he wanted to enact upon. Franklin Roosevelt, used The Radio as his main form of exposure to the the Average american person in a way that no one else had ever done previous to Roosevelt.
Roosevelt was truly a man of the people. With the Ideas that he had brought in VIA The New Deal, he inspired a large amount of people (mainly middle class and poor) to go along with the reforms that he thought of.
He wanted to force the economy out of the hole that it was in and Strong arm it out of the depression, but in order to do this he needed more power. He need to incorporate more power into the executive branch without directly giving himself more power. The reason that he contemplated doing this, was because The 4 horsemen of the supreme court would never let him do anything that benefited the people and let down big businesses.
There where 9 total supreme court judges. three of which where always on Roosevelt's side, and two neutral ones. This meant that most of the time, the reforms where either denied or passed 5-4 or 4-5. Roosevelt grew extremely frustrated at this. this is where the questionable actions of Roosevelt come in. Roosevelt wanted to add 6 more supreme court judges in order to make the 4 horsemen's vote irrelevant. The 6 new supreme court judges obviously be appointed by the president himself and would be supporters of Roosevelt's Ideas. Roosevelt lost a lot of popularity because of this and was thought of being a little bit power hungry. 

Roosevelt appealed to all of the lower classes due to his absolute hate for big business and the upper class. He publicized this as much as possible, this is why he got so much support in his campaign and why he was able to pass most of his reforms and introduce 'The New Deal'.  He was seen as an enemy of the rich and of big business, he was considered a traitor to them. Roosevelt was also born from a wealthy family and was considered to be rich. 

He also played an an entire nation into thinking that he was a completely normal person.
He was a cripple, paralyzed from the waist down due to a negative reaction to polio at a young age. 

 


He may have been crippled, but the never showed the public that he was. he was very protective of this. He didn't want to seem weak or incapable of running the country just because he couldn't use his legs.


https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/when-franklin-roosevelt-clashed-with-the-supreme-court-and-lost-78497994/
https://www.moaf.org/exhibits/checks_balances/franklin-roosevelt/fdr-family

The Controversial Joseph P. Kennedy

Joseph P. Kennedy was the American ambassador to Great Britain in the years leading up to the United States' entry into World War II. Before that he was an investor and businessman who made a fortune in the stock market. Kennedy came from a family of Irish immigrants who had escaped the potato famine. He is best known for his political career, as well as the achievements of his children, such as President John F. Kennedy. Ambassador Kennedy's own political career, on the other hand, was tainted by anti-semitism and Nazi sympathies. The fact that a high profile politician held these views adds to the despair of World War II.

Being Irish Catholic was an influential part of Kennedy's identity. He was able to relate to the Jewish population to an extent, since the Irish Catholics had a history of dealing with discrimination and opposition. Kennedy decided to focus on what he thought was a big difference, however. He believed that the Jews were at fault for creating a world war in response to their plight, while the Irish people just went and made a new life for themselves in America. He bought into anti-semitism and using the Jews as a scapegoat. Kennedy understood the struggles that European Jews were facing and tried to establish homes for them elsewhere, but for the wrong reasons. He thought helping the Jews relocate would appease Hitler and stop the conflict.

Like many other Americans, Kennedy was determined to keep the United States out of another European war. He would eventually lose a son to the war he so desperately tried to avoid. His strictly isolationist worldview caused him to be constantly at odds with Roosevelt. Eventually his views transformed into something more dangerous. Kennedy accused a number of Roosevelt's Jewish advisors for controlling the president, who he claimed was poorly informed of Hitler's philosophy and ambitions. Kennedy thought the best option was to appease Hitler, and called the tyrant "just another businessman with whom a deal could be struck." At one point he was enraged with the Royal Air Force for defeating the German air force in the Battle of Britain because he thought they were just prolonging Britain's inevitable defeat. Herbert von Dirksen, a German ambassador, called Kennedy "Germany's best friend in London."

