lectue 8 WWI

Lecture 8 WWI

Progressives and war- Many progressives believed in strong government and thought the Wilson Administration's efforts to mobilize resources woset US on a course for more government intervention in the economy. The War Industries Board WIB brought management and labor together and did well by both. Corporate profits tripled and labor got an 8 hour day & living minimum wage.

People had only seen the savagery of the gilded age – so any kind of government intervention welcome for many – idea of free markets &progressive taxation, transparency, more economic knowledge ....

Labor in US did great in war – 4 million potential laborers drained off into armed forces, inmmigration shrinks from million in 1914 to 110,000 1918

arbitration of labor disputes instead of police and armies siding with capital

Wilson had done tariff reform – taken much tax load off the poor – altho still 29% on consumption – the poor consume a much higher % of their income compared to the rich who save and invest. Tariffs are also heavier - on average - on things that are bought by the poor compared to luxuries.

US paid for much of war increased taxes – heavy excess profits taxes & income taxes max rate 77% & estate tax. For the first time in American history the people most-able-to-pay financed a moderate part of the burden of war while the real income of farmers and labor increased during wartime

PROHIBITION - 19 states were already Dry and the war provided a boost for prohibitionists – the moral crusade could also save millions of bushels of grain for the allies and screw a bunch of breweries with German names like Schlitz, Pabst & Anheiser Busch. 18^th Amendment passed enthusiasticly by Congress 1917 and ratified rapidly.

WOMEN'S SUFFRAGE - .Women organizing in unions. War = more opportunities outside home.

The Progressive image of women as independent is sinking in somewhat. Many states especially in the West where women have been scarce – have given women full or partial suffrage.

More militant tactics and linking to wartime emphasis on national unity finally pushes over the top. 1919 Congress passes Nineteenth Amendment – by 1920 2/3 states pass – Tennessee last.

BLACK MIGRATION

9/10 blacks still in South where violence disenfranchisement & poverty still rule. WWI gives a chance for escape – jobs in industry available – 10% go North ½ million - violent backlash – riots in cities and military.

Anti-German Hysteria and Civil Liberties

"Once lead this people into war and they'll forget there ever was such a thing as tolerance. To fight you must be brutal and ruthless and the spirit of ruthless brutality will enter into the very fibre of our national life, infecting Congress, the Courts, the policeman on the beat, the man in the street."WWilson

Creates committee on Public Information – most successful advertising campaign in American history

Espionage Act "disloyal profane or abusive language about flag form of government or uniform"

TR wants military courts – WW resists

sauerkraut is "Liberty cabbage" – just like the recent "liberty fries"

Oliver wendell Holmes had demanded a "clear and present danger" from speech but such is the momentum of war fever that even after war Supreme Court gave govt carte blanche. The court was rigid, conservatiive and gave it's approval to the hysteria.

This does lead to a backlash in favor of civil liberties later It produced the modern Federal court system which steadily expanded protections and opportunities implicit in the Bill of Rights. Not enough to save Japanese-Americans in WWII but ...

Wilson very reluctant – never deluded that intervention would be good for the American people but felt he must make best of slaughter – rally all people of western world in irresistable movement for peace settlement – mechanism to preserve peace – League of Nations- reconciliation and reconstruction

Wilson dissociated himself from punitive Allied war aims.

Opposition at home – Teddy Roosevelt wants to jump in early – liberal interventionist

agression must not pay Mohists

World background prewar - Causes of war

Rush for colonies – more markets & source of raw materials & prestige

all Euros and Japan believe Soc Darwinist BS so colonies are source of national pride & $$$– competition for colonies

Russian Pan-Slavism – emulating unification of all the Germanic peoples in Gemany - causes conflicts with Austria-Hungarian empire.

In June 1914 a Serb terrorist Assassinated in Sarajevo Archduke Ferdinand. Aus-Hun declares war on Serbia – Russia defends Serbs – and at this point Mobilization schedules seem to drive the rush to war. Noone can wait to get war materials and troops into position and seeing others behaving similarly are at the point where they must attack or demobilize and back down.

