Comments on: Joseph Biden http://hansmast.com/2008/08/joseph-biden/ Pictures of the world, religious commentary, political thoughts, technology Tue, 11 Oct 2011 15:12:58 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=abc hourly 1 By: Caleb Bontrager http://hansmast.com/2008/08/joseph-biden/comment-page-1/#comment-331283 Caleb Bontrager Mon, 25 Aug 2008 11:43:56 +0000 http://hansmast.com/?p=743#comment-331283 Hans - absolutely correct in your follow up comments. I agree entirely. If you ever have the bent, Churchill's memoirs of WWII are fascinating to read. He draws heavily from his actual memo's issued during the events, which to me lends additional credibility above and beyond that of "he was there". Hans – absolutely correct in your follow up comments. I agree entirely.
If you ever have the bent, Churchill’s memoirs of WWII are fascinating to read. He draws heavily from his actual memo’s issued during the events, which to me lends additional credibility above and beyond that of “he was there”.

]]> By: Caleb Bontrager http://hansmast.com/2008/08/joseph-biden/comment-page-1/#comment-331225 Caleb Bontrager Mon, 25 Aug 2008 02:59:20 +0000 http://hansmast.com/?p=743#comment-331225 Hans, Tho it is a moot point in the broader discussion, I slightly disagree with your comment regarding Czechoslovakia circa 1938. By 1938, German rearmament had already reached a point where war was inevitable. If France would have assured Czechoslovakia it would stand by it's obligations to her, then Germany would not have invaded *at that time*. Winston Churchill quotes Marshal Keitel from the Nuremburg trials on this point in his historical account, "The Gathering Storm". Colonel Eger, representing Czechoslovakia, asked Marshal Keitel: "Would the Reich have attached Czechoslovakia in 1938 if the Wester Powers had stood by Prague?" Marshal Keitel answered: "Certainly not. We were not strong enough militarily. The object of Munich (i.e., reachin an agreement at Munich) was to get Russia out of Europe, to gain time, and to complete the German armaments." Thus insinuating that Germany was preparing for war, and merely would have waited until armaments had completed to a satisfactory point had the Western powers stood by Czechoslovakia. To truly have averted WWII, Britain and France would needed to have responded quite differently in 1933 when Germany left the Disarmament Convention. Although, If I remember correctly, Churchill notes that he believed war could have been averted as late as 1936... Hans, Tho it is a moot point in the broader discussion, I slightly disagree with your comment regarding Czechoslovakia circa 1938.
By 1938, German rearmament had already reached a point where war was inevitable. If France would have assured Czechoslovakia it would stand by it’s obligations to her, then Germany would not have invaded *at that time*. Winston Churchill quotes Marshal Keitel from the Nuremburg trials on this point in his historical account, “The Gathering Storm”.

Colonel Eger, representing Czechoslovakia, asked Marshal Keitel: “Would the Reich have attached Czechoslovakia in 1938 if the Wester Powers had stood by Prague?”
Marshal Keitel answered:
“Certainly not. We were not strong enough militarily. The object of Munich (i.e., reachin an agreement at Munich) was to get Russia out of Europe, to gain time, and to complete the German armaments.”

Thus insinuating that Germany was preparing for war, and merely would have waited until armaments had completed to a satisfactory point had the Western powers stood by Czechoslovakia.

To truly have averted WWII, Britain and France would needed to have responded quite differently in 1933 when Germany left the Disarmament Convention. Although, If I remember correctly, Churchill notes that he believed war could have been averted as late as 1936…

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