Kennedy resigned as ambassador after Roosevelt was reelected. Many journalists back in the U.S. condemned Kennedy's inclinations towards Nazi Germany and anti-semitism, but unfortunately the ideas were still prevalent in American society.

https://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/18/books/review/the-patriarch-a-joseph-p-kennedy-biography-by-david-nasaw.html
https://historynewsnetwork.org/article/697
https://allthatsinteresting.com/joseph-p-kennedy-sr
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_P._Kennedy_Sr.#Anti-Semitism

Pearl harbor

What was the purpose of the of bombing Pearl harbor?

Post world war II, America and japan had a sketchy relationship.
Japan constantly needed resources from the USA in order to defeat china in their own war. Japan needed the USA's oil rubber and steel, the USA was a very valuable resource to japan. Even though china was our Ally in the League of nations, the main isolationists in the US government forced Themselves to trade with japan in order to not upset and cause another world war.
This caused a lot of tension inside of the nation itself, with Roosevelt trying his hardest to protect his allies and with the isolationists trying their hardest to not get involved in foreign affairs that would get them involved in any fighting or disputes.
After the Germans/ Nazis  had attempted to blow up one of our ships, The USS Greer,  USA closed off all trade with any one that wasn't an ally (mainly focused trade with Britain). Japan Clearly didn't like this.
In order to get the resources that they needed, Japan needed to look for another outlet. Japan found this outlet in the indies and the dutch. The only problem with needing the the indies resources, was that the only thing that blocked japan from getting them, was the Philippines. At the time, the Philippines belonged to the US, it was mainly used as a bridge to get to china in a more efficient way and to establish a better trade route with them.
Japan needed to invade the Philippines in order to get the resources that they required from the indies. The main reason for the bombing of pearl harbor, and the slaughter of 2,000 + Americans and Hawaiians, was that pearl harbor was one of the US's largest naval bases at the time.
the Japanese needed a surprise attack in order to get the jump on the US. if Japan didn't take out most of the US's fleet at that moment... they would be screwed throughout the rest of the war and they would surely lose. After the pearl harbor bombing, japan thought that they would easily take over the Philippines and sort of roll into another war with the US. (the US at this point was involved with the war against the Nazis)






















https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/pearl-harbor

What is Lend-Lease?

As World War II began, many Americans wanted to remain neutral and isolated from the conflict in Europe. World War I had been very costly so many members in Congress tried to push a series of laws limiting how the United States could respond. However, as Germany's strength kept on growing, the US had to make decisions to prevent Germany from taking over. Throughout the war, President Roosevelt persuaded Congress to allow the United States to aid their allies, France and Great Britain, while still being neutral. This can be seen through cash-and-carry, where the allies could obtain materials and supplies, as long as they paid in cash and used their own ships as transport.

However, the war started to turn even worse for the Allies, as France was taken over by the Nazis and Britain was struggling to fight alone. It was soon declared that the United States would have to take action in order to stop the Nazis when British Prime Minister Winston Churchill sent out a message for help to FDR. Churchill warned the US that Britain's currency and gold reserves were running out and that soon they would no longer be able to pay for supplies.

Once FDR received this message, he tried to convince Congress to give more direct aid to Great Britain at the risk of becoming part of the war. The new policy that was made was lend-lease which allowed the US to lend supplies and be paid back later after the war. This still meant that the Allies would have to use their boats as shipping but it ignored the "cash" part of cash-and-carry. Roosevelt tried to gain support for this new policy through his fireside chats, claiming "We must be the great arsenal of democracy". This meant that the United States would provide the resources for allied nations to use and fight with.

The lend-lease policy gave the United States more power in the war as they could control where the supplies went without actually engaging in war. This policy was eventually extended to other allies, such as the Soviet Union, throughout the war. Overall, it helped the United States play a part in the war while people were still unsure if the United States should participate in the war and while the military was preparing to fight.

Sources:
https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/lend-lease-act-1
https://www.britannica.com/topic/lend-lease

The Office of War Information

The Office of War Information (abbreviated as OWI) was created on June 13th, 1942 after executive order 9182 by President Roosevelt. The office was the combination of the Office of Facts and Figures, The Office of Government Reports, and the division of information of the Office for Emergency Management. It became the sole source for wartime information.