Reaction to War 1914

One of the shocking things about the outbreak of war was the enthusiasm for it in all countries.

Even many long-time socialist-pacifists responded with nationalist enthusiasm.

Almost all the Europeans had confidence that it would be a short war and that their side would win. Many hurried to enlist lest they miss the excitement and glory. People like Andrew Carnegie – who had celebrated the Kaiser as an advocate of world peace – had hoped and believed the world was beyond such slaughter.

Wilson has seen the horrors of war as a child – wounded & dead soldiers – Destruction and long term suffering.

He was determined to keep America neutral ' "impartial in thought as well as action"

Although Wilson had intervened often in Latin America he saw himself as a champion of self-determination, democracy and open doors to trade..

Troops and shell Veracruz to stop shipment of arms to Huerta who had vioklent coup

Pancho Villa – hard to catch guerillas

ENGLISH BLOCKADE English were the first to interfere with America during the war. They installed a naval blockade of Germany with the largest and best navy in the world. Only an idiot would challenge.

Huge German Navy mostly stayed bottled up whole war.

America protested but got used to it. Less naval power Germans must resort to much messier tactic.

The economy flourished trading with the Allies and US financiers made extensive loans to the English.

War in America – a few families of note:

very wealthy industrialist Samuel Bush – father of Senator Prescott Bush – Member of what Dwight David Eisenhower (a golfing partner) – one of our great Americans – called the Military Industrial Complex - $$ RR equipment mfg dealing Morgan and Rockefeller – War industries board passed out contracts and got much richer and made even more rich friends. First president of National Assn Manufacturers – big houses Ohio and Rhode Island coast – Fed Reserve governor

Family traits besides MIComplex$$ – Cheerleaders and pranksters $20 on a string

pretend to be poor populists Prescott pretends not enuf $ go Yale law

B43 pretends to bve a public school boy from San Jacinto Jr high – everyone from San Jacinto jr high doesn't get multi-million$$$ bail-outs from Saudis whenever needed

George Walker – even richer family - made money in dry goods. Bush and Walker families very wealthy since mid 1800's.

Joe Kennedy – an ambitious young up-and-coming Irishman -graduated from Harvard but very conscious of being looked upon aas inferior upstart - not accepted as a social equal – determined to prove them wrong for this humiliation – wants a son to be president if he can't. Married into a political family. Father-in-law "Honey Fitz" Fitzgerald made money in bootlegging and saloons and had a great political career until his vote fraud adventures got totally out of hand. Joe parlayed some family money into much more money in banking. Joe briefly ran a Shipyard which filled war contracts. The Shipyard had already made the family a lot of money with insider real-estate transactions concerning the land the yard was on. Joe next made a lot of money as a speculator in the stock market. Money began to flood into Joe's family as federal agents investigated huge shipments of illicit liquor during Prohibition. He was appointed head of the Securities and Exchange Commission on the throry "takes a thief to catch a thief" and did a great job. Then he went to England as ambassador just as Prohibition ended, just in time to get exclusive distributorships of Gordon's Gin and some premium scotches.

He had a very religious wife Rose, a houseful of competitive kids, and flaunted even on family trips starlet mitresses including a famous actress Gloria Swanson

The Kennedys preferred booze and sex, and only made a brief sojourn into the Military Industrial Complex. The Bushes went hard into the MI/OILComplex and its internationl machinations and remain there to this day with much family $ in the Carlyle group and Haliburton and other defense industries.

There is a reason George holds hands with Saudi princes – 5000multi-millionaires who are great arms customers, able to bail out a failing business or help pay for a covert war in Afghanistan and keep oil prices high but not too high.

Third pillar if Islam is rich share wealth – the saudis are not real Muslims – as Bin Laden rightly says.

They are parasites supporting terrorist education (Wahabi) system - helping US - Israel's biggest supporter.

