The European Theatre Revisited

James F. Gauss, Ph.D.

February 26, 2022

No, I am not talking about another Shakespearean play, but the World War II theatre of war in Europe.  Is the U.S. and the civilized world repeating the same mistakes it did in 1939?

The rise of the demonic leader, Adolph Hitler, in Germany was no great secret.  Hitler made his maniacal intentions very clear to Europe and the world.  However, on September 1, 1939, with his bloody invasion of Poland, the U.S. and the world largely remained unmoved and silent.  Just like Vladimir Putin of Russia, Hitler claimed the move into Poland was a defensive military move to prevent Poland’s mistreatment of Germans and to defend the Mother Land. 

Hitler was also taking advantage of the emotional sting of Germany’s World War I defeat where many Germans resented losing a portion of their country—the provinces of West Prussia, Poznan and Upper Silesia—to Poland under the Treaty of Versailles of May 7, 1919.  Under the treaty, Germany lost 13 percent of its territory and 10 percent of its population.

The similarity of circumstances of Poland vs. Ukraine and the mindset of Hitler vs. Putin are striking and should be sobering for the West. Will we repeat the same mistakes again and sow the seeds of another world war?

The initial response of Britain and France was a policy of appeasement with Hitler, even after he seized the country of Czechoslovakia six months earlier in March, 1939.  Instead of the European community confronting the aggressive warlike rhetoric of Hitler, Briton and France acquiesced to Hitler’s desire to absorb the German speaking western region of Czechoslovakia under the Munich Agreement of September 30, 1938.

Six months later, not satisfied with a portion of the Czech country, Hitler took over the entire country, violating the Munich Agreement.

Again, the similarities between the beginning of World War II and the current war in the Ukraine initiated by the Hitler wannabe, Putin, should be a giant red flag for Europe and the West.  Putin has not been satisfied with his conquest of the Crimea.  He wants all of the Ukraine and he does not care what havoc he causes or how many innocent people are slaughtered.  If successful—and he can not be allowed to succeed—he will not stop with the Ukraine.  Just like Hitler, he has his eyes on Finland and Sweden, which he has already warned against them pursuing membership in NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization), joining 30 other European countries for a common defense.

It is not like the European countries and the United States have not had enough warning about the Soviet dictator’s obsessions and intentions.  It has been eight years since Putin and his thuggish military took over the Crimea region of the Ukraine on March 18, 2014.  Yet, the world dithered and did nothing.

This too brings back a painful reality.  Pre-World War II, the United States and much of Europe, twiddled their thumbs as Hitler boldly proclaimed German superiority and territorial rights.  The U.S. only declared war on Germany after Hitler and Germany foolishly declared war on the U.S. earlier on the day of December 11, 1941.  It is possible, because America had already declared war on Japan because of their attack on Pearl Harbor four days earlier, the U.S. just might have let Hitler’s aggression continue in Europe unabated.  Instead, the U.S. Congress voted unanimously (88-0 in the Senate; 393-0 in the House) to go to war against Germany as well.  Could such a unanimous vote be achieved today against a warring enemy?

With the election of an unproven and unknown non-politician of Donald Trump as the leader of the free world, Putin and other tyrants were forced to allay their ambitions due to the unpredictability of a Trump presidency.  However, now that the world’s tyrants and despots see that America is led by a weak, bumbling, senile septuagenarian, they have become emboldened and salivating at their new and potentially unabated opportunities for territorial conquest.

Sanctions-Smanctions. Putin could care less about sanctions.  Tyrants do not care about the pain they inflict on others, even their own countrymen.  China has his back, as Russia will have China’s back if they decide to invade Taiwan.  They know that the U.S. military under Biden is weak, demoralized, ill equipped and spread far too thin around the world to be an effective deterrent or co-defender of Taiwan.  In addition, the “woke” American military leaders are more concerned about mandatory vaccination, transgender equity and environmentally green war machines than they are about military preparedness.

Sanctions, no matter how stiff, take weeks or months to make an impact.  Tyrants do not respond to sanctions, they respond to military might and defeat.  That is the sad reality.

Instead of sanctions that could take days, weeks or months and be of little effect, why not seize Russian financial assets immediately and appropriate them to support the Ukrainian people and their defense?  Seize every Russian oil tanker leaving a Russian port and re-allocate the oil or its proceeds to replace the Ukrainian oil and infrastructure destroyed by Russia’s invading forces.  Nothing would send a stronger and sweeter message to Putin than using Russian assets to fight against him and destroy his economic base.

The weakened and stretched thin U.S. military that was decimated under President Obama, strengthened under Trump and then destroyed again under Biden would not likely be up to a multi-front worldwide war or a joint military assault by Russia and China in Europe, Southeast Asia or the Middle East in a linked effort with Iran and Syria against Israel.  Think Gog and Magog of Ezekiel 38.

Putin knows that the U.S. is weak and led by a mentally compromised, do-nothing president that is backed by communists and communist sympathizers.  Other tyrants wait in line.  If Putin succeeds in taking over Ukraine, will China invade Taiwan; will North Korea attempt to strike South Korea and will Iran and its proxies go against Israel?  Much is at stake.  Ukraine cannot be defeated.  If Europe and the U.S. do not help to stop Putin, the world could erupt into an End Times scenario rapidly.

READ: Revelation 18 and the Fate of America, 2021 Edition.  Available on Amazon or at a discount on the author’s website here.

Tags: China & Taiwan, Europe at war, Russia & Iran, Russian aggression, World War II