This was not met with controversy. The press feared centralized agency as a sole distributor of wartime information, and others feared the office of War Information could resemble Joseph Goebbels operation in Nazi Germany.

Roosevelt put former journalist and CBS newsman Elmer Davis in charge of the newly formed Office of War Information. He informed Davis that the purpose of the Office of War Information was to “formulate and carry out, through the use of press, radio, motion pictures, and other facilities, information programs designed to facilitate the development of an informed and intelligent understanding, at home and abroad, of the status and progress of the war effort and of the war policies, activities, and aims of the government.”

The office created propaganda and controlled all war-related information given to the public. Posters, booklets, photographs, radio shows, and films were designed  and distributed to boost patriotism. Images and news were also censored. In addition, the government had to approve certain films radio and advertising. 

Photographers were sent across the country to document Americans doing patriotic work. They went to photograph factory workers and farmers as well as men and women in uniform.

Propaganda posters were everywhere as well, encouraging Americans to join the army, stay quiet, work in factories and on farms, watch out for the enemy, and support the war effort.

SOURCES

http://www.nww2m.com/2012/06/june-13-1942-the-office-of-war-information-is-created/ 

https://www.pbs.org/thewar/at_home_communication_propaganda.htm 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Office_of_War_Information

Fascism, communism, and other -isms

  When discussing WWII, the ideologies of fascism, communism, nazism, etc. are often heard in conjunction with Italy, Germany, and Russia. These -ism may sound similar to each other and are used simultaneously, but they have different meanings, impacts, and goals for society. The best way to fully understand each one is to define them and to closely examine the similarities and differences they have with other political ideologies.

Fascism:
   The word fascism comes from the Italian word fascio, which means "bundles." Commonly associated with Italy and Benito Mussolini, fascism is a rather complex political ideology. Most historians can agree that it tends to be authoritarian and extremely nationalistic, but the core characteristic can be hard to define. The father of fascism studies, Robert Paxton of Columbia University, has defined fascism as "a form of political practice distinctive to the 20th century that arouses popular enthusiasm by sophisticated propaganda techniques for an anti-liberal, anti-socialist, violently exclusionary, expansionist nationalist agenda."
   Mussolini created the term "fascism" and was able to establish the first one-party fascist state. He believed that democracy had failed, and that the best way to achieve unity and freedom was to unify the society under the state through fascism. In addition to this sentiment, violence was seen as a necessary and beneficial tool to rid society of anything that didn't conform to this order.

Nazism:
   Nazism (National Socialism) is a form of totalitarianism that was notorious during WWII for its takeover of Germany. Elements of nazism could be seen as early as the late 17th century, developed under the Prussian leader Frederick William I, and over time, it was contributed to by philosophers and intellectuals like Richard Wagner and Houston Stewart Chamberlain. The core elements that remained the same were the emphasis on dictatorship and racial superiority. Nazism shares many similar elements to Italian fascism, but is arguably the more extreme of the two. It places a great emphasis on ensuring the superiority of the Aryan race by eliminating all other enemies of its goal.

Communism:
     Communism was a political ideology created by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. It was created to prevent worker from being exploited under capitalism. Not to be confused with socialism, communism is a political and economic system where private property is effectively abolished. It strives to create a society where everything is publicly owned and managed, and where everyone each person can work and earn according to their needs and abilities. The fundamental difference between communism and socialism is that communism provides all individuals according to their needs, whereas in socialism, individuals reimbursed based on their participation.



Sources:
https://www.livescience.com/57622-fascism.html
https://time.com/5556242/what-is-fascism/
https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/nazi-party
https://www.britannica.com/event/Nazism
http://www.businessdictionary.com/article/1030/communism-vs-socialism-d1412/

Stanisława Leszczyńska's Mission to Preserve Life

Stanisława Leszczyńska was a midwife kept at Auschwitz concentration camp during World War II. Auschwitz was located in occupied Poland and caused countless amounts of deaths during its existence. After Poland was occupied, Leszczyńska's family was known for helping the Jews inside the camps by smuggling false documents and food to them. However, when their work was discovered, they were interrogated and separated. Leszczyńska and her daughter ended up in Auschwitz, but that is not where her story ends.