In 1916 Wilson won re-election with the slogan "He kept us out of war" but a narrow victory – only 600,000 votes and 23 electoral votes.

Shortly after Germany started unrestricted submarine warfare. WW won't act or it will be too late

ENTRY TO WAR

March 1917 Russia – falling apart – Rasputin licentious self-styled holy man - stems hemophelia – maybe by hypnosis – gets vast influence with Tsarina – hysterical ignorant woman who selected ministers - assassinated - rumors of orgies and treason – inept and corrupt leadership – "everyone steals, and Christ himself would steal if his hands were not nailed to the cross."

Liberal revolution seems to give hope that Russia will finally move beyond the medieval despotism of Czars and serfs.

England almost out of $ - without loans war will end with negotiated truce

Allied Manpower bottom of bucket

WW in agony - desperately wants to avoid war – no illusions about allied punitive war objectives

He knew total war would do huge damage to democracy at home

BUT

1. Zimmerman Telegram – Germans ecourage Mexico to declare war aganist US if US declares war on Germany – get southwest back again. WW loses all faith German govt.

2. Armed Neutrality won't protect maratime interests & trade against Germans.

3. WW heartened by Russian Revolution March 1917which drove tsar from throne. Believed easier to make lasting peace with democratic Russia.

4. Germans sink 3 more ships Mar 16 – heavy loss US lives. Demonstrations & demands for war sweep country.

5. Europe could not endure this agony much longer. The war was in it's final stages and Germans aggression is close to paying off. Mohists - Kuwait Carnegie Endowment says "Peace through Victory." English shipping is decimated by submarine warfare - supplying troops is problematic – plans already to withdraw within the year. American help is necessary to stop it. Hoped to influence a humane peace and would have more influence as a belligerant than as a neutral outsider.

April 2 1917 – Speech to Congress – no quarrel German people – no revenge only vindication of human rights – and ended with statement of liberal war aims. 82-6, Senate, 373-50 House.

RUSSIA November 1917 Bolsheviks take over. After America comes into the war, the Germans shiped Vladamir Lenin to Russia in closed RR car - to the Fnland Station. Lenin was a - Bolsheviks lose election (Soc Rev or Populists get half – Bolsheviks get ¼ vote and stage coup just before the next election

Russia organized around worst elements of the ideology of Leninism. Connunist party - "vangard" could never admit error – dissent was treason. It would come to be ruled by Stalin - a potentate just as powerful as a Tsar but much more paranoid since he has no blood claim, only doctrinal purity. Since doctrinal purity and correctness was his claim to power any difference of opinion was treason.

Science had to be bent to match the political views of the state.

Reading bio of figure like Khruschev at the beginning each chapter we hear that 80% or so of the people we met in the last chapter have been purged. 10's of millions were purged or sent to Siberia. And the enthusiasm of one man – like Khruschev – could create a massive environmental tragedy – changing the Aral Sea from one of the world's largest inland waterways to a massively polluted horrific puddle which creates a cancer epidemic in all those near because of his unmediated enthusiasm for American irrigation projects. Armatya Sen points out that functioning democracies generally don't have famines – Mao's China could starve 30million on Mao's self-glorifying propaganda lies.. . Instead of Democratic Russia get a country where one man makes decisions rather than diffused decision making of efficient markets – works no bette than when JPMorgan does it in US -

Hitler only recruits Bolsheviks – does not trust Social democrats

Castro last Stalinist

Soviet Union enforces "political correctness" science too – Lysenko and evolution

White house oil lobbyist censoring global warming papers from Natl Academy

Nasa scientists told by a 24 year old Bush Campaign who lied about having a college degree – that "Big Bang" is against the White House religion so any reference must be followed by "theory" Loyalty to the PC view – purge of generals before.WWII (Stalin) or Iraq II (B43)

Bolsheviks Sue for armistice with Germans. The Germans are punitive in Treaty of Brest-Lovek but since Bolsheviks lose elections badly - clearly small minority distinguished only by passionate intensity and ruthlessness many Russians resist them. They have to stop fighting the Germans to kill 20 million or so resisting Russians. They need to take the land away from the peasants who have done what the American slaves weren't allowed to do – SIEZE THEIR LAND - so Bolsheviks can fulfill their theories with lame collective farms which turn USSR from great grain exporter to importer (Jimmy Carter threatened to turn off grain expports when they went to Afghanistan)

Russian agriculture only made functional by McDonalds' demand for good potatoes in 1990's.

