PureInsight | October 7, 2002
On the dawn of September 1, 1939, Hitler sent more than 1,500 airplanes and 56 divisions of military forces to invade Poland. On September 3, England and France declared war on Germany. World War II broke out comprehensively, and it was the most tragic war in human history, lasting 6 years. The total worldwide death toll was over 9 million and property loss amounted to four trillion U.S. dollars. Though the war ended when Germany was finally defeated, the misery, hardship, and spiritual trauma on peoples minds was incurable. In recalling this period in history, we cannot help but ask whether it was true that this war was unavoidable? Why had the democratic countries nourished the aggressions of Germany, Italy, and Japan, and silently watched these three countries prepare for invasions until they had finally attacked the democratic countries during World War II?
In 1951, as one of the policy makers of the allied nations, the British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, published a historical masterpiece, The War Speeches, which took him six years to finish. In the preface, he wrote, (paraphrasing) "The tragedy of World War II could have been easily avoided. Kind-hearted cowardice promoted the vicious malignancy."
Everybody knows that World War II was a war against Fascism. England, France and even Russia were all victims of Fascism. But when we focus our attention on the "Munich Agreement" of 1938 by England, France, German and Italy, and take a look at the "Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact" which was signed one week before the wars broke out, as well as the following series of economic agreements; when we seriously examine the responses of Poland and Hungary when Hitler invaded Czechoslovakia; or when we consider that at the beginning of the war, the Soviet's invasion of Poland in a perilous state and its massive munitions support to Germany, we have to conclude that to compromise with and to give free rein to the evil, hoping that one day the evil will find a conscience in it's heart and abandon its butcher knife is very naive thinking. To associate themselves with evil forces is the same as dancing with the wolves. These countries are subject to deadly attacks from the evil at any time.
On August 19, 1934, Hitler was appointed as the Chancellor of Germany. One month later, he issued an order to establish the air force, as well as to expand the marines, and the navy. That was the first sign of a war. In March 1935, Germany introduced the military conscription in violation of Versailles treaty. It also declared that its air power was equally competitive to that of the England's. In 1936, Hitler remilitarized the Rhineland non-military zone in violation of Versailles treaty and invaded France from the border of Germany.
It was a daring risk. Hitler's militant power was significantly inferior to that of France at that time. Even without any backup from England, France alone had enough power to drive Germany away from the Rhine River and give arrogant Hitler a deadly punch, leading to the collapse of his regime in Germany. However, England and France chose to tolerate the evil which promoted evil deeds later. Due to the fear of war, they found an excuse of not provoking one with a belief that Hitler was only leading his army into our backyard. This cowardly concession helped Hitler significantly increase his prestige and power in the high level of the German government.
In March 1938, Germany invaded Austria and started to aggressively prepare for the invasion of Czechoslovakia.
I. Appeasing and Giving Free Rein to the Aggressors
Czechoslovakia is a country of multiple peoples. There were 3 million Teutons in Czechoslovakia, most living in Sudetenland between the northwest of Czechoslovakia and Germany. Hitler instigated the local Nazi partisans to propose autonomy in Sudetenland and proposed a merge with Germany. The president of Czechoslovakia firmly rejected the proposal. While 1.5 million fully armed Czechoslovakians were standing by for a war with Germany behind the most solid defense line in Europe, Chamberlain, the Prime Minister of England, and the French President, chose to pacify Germany at the expense of Czechoslovakia, in order to maintain the so-called "peace and order."
In September 1938, Germany, England, France and Italy refused the presence of Czechoslovakia, and signed the notorious "Munich Pact" in Munich, a city in southern Germany. The four countries agreed to give the Czech Sudetenland and a southern Czech territory adjacent to Austria to Germany. In return, the four countries would guarantee that Germany would not invade the rest of Czechoslovakia. Hitter declared that he would have no more interest in Czechoslovakia once the issue on Sudetenland had been settled. Hitler said, (paraphrasing) "This is my last requirement for territory in Europe." The leaders of England and France easily believed his words and believed that the wolf would become a vegetarian after he devoured Czech Sudetenland.
A few hours after the Munich Conference, Chamberlain met Hitler in his apartment. Chamberlain produced a draft declaration, which he had prepared, as follows:
"[…]we regard the Agreement signed last night, and the Anglo-German Naval Agreement, as symbolic of the desire of our two peoples never to go to war with one another again."
Hitler read and signed it without demur.
Chamberlain returned to England. At Heathrow where he landed, he waved the joint declaration which he had got Hitler to sign and read it to the crowd of notables and others who welcomed him. From the windows of Downing Street he waved his piece of paper again and used these words, "This is the second time there has come back from Germany to Downing Street peace with honor. I believe it is peace in our time."
Ungrounded trust of people with evil intentions caused his unrealistic optimism. It was that very paper that appeased and gave free rein to the aggressors and dragged the whole world into the abyss of the war. Just as Winston Churchill told Chamberlain later, (paraphrasing) "When you were asked to make a selection between war and humiliation, you chose the latter, whereas, you will have to be in war sooner or later."
While Czechoslovakia was about to collapse, Poland and Hungary also took advantage of the Czech misfortune. Immediately after the Munich Agreement, the Polish Government sent a 24-hour ultimatum to the Czechs demanding the immediate hand-over of the frontier district of Teschen. Hungary also put forward its own request.