Most women who were pregnant in the camp were simply excecuted, while the Jewish babies who were born anyway were considered stillborn and murdered. Disgusted by this process, Leszczyńska decided to disobey orders and do things her own way. She was determined to deliver newborns and save as many as she could from being brutally murdered. Assisted by her daughter and other prisoners, she delivered and saved over 3,000 babies during her two years at Auschwitz.

If a baby wasn't murdered immediately, it was often "kidnapped" and given to Nazi couples as "Aryan" babies. Leszczyńska worked as hard as she could to protect the newborns she delivered. She tried to tattoo babies before they were taken so they could eventually be reunited with their true mothers. However, some women chose to murder their own babies before handing them over to Nazis.

A very limited amount of newborns were allowed to live (usually non-Jewish babies or very carefully selected Jewish babies), but they would die within a few weeks due to the terrible conditions at Auschwitz.

After the war, Leszczyńska returned to her home town and continued her work as a midwife. Her husband died in the war, but all of her children went on to become physicians. Leszczyńska didn't like to talk about her work at Auschwitz, but most people in Poland praised her.

Stanisława Leszczyńska was one of the few women who rose in opposition to the Nazis, and it was for her heroic and relentless work to save newborns that she was nicknamed "Mother."

Sources:
https://www.businessinsider.com/21-rare-and-weird-facts-about-world-war-2-2015-8#4-more-us-servicemen-died-in-the-air-corps-that-the-marine-corps-4
https://www.history.com/news/auschwitz-midwife-stanislawa-leszczynska-saint
https://www.argunners.com/stanislawa-leszczynska-saved-3000/

The Enigma Code

The Enigma Code was a code used by the Germans in WWII to secretly transmit messages without fear of the allies intercepting the messages and understanding them. The Code was made by a machine called the Enigma Machine, which was invented by Hugo Koch in 1919. The Enigma Machine visually resembled a typewriter and was considered unbreakable by the Germans. The first person to successfully decipher the Enigma code was a Polish mathematician named Marian Rejewski in the early 1930s. When the Germans invaded Poland in 1939, the polish transferred their code breaking progress to the British. Once the British got their hands on this progress, a code breaking group called "Ultra" under the lead of Alan M. Turning was created with the intent of deciphering Enigma. This group was successful in their code breaking, which helped the allies achieve victory in not only Europe, but also in the pacific because the Japanese used Enigma as well as the Germans.

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Enigma-German-code-device
https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/enigma-key-broken

Operation Downfall

Operation Downfall was a planned land invasion of Japan by the allies using the combined strength of the army, navy and air forces. The operation was first developed in early 1945 by chiefs of staff at the Argonaut Conference. This conference ended in the following proposed objectives:

1. The seizure of additional positions in order to strengthen the blockade air bombardment of Japan
2. An assault on Kyushu which would reduce Japanese abilities by containing and destroying enemy forces as well as strengthening the blockade 
3. A decisive invasion of the industrial heart of Japan

 On March 29, 1945, the US joint Chiefs Of Staff set a tentative schedule for the operation, working off the assumption that the war in Europe would conclude at the beginning of July 1945. Operation Downfall was split into two phases: “Olympic” and “Coronet”.

 Operation Olympic consisted of an assault on Kyushu, and its main purpose was to use the land acquired in the invasion for air bases that were necessary for the next part of the operation (operation Coronet). Operation Olympic was originally set for December 1st, 1945 but was later moved to a month earlier, November 1st. Only a small area of the southern part of the island was needed for the airbases (3,000 square miles would have been sufficient) and an estimate of 42 aircraft carriers, 24 battleships, 400 destroyers, and destroyer escorts would have been needed in this operation. 