Armistice frees 40 German Divisions for Eastern front – but can't quite deliver knockout blow

American navy turns tide against submarines – convoy system works. English can get more loans, and resupplied relatively easily.

14 Points Speech Jan 1918 - "Open covenants openly arrived at" - transparency

Freedom of the seas – removal of barriers to trade

General disarmament

Impartial settlement of Colonial Claims

League of Nations

Wilson was a huge winner in the Propaganda war – talk like Jefferson and Lincoln who all the world love. Tolstoi talks about how many Russians are sure Lincoln is the great man of the century.

The 14 points are a triumph – inspiring the world.

"Democracy and reconciliation" demoralized the German people in the first year after US came in.

It demoralized the German army in the next 6 months.

We hammered home our war aims – they were simple and inspiring –

Germany could not spell out her war aims of conquest and domination

Hitler and Goebbels learned this lesson well and concentrated on this in WWII

Inspiring does not work so well when it changes frequently or too too obviously hypocritical. We're losing elections – fundamentalists and tribalists instead in Middle East instead of secular nationalists – because the Arabs know the history AMERICANS ARE IGNORANT OF

Black troops get more medals than any other group of fighters – the French love them. American Protests - claims French are "spoiling" Blacks.

- November 1918 million American troops help end war - Germans collapse after last huge effort

The way the Germans lost the war is very important. The allied armies did not insist on unconditional surrender and march into Berlin. The Generals knew this simple rule – and wise leaders like Lincoln who listen to the generals and learn what they can do also. Pershing and Foch argued that unconditional surrender would only take a few more weeks but the Politicians were short sighted stupid An armistice in nothing compared to a clear victory. The German army was falling apart spontaneously A revolt in Berlin overthrew the Kaiser.

Pershing "We should be marching doen the Unter der Linden in Berlin .... under our banners and flags with battle honors streaming in the wind, behind military bands. THIS WILL ALL HAVE TO BE DONE OVER AGAIN" Learn this lesson WWII – Hiroshima?

112,000 Americans die 230,000 permanent disabled

An Influenza epidemic ravaged the world – another 20 million dead – greatly increasing disorder and suffering in the immediate aftermath of war soldiers crowded in hospitols

Germany has 2.2 million dead

Russians 1.9 million dead

French 1.4 million dead

Brits 900,000 dead

Peace conference

Wilson loses leverage in Congressional election he makes referendum on his leadership

German Imperial government collapsed so no military counterweight to Western armies

Brings no republicans to conference.

Cynical Europeans make him compromise in many areas.

Blame Germany.

Reparations.

Take mineral rich German territory

"stabbed in back" story gains credence since it's true – but used twisty by Hitler against liberals and Jews

Wilson does establish in theory the principle of self-determination

Refuses to intervene in Russian Civil War – Churchill wants to "strangle Bolshevik infant in it's cradle"

hmmmmm?

Carve up of Ottoman empire taking more account of French and British needs than self-determination

Refuses Japan's request for statement of racial equality – give them part of China instead

Japan does well in Naval Treaty 5-5-3-2 US/Brit 5 – Japan 3- France& Itraly2

Japan can concentrate in Western Pacific – US and Brits spread thin

Does get league of Nations

Comes back to America disappointed with many compromises but still most in favor of League

Don't break the heart of the world" but no Republican wants a foreign policy triumph

No Compromise – speaking tour - stroke

America withdraws from world in cynicism

tarrifs way up – cut trade – depression

stop immigration Jews and Eastern Europeans – Hitler can't send them anywhere

Reparations huge inflation in Germany

ZIONISM - After a long history of gruesome anti-semitism – Jews as "Christ Killers" and usurers - Jews thought they were making serious progress toward assimilation in increasingly more secular European states until the late 1800's.