In fact, the Munich Agreement sentenced Czechoslovakia to death. Czechoslovakia not only lost 1/5 of its territory, as well as 1/4 of its population, but also lost its solid fortress. All of its railways, roads, and telephone and telegram systems were demolished. In less than six months, Hitler's troops marched into Prague, assuming absolute control over the rest of defenseless Czechoslovakia. Meanwhile, Hungarian troops, backed surreptitiously by Poland, occupied the eastern province of Czechoslovakia, or Carpatho-Ukraine, which they demanded.
The League of Nations certainly suffered a loss through the fall of Czechoslovakia equivalent to some thirty-five divisions of troops. Skoda Works, the second most important arsenal factory in Central Europe, was also lost to Germany. The production volume of Skoda Works between August 1938 and September 1939 alone was nearly equal to that of all British arsenal factories in that period. The adverse loss of Skoda Works to Germany drastically increased Hitler's military power.
II. Taking Advantage of Others' Misfortune and Dancing with the Wolf.
Winston Churchill said, "The Poles gained Teschen by their shameful attitude towards the liquidation of the Czechoslovak State. They were soon to pay their own forfeits." Soon after he occupied Czechoslovakia, Hitler demanded territories from Poland. Poland firmly rejected Germany's demand. Then Hitler launched a blitzkrieg on Poland, which opened the curtain of World War II.
German troops started the blitzkrieg on September 1, 1939. Polish troops fought valiantly despite the fact that they were out-numbered, less prepared, and less equipped. A week later, exhausted Polish troops were defeated and fell into such pieces that they could no longer be called an army. While the majority of the Polish troops were defending the western border against the onrushing German forces, Stalin could take advantage of Poland's perilous state! On September 17, 1939, the Red Army crossed Poland's virtually defenseless eastern border and swept toward the west. On the 18th, the Soviets and Germans joined forces in Breszc Litewski where Russian Communists made peace and shook hands with Hitler.
Long before the war broke out, Stalin decided to abandon Britain and France after weighing the best interests of the Soviets and signed a ten-year Nazi-Soviet Non-aggression Pact with Hitler. When Czechoslovakia was lost to Germany, England and France was already furious at Germany. Hitler was pressuring Poland this time. Stalin knew that Poland stood no chance fighting the German troops but England and France would definitely interfere with his invasion once he began to attack Poland. Cunning as Stalin was, he decided to ally with Germany after his cautious calculation. Stalin expected to reap rewards from the war among Germany, England and France. If Germany were fighting in the west of Poland, he would have ample time to route the Red Army to the eastern border.
A dirty treaty was thus born. With the signing of the Nazi-Soviet Non-aggression Pact and an additional protocol in September 1939, east Poland and Bessarabia were annexed to Moscow. This meant that Stalin had a free hand in invading the Baltic States. Meanwhile, in a secret agreement, Germany stated that it had no political interest in Latvia, Estonia or Finland. Two months after the secret agreement, German invaded Poland, while the Red Army attacked Finland. The Finns fought heroically to defend their country to the last bullet, inflicting severe casualties on the Red Army. However, in March 1940, Finland chose to sign a peace treaty with the USSR, giving it 10% of its land.
The Nazi-Soviet Non-aggression Pact on August 1939 ignited World War II. Hitler was assured in the Pact that the Germans would be free from any interference from the Red Army since Stalin would focus his attacks on the Baltic States. Therefore, Hitler began to attack Finland without reserve a week after signing the Nazi-Soviet Non-aggression Pact. At the time, Stalin supplied Hitler with plenty of raw materials for the war. In 1938, the Soviets sold 33,143 tons of petroleum to Germany and increased the sale to 7 million tons in 1940. In January 1941, the Soviet Union and Germany signed 6 major cooperative agreements where the Soviets would supply Germany with 62 to 64 million dollars' worth of war supplies by August 1942. Later, Stalin ordered to increase exports by 6,000 tons of copper, 1,500 tons of nickel, 500 tons each of tin, tungsten and molybdenum. General Thomas, the head of Economy Affairs at the Warfare Ministry of Nazi Germany, recalled the economic situation during the wartime, (paraphrasing) "The Russians have been shipping materials to us till the eve of the German attack upon them. To the last few days before the attack they were still shipping rubber to us via their Far East Express."
Stalin doubtlessly made a foolish decision to support Germany on the assumption that it would be impossible for the Germans to concurrently battle on both the east and the west lines. Besides, the British were staggering the Germans with air raids. Despite a pile of intelligence briefings revealing that Germany was planning to invade the USSR, Stalin still refused to believe that Hitler was really capable of waging a war against him in such a short period of time.
At that time, Hitler stood no chance advancing toward the west because he could not pass the English Channel. He did not have the upper hand on sea or air battles. In addition, England kept receiving an increasing amount of war supplies from, and joined forces with, America. If Hitler could not defeat England, his enemy on the western front, he had to defeat Russia on the eastern front. Otherwise, he would one day risk fighting with both countries at same time.
During the 1930's, Stalin executed around 12 million people during the revolutionary movement. Of all the members of the Politboro in the previous