 The second phase of the operation, Operation Coronet, involved landing on Honshu and targeting the Tokyo area. The goal was to eventually occupy the Tokyo-Yokohama area. The operation would have needed the support of the army and navy in the Pacific as well as units redeployed from Europe. It was scheduled for March 1st, 1946.

 The Japanese also had a plan to combat the suspected land invasion by the allies. This plan was entitled Operation Ketsugō. Japanese leaders did not believe in any way that they could win the war, however, they believed that they could make the cost of invading and occupying to high for allies to accept, resulting in an armistice rather than a total defeat. The operation included the commitment of the entire population of Japan in resisting the invasion. This is evident in the Propaganda campaign “The Glorious Death of One Hundred Million”. This stated that is was “glorious” to die for the holy emperor and that all Japanese citizens (men, women, and children) should be willing to die for the Emperor when the Allies arrived. The propaganda also depicted Americans as white devils, inhuman and demonic enemies.

 The main concern for Americans about Operation Downfall was the huge estimated casualties. The Joint Chiefs of Staff estimated that Operation Olympic (the first phase of the operation) would result in the casualties of 456,000 men with 109,000 deaths. Including the second phase of the operation (Operation Coronet) there was an estimate of 1.2 million casualties, with 267,000 deaths. 

This was one of the reasons that President Truman chose to authorize the use of the atomic bomb as a means to get Japan to surrender instead Japan surrendered on September 2nd so Operation Downfall never came to Fruition, though many hypothesize what would have happened if it had. 

Sources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Downfall 

https://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/world-war-two/the-pacific-war-1941-to-1945/operation-downfall/ 

https://history.army.mil/books/wwii/MacArthur%20Reports/MacArthur%20V1/ch13.htm

Thanksgiving in World War 2

             In the first year of the war in 1939, it was an unusual time for the month of October. Only one month after the Germans had invaded Poland to signal the first reaction of the war from the French and British, a traditional holiday for the Americans was coming up, Thanksgiving. Ever since the years of Abraham Lincoln, Thanksgiving was held on the last Thursday of the month. However, this year's calendar was different as the month had started on a Wednesday causing there to be five Thursdays instead of four. To try to help the chaos of having a later Thanksgiving, Roosevelt decided to move Thanksgiving a week early to the second-to-last Thursday. Many were unhappy with this change and renamed the holiday to "Franksgiving". Some compared this action to a deed done by Hitler, but Roosevelt wanted to look away at the negatives. He justified his decision with a "pro-shopping response": families and merchants would now have more shopping time between Christmas while bolstering up sales to finalize the end of the Great Depression. Many argue that this change started the sparks for the big consumer craze known as Black Friday nearly 80 years ago. 

          Many of you may say that "Thanksgiving isn't on the second-to-last week, it's the last week!" which then I would respond saying that you're correct.  This change lasted for the next two years, where Roosevelt admitted that he made a mistake moving the sacred holiday. At the end of the 3rd year in 1941, he made a final permanent change signing a bill that made Thanksgiving Day fall on the fourth Thursday of November no matter if it was the last Thursday of the month or not. At the time, most nationwide holidays were celebrated regionally by state, so only a few states decided to take on Roosevelt's new proclamation. Many states were too focused on the war to worry about holidays, so the change wouldn't be seen nationally till after the war ended. 

        Over seas on the battlefields, the government tried their best to provide a traditional, sufficient, and hot thanksgiving meal for their soldiers. In 1943, they were able to send two ships fully stocked with thanksgiving food, like turkey, cranberry sauce, and pies. This day gave soldiers a scrumptious dinner they could look forward too. However, even with good meals, many missed the feeling of home. Back in the US, there became an issue with rations, having shortages of meats and butter. Things did not get any better for the next couple of years, but many were starting to get creative, saving ration stamps, and using different techniques to get the food they want and create the best meal. Funny enough, the people had trouble finding chicken and turkey even though it was not rationed because many of the birds were shipped over for the troops. Even in the past, Thanksgiving was all about coming together and being thankful for what they, even if families couldn't be together. The dinner table may look very different now, but the holiday's meaning has stayed the same.