The Assassination of Tsar Alexander II Russia 1881 sets off huge new wave of anti-Semitism and "Pogroms" in Russia. The flight of the Russian Jews increased anti-Semitism in the countries they were fleeing to – yiddish speaking insular clannish villagers didn't assimilate well. In France a Jewish officer was clumsily framed as a spy – in Austria populist anti-Semitism attracted a frustrated young artist, Adolph Hitler, who saw Jewish artists getting all the commissions.

perhaps the virulence of the Geman and Austrian anti-semitism was in part envy of the race of Einstein Heisenberg Mahler Klimpt

The new anti-semitism was scientific racism – so Jews couldn't escape even by converting to Christianity. The defenders of the Tsar and other aristocrats saw liberalism & science & enlightenment as their enemies. Aristocrats & Potentates convinced ignorant peasants to hate those most devoted to egalitarian liberalism – to the emancipation of peasants

A new movement started by Alexander Herzel among others – Zionism – Jews need a refuge - their own nation just like many other people. Zionists mostly secular, not religious Jews At that time some of the strongest opponents of Zionism were many of the 25,000 Jews in Palestine – and those – as in Germany – confident they were tolerated and accepted.

Zionism gains support of a major power when Arthur Balfour, the British Prime Minister issued a declaration in 1917. Jewish scientist had invented chemical process to produce gunnite – the gunpowder of the English navy – without raw materials there was no access to because of the war.

Balfour had tried to stop Jewish immigration with an "Aliens Bill" but simulatneously ashamed at the treatment of the Jews by Christianity and also in awe of the contributions of Jewish scientists and artists. Right to decide who will fit into the "community" of a country. Like Muslims now in Europe – also abused and oppressed by Europeans

England was also home to some religious elements who read much of the Old Testament liteally and believed that the Second Coming of Christ and the end times could not come until the Jews took over the holy land again.

for example of colonialism:

Vietnam – a troublesome colony for the French – but $ and pride in their "mission civilizatrix"

takes 5000 Brits to rule 300 million Indians – same # French needed to tame 1/10 the Vietnamese

Brits do thru "association" = thru native institutions –

French argue assoc? " a national history and ethnic identity far older than ours"

but decide on assimilation

– "no greater honor could befall a people than to absorb ideas and culture of France"

But young educated Viets study in Paris – enjoy freedom & comradeship of Latin Quarter

then have books and newspapers confiscated by colonial police who view as possible subversives

treated as inferiors

Emperors had forbidden rice exports – feed deficit areas, save for bad years

French make it a "lucreative export"

commercial success impoverishes peasantry –

Rich French and Viets landgrab expand cultivated acreage –

– 70% landless peasants desperate – cheap labor for mines,

RRs & rubber plantations 30% uneconomical small plots

Interlocking companies – Bank of Indochina – colossus owned French govt & Paris banks

Labor recruited im manner reminiscent of abduction of black slaves by African tribal chiefs

Rubber – Michelin - indentured workers blighted by mlaria, dysentery, malnutrition

Protected market for French goods

French intransigence and primitive capitalism drives Viet nationalists from moderation to Communism

Ho Chi Minh – anti Japanese – they want colonies too –

"Drive the tiger out the front door while letting the wolf in through the back"

visits San Fran, Boston, New York – dazzled by skyscrapers –

in Harlem impressed that Chinese have rights of citizen –

decides when he declares Viet independence will quote Declaration of Independence

Ottomans "Sick man of Europe" – falling apart – Russians, Brits, French Engl, Germans all want a piece – geologists knew there was very serious oil under Iraq and discovered under Iran 1908

When the Sultan was told of the oil he used a new land reform law - intended to reform the economy and give land to peasants – to grab Mesopotamia as his own private property

The Ootomans are bullied by everyone and try to play the powers off against each other.

