Roosevelt was a gifted politician, a leader of
historic proportions. His embrace of idealism was
tempered by shrewdness and cunning.
He remained always aware of which direction
the political wind blew.
Humanity had a way of twisting principle
into something closer to the needs of
human nature. Love. Fear. Power.
Strong feelings that often overlook principle.
"It's easier to fight for one's principles than
to live up to them."
Alfred Adler, psychologist.
Democracy is not just about counting votes.
What democracy denies the people open and honest
debate? In a true democracy only the people's will
gave leaders the authority to govern them.
Self determination.
Making one's own choices.
The population of any colony had little, if any,
ability to make decisions about their welfare.
Colonizers based their authority to rule on
governing by force. They took valuables from
the land's native people because they could.
The higher society rules.
More primitive cultures serve.
Imperialism.
Roosevelt would have Churchill free Britain's colonies.
How could you claim to be fighting for democracy
when you were repressing people worldwide?
Colonies must become free nations. Roosevelt insisted.
This provision in the Atlantic Charter was non-negotiable.
Churchill signed.
Churchill was alone fighting Hitler. The rest of the world
watched the drama, spectators to a battle pitting the
forces of democracy against the authoritarian's minions.
Signing some document about ridding the world
of colonies didn't matter. It was a splendid gesture.
Churchill was at war. Winning was everything.
Do what you must.
The promise of prosperity across the globe made
world markets, free of tariffs, so appealing.
Capitalists would work their magic by efficiently
directing seed money to the most capable performers.
Competition creates wealth. There are also losers.
Lost jobs. Lost careers. Lost communities.
Free Trade may have been an economic win overall
but tariffs were in the national interest.
Often they were protection against unfair
competition instigated by the predatory practices
of foreign governments and corporations.
Collective security. No more every nation for themself.
This was to be League of Nations 2.0. The U.S. would
play the leading role. There would be a council made up
of the four great powers: U.S.A., Soviet Union, Britain
and China. They would provide the oversite of
smaller nations.
A world body of peace could not be based upon
lack of trust. War's end revealed new threats
to peace. The unnatural alliance between the Capitalist
West and Communist East ended with the death of Hitler.
Cooperation was no longer in the national interest.
The oppressed workers eventually win the struggle
with their capitalist overseers and find real freedom.
Lenin predicted the class struggle would end with
spontaneous worker revolts in the most advanced
industrial nations worldwide. Stalin saw a more
traditional victory of territorial conquest, peaceful
or otherwise, and with the Kremlin in control.
The East and West were now adversaries.
It would be up to the diplomats to keep
them out of war.
* * * * *
OVER EASY
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