 

https://www.countryliving.com/life/a25020918/what-day-is-thanksgiving/

https://taskandpurpose.com/thanksgiving-through-the-years-and-wars

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franksgiving

https://www.dday.org/2014/11/27/thanksgiving-in-the-1940s/

Erwin Rommel

Erwin Rommel began his military career during WWI where he fought for Germany as a Lieutenant in France, Romania, and Italy. His outstanding military abilities became clear to his higher ups who offered him a position in the general staff, but even after WWI had ended Rommel declined all of the offers and chose to remain in the infantry. Rommel was extremely gifted at training soldiers which lead to him writing an informative book called "Infanterie grief an" (Infantry attacks) as well as taking up a teaching position at a training facility in Vienna where he taught officers. Shortly after the start of WWII Rommel was appointed as the commander of the troops protecting Hitler's headquarters. He developed a relationship with Hitler, and impressed Hitler with his abilities when he took command of the 7th Panzer Division. This prompted Hitler to send Rommel off to Libya to help the struggling Italians in their conquest of Africa. Rommel was extremely successful in North Africa, and he was given the nickname "Desert Fox" because of his surprise attacks. Hitler quickly promoted Rommel to Field Marshall and back in Germany, Rommel became known as the "People's Marshall" because of Propaganda portraying him as invincible. However in 1943 Rommel's offensive on Egypt failed because Rommel had over exhausted his resources, so Hitler ordered him to come back to Germany. When he returned he was entrusted with the job of defending the French Channel from an Allied Invasion. However, due to some disagreements with other Generals, the defense was very unorganized which lead to an easy victory for the allies along the Normandy coast. in 1944 when many German people began doubting the chances of Germany winning the war, there was a movement to overthrow Hitler and have Rommel take his place as the Fuehrer. This plan was thwarted when in 1944 Rommel's car was assaulted by allied fighter bombers which left him hospitalized. Hitler quickly found out about Rommel's plan after he was nearly assassinated and he offered Rommel poison to commit suicide with, so that Rommel wouldn't have to be tried in front of a court and have his reputation be tarnished. Rommel decided to take the poison and was pronounced dead on October 14th, 1944.

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Erwin-Rommel

https://www.biography.com/political-figure/erwin-rommel

The Office of Civilian Defense

Although America remained “neutral” in the first years of WW2, President Roosevelt looked to strengthen America’s home front defense. He replaced the Council of National Defense to the Office of Civilian Defense (OCD) to coordinate federal and local efforts to protect civilians in war related emergencies and to promote the upcoming war effort. By November of 1941, all states had their own OCD systems and auxiliary men in place, however their funds were lacking and had minimal equipment and supplies.

The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and U.S.’s declaration of war changed all that. The loss of American lives changed the public opinion in favor of war, and many Americans were eager to help in any way they could. Fear of attack spread throughout the nation, especially on the East and West coast. The OCD was soon overwhelmed with volunteers, and the Citizens Defense Corps were established to train specialists as air raid wardens, auxiliary firemen, auxiliary police, emergency food and housing personnel, fire watchers, medical corps, etc. Specialists wore special insignia identifying their area of expertise, with symbols for each unit inscribed in the OCD’s white triangle emblem. Communities participated as a whole, with “block leaders” responsible for keeping their designated area contributing to the war effort by seeking workers for factories, promoting war bonds, and collecting helpful information. The Junior Service Corps were formed for children, who helped their communities by doing scrap drives of used pots and rubber tires (made of materials needed for the war industry) and promoting the sale of war bonds. The OCD provided the public with survival guides, such as “Handbook for Air Raid Wardens” and “What can I do? The Citizen’s handbook for war”, and printing many posters to promote the OCD.




One of the first units created by the OCD was the Aircraft Warning Service (AWS). The main goal was to protect coastal regions from air attacks, but there wasn’t enough radar equipment to protect the entire coast, so volunteer “spotters” were recruited to keep a watch out for enemy planes. Volunteers organized the Coast Guard Auxiliary to aid the existing Coast Guard Reserves to patrol the seas and protect ports and trade routes from sabotage. Almost all Auxiliary boats were private owned, with CGA pained on their bows to distinguish them from civilian vessels. In addition, the Civil Air Patrol (CAP) was created to recruit private pilots to protect the nation from the air. Serving as messengers and reconnaissance at first, CAP planes were eventually equipped with bombs with depth charges to seek out and attack German submarines. CAP pilots were known as the Flying Minutemen of WW2, a reference to the private militia of the American Revolution. CAP planes spotted 173 submarines, and attacked 57, and logged millions of flight hours patrolling the coasts. In recognition, President Roosevelt made CAP a formal auxiliary in the U.S. Army Air Force.
While several limited attacks took place on the West Coast by the Japanese, US government made sure to limit their publicity. The first sign of aggression came when a Japanese submarine shelled a coastal oil field in the vicinity of Santa Barbara, and later a fort in Oregon. With enemy submarines appearing on both coasts, Dim-out rules were passed by the OCD, prohibiting car drivers or lights to be shone at the ocean within 16 miles of the coast in some areas. Blackout drills were also required, with San Francisco having 7 of them in the first month after Pearl Harbor. Japanese attempted to drop some fire staring bombs in Oregon, but failed to do much damage in the long run. Instead, Japanese military constructed hydrogen balloons that floated bombs all the way across the Pacific Ocean using air currents to drop them on the West coast, with some flying inland as far as Chicago. One such undetonated bomb was disturbed by civilians, causing the only six casualties caused by attack on the mainland of America in WW2. The Japanese stopped the production of balloons by the spring of 1945, with the last seen balloon causing a blackout on in an government nuclear reactor in Washington, which would ironically provide plutonium for the bomb that would hit Nagasaki several months later.

Sources:

https://www.encyclopedia.com/social-sciences-and-law/political-science-and-government/military-affairs-nonnaval/civil-defense

https://ap.gilderlehrman.org/resources/civilian-defense-home-front-1942

https://thumbs.worthpoint.com/zoom/images1/1/1216/10/wwii-sterling-silver-aws-aircraft_1_3abe485bec165b389341accf2b25a5c9.jpg

Bicycle Blizkrieg

During World War 2, the Japanese achieved a great victory over Britain through their conquest of Malaysia and Japan. This not only killed British morale but also marked the beginning of the end of the British Empire in Asia.

Singapore, known as "The Lion City", became a British colony in the early 19th century due to a treaty between Sir Raffles and the Sultan of Johor which granted the British East India Company the right to establish a trading post on Singapore. Singapore, which quickly established itself as a world trading power due to its perfect location, was invaded by Japan as a result of Malaysia's trade embargo during World War 2.

Japan first attacked Malaysia concurrently with Pearl Harbor in an effort to keep the US out of the war in Southeast Asia. Though outnumbered, the Japanese were far superior in terms of strategy and the consolidation of forces in comparison to the British. The adept Japanese air force was able to sink the British capital ships and soldiers used bikes to be able to move through the dense forests in the Malay Peninsula efficiently.

Britain, focused on protecting their most important trading port, had built a naval base and huge forts such as Fort Siloso along the coastline. Knowing Singapore was impenetrable from the sea, the Japanese planes dropped bombs over Singapore and advanced from Malaysia into the backside of Singapore in an area now known as the Woodlands. Because the Japanese had rode into Singapore on bikes, this is known as the Bicycle Blitzkrieg.*

The Japanese captured Singapore and their occupation lasted from 1942 to 1945 and had a disastrous effect on the Singaporeans.  The Japanese military police introduced a policy known as "肃清/Sook Ching" or "purging through purification" to get rid of those deemed as threats to the Japanese leadership. This policy mainly targeted the Chinese Singaporeans and resulted in the death of 25,000 - 50,000 of them. They also attacked hospitals and killed hundreds of patients. Locals were forced to learn Japanese or suffer the consequences and thousands of Japanese propaganda posters were distributed everywhere. Additionally, people were forced to give up their names and take Japanese ones and had to use "banana money".