They're wary of the Russians who are on their north border. Russians have always wanted a warm-weather port

The French were the first to invade directly - around 1800. Napoleon came to Egypt and DeLesseps dug the Suez Canal – which became a point of contention between England and France.

Brits won out in 1880's thanks to the machinations of one of their greatest Prime Ministers Benjamin Disraeli – a very proud Jew, a writer of romantic novels, and also an English nationalist devoted to and loved in turn by Queen Victoria.

The Germans – late to the race for colonies – only unifying in 1880' were agressively trying to make up for lost time. Their agressive Ship-building program especially worried the British. The French had been beaten and humiliated in war around 1870. To add insult to injury they extracted reparations from the French after the war.

Germany very aggressive militarization and expansion all around the world – feeling disrespected and unfairly excluded from the colonial land rush. Kaiser Wilhelm had a crippled arm – very important in a country that emphasized martial virtues and looking great in a uniform. He also felt dissed within Family - Victoria preferred Albert and other German princes. Many thought him slightly bonkers and scary.

Ottomans and Germans signed treaty 1903 – Germans would build Berlin to Baghdad RR and the RR gets oil rights either side track

Winston Churchill – then English naval minister – was strongly focused on the need for oil for the navy as they switched over from the much more cumbersome and less efficient coal.

Anglo-Persian Oil Company already concession in Iran.

The Sultan was pressured to break the German deal – Bank of England owned his debt and had control of taxation in the empire in sutuation similar to Neocolonialism like US had in Carribean

"Baksheesh" and threats 1908 – Sultan ready to sign with Brits – "Young Turks" surround palace and stop that.

Turkey is experiencing a nationalist movement. Closest to Europe and strong desire to secularize.

In 1914 – WWI breaks out and the Ottomans side with the Axis Powers – Germany & Italy & Austria-Hungary.

Brits invade – grab Iraq – (which is really an oil concession) and declare the oil concession "enemy property" and thus theirs

"our armies come not as conquerors but as liberators"

Armies get as far north as Mosul (big oil city) -

Lawrence of Arabia is the British agant among the Arabs and Lawrence is the British envoy – as well as fighting with the Arab forces.

Arab intellectuals seeing weakness of Ottomans and Sultan turn to nationalism

Faisil – elected rep – deal with Brits – you can have Palestine for Jewish immigration (agreement Weitzman) and Iraq and it's oil if we get Syria – center of Muslim faith and Arab Nationalism

Ottomans Young Turks want taxes from Haj in Arabia - Sharif of Mecca needs ally to oppopse Turks – Brits

July 24 1920 – League of Nations announces Mandate – Arabs double-crossed -Brits have another secret agreement with French – France gets Syria (splits off Lebanon for religious reasons to give Christians state they can control.

Leak secret oil agreements too – Iraq oil 2 pipes – thru Syria and to Haifa

French kick Faisil out of Syria - 8000 arab warriors on horses wiped out by tanks and machine guns – 1920 is "YEAR OF CATASTROPHE" for Arabs Christian infidel gets dominion over them,

and Jews get homeland

Faisil warns peace conference - Jihad in Lebanon, Syria, Palestine – Mufti of Jerusalem most pissed-

1917 american Petroliumn institute memo to WW – 40 yrs oil – need Iraq

1927 oil deal splits Iraqi oil between French cartel CFP & Anglo-Persian (BP) & Standard Oil

Middle East now generally –

like a kid in a neighborhood where hard work and responsibility do not pay

thanks to US & Brits in large part have been forbidden politics by forceful oppression since 1920 Letting democracy loose without truth telling - as in South Africa - recipe for ethnic-religious fundamentalism.