sad thoughts on poly posters

[DinoDoc]

Originally posted by Frogger
At least the UK and France had the decency to make up their minds before they'd actually gotten a bloody nose...

The UK and France are largely responsible for the rise of Adolf Hitler.

[KrazyHorse]

Possibly (I'm inclined to agree that if Wilsonian ideas had actually been carried through the consequences would have been better all around). This means nothing. Two years after France and England had finally realised what kind of man Hitler was, the US was still sitting on its hands.

Britain could easily have rested on its ass like the US did in 1939. Hitler would probably have been satisfied with its neutrality...

[DarkCloud]

Britain could also have acted sooner and supported the Czechs and then the Czechs could have held sudetenland.

The lost of the high lands of sudetenland ceded the great czech nation to the germans, and therefore caused the collapse of the Czechs (who were BTW well armed and trained)

[KrazyHorse]

Originally posted by DarkCloud

They weren't nazis. they were fleeing them.

Einstein ring a bell?

And they expelled and persecuted others. Freud was one I believe

I think they were referring to Werner von Braun and his ilk.

Once the rockets are up
Who cares where they come down?
That's not my department
Said Werner von Braun

-He Aims for the Stars but Sometimes Hits London, Tom Lehrer

[KrazyHorse]

Originally posted by DarkCloud
Britain could also have acted sooner and supported the Czechs and then the Czechs could have held sudetenland.

The lost of the high lands of sudetenland ceded the great czech nation to the germans, and therefore caused the collapse of the Czechs (who were BTW well armed and trained)

Yup. Both diddled away their opportunities. One did so for longer (after Hitler's aims had become obvious to anyone with eyes, rather than simply mostly obvious)...

[Six Thousand Year Old Man]

Originally posted by DarkCloud
However, I cannot really see a scenario with Russia winning without the US.

Remember Stalin kept screaming at the US to do something, an invasion, or anything.

That he did... but the US and British did basically nothing for 2 years, except watch the Russians fight the war for them. Yes, there were bombing raids, but German production actually increased yearly from 1942-1944, despite the bombing.

By the time the US and British actually did something (invade Italy), the Russians were well on their way to winning on their own.

[DarkCloud]

I think they were referring to Werner von Braun and his ilk.

Sorry, I must admit my ignorance.
Why did he come to America and when?

-The only important Germans I remember from then who didn't flee to America were Heidegger and the statesmen.

One did so for longer (after Hitler's aims had become obvious to anyone with eyes, rather than simply mostly obvious)...

The american people... not america... but hte people have a tradition for not wanting to get involved in wars that they don't have an option to benefit from.

But yes, they were idiots.

Hitler was very clear in his ideas for racial purity (Mein Kampf anyone?)

[KrazyHorse]

The Sovs would have won WWII without US+UK help, IMO.

The turning point for the war in the East was in mid-1942, when American supplies were a second-order concern, and American contribuion to the actual fighting was almost non-existent.

[DarkCloud]

By the time the US and British actually did something (invade Italy), the Russians were well on their way to winning on their own.

But remember, forces had to be diverted to deal with the eventuallity of American/British assaults.

And remember Rommel in North Africa... Without the allies, it might have been possible to pull his unit out and fight the russians with them... Possibly unlikely, but it may have happened.

[DarkCloud]

...amazing how fast this digressed into a WWII thread

[KrazyHorse]

Originally posted by DarkCloud

Sorry, I must admit my ignorance.
Why did he come to America and when?

When? After VE day. Prior to that him and his team were still lobbing V2s at London.

[Six Thousand Year Old Man]

Originally posted by DarkCloud

But remember, forces had to be diverted to deal with the eventuallity of American/British assaults.

And remember Rommel in North Africa... Without the allies, it might have been possible to pull his unit out and fight the russians with them... Possibly unlikely, but it may have happened.

Forces were diverted, yes, but they were pretty minimal compared to the forces engaged in Russia. Rommel had 2 divisions - versus 180 (IIRC?) German divisions in Russia. It's possible that if the Germans had the extra dozen or so divisions allocated to France, allocated instead to Russia in 1941 or '2, that might have made the difference. But in 1941 and '2, the US had no troops in England, so the diversion can mainly be credited to Britain. The US troop buildup didn't start really happening until 1943 - by which time the Russians had turned the tide.

[KrazyHorse]

Why? Because he knew how to build a rocket that could carry a 1-ton payload a few hundred miles, impact mithin a few thousand yards of where you wanted it to, and do so at speeds which prevented enemy intecept.

[Six Thousand Year Old Man]

Originally posted by DarkCloud
...amazing how fast this digressed into a WWII thread

Not my fault, honest!

[Capt Dizle]

People are pretending they have a sense of history.