The occupation ended as a result of US intervention in the war. After the detonation of two atomic bombs dropped by the US over Japan, the Japanese Emperor announced the surrender of Japan to the Allies via 玉音放送 (The Jewel Voice Broadcast). Less than a month later the formal surrender of the Japanese forces in the region occurred. Singapore went back to Britain temporarily but gained its independence through the rise of Lee Kuan Yew, who ironically had almost been killed due to Sook Ching.

Sources:
https://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_2013-07-19_113523.html
https://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/PTO/RisingSun/BicycleBlitz/index.html


*Having grown up in Singapore and attended school in the Woodlands, I had nightmares about this for years.

The Rise and Flaws of Communism

February 21, 1884 economists and philosophers Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels publish The Communist Manifesto. A new economic system built on a classless society where the government runs all sectors of the economy and everything is shared among the people.

Communism begins to gain popularity during the global depression where capitalism has thrown many countries into a severe recession. By this time many people are wondering if a government controlled economy could allocate better than the free market. Along with this communism has also started taking hold in Russia and China. And with World War II it spreads into Vietnam, North Korea, Germany, Poland, and many other eastern countries.

The appeal of a government controlled economy is that everyone is equal and without large gaps in wealth and class. However, in practice this is not what happens. When implemented communism removes price signals and erases any incentive for productivity leading to mass poverty and starvation.

Let's make an example, you have just been appointed Grand Czar of baking soda tasked with the most virtuous responsibility of allocating baking soda for various uses throughout Russia. At the time of your appointment Russia is producing 20 million units of baking soda and 10 million are being allocated towards baking apple strudels and the other 10 million towards antacids that alleviate stomach pain. Research has already proven this split to be the most efficient allocation possible. On day two of your new job you wake to discover that half of Russia's baking soda production has been turned into a giant croissant after a nefarious baker dumped 5 million kilos of flour and yeast onto Siberia, Russia's capital of baking soda production. With only 10 million units of baking soda left it is your job to allocate the remaining baking soda to the production of apple strudels and pain relievers. What do you do?

If you answered 5 million to each then you are wrong, a failure and disgrace to your sacred position. Although a 50% split was most efficient before it turns out that antacids, with a little work, can use aluminum hydroxide instead of baking soda whereas apple strudels require baking soda and only baking soda. The most efficient split was 8 million to strudels and 2 million to antacids because antacids could fill their remaining production quotas with aluminum hydroxide. How were you supposed to know this? You weren't. The only people who know this are the producers themselves and the invisible hand. Could you have asked the producers which one had substitutes for baking soda that they could fall back on in case of a giant croissant? Yes, but they each would have told you no. After all aluminum hydroxide is much rarer and harder to work with than baking soda.

However, there is another solution, the free market. In a free market society if a disaster were to wipe out half the baking soda then the price of baking soda would rise (based on elasticity). Strudel bakers would grumble but pay the higher price because they have no alternatives while antacid makers would turn to the now cheaper aluminum hydroxide resulting in the most efficient split without anyone needing to do any work (in terms of allocation). This is how price signals create the most efficient outcome without anybody knowing or even understanding how they work. Even if, hypothetically, you were an omnipotent super being with infinite knowledge on the uses and substitutes of baking soda, sitting at a desk all day allocating sodium bicarbonate presents an opportunity cost because you could be doing something productive, like shoveling coal. Whereas the invisible hand could do that same job for free (even with implicit costs (the uses of an ideological unseen appendage are not all that fungible)).

This example is just one of the many economic flaws of communism. Without prices to signal all the costs, implicit and explicit, to buyers there will be inefficiencies as low surplus consumers buy high cost goods because there was no high price to drive them away. Along with the incentive problem, nobody wants to bake strudels if 90% of them are given away to other people, communism fosters an environment where nobody is productive either because they were not given the resources or their productivity doesn't get them anything.

Sources:
https://www.history.com/topics/russia/communism-timeline

basic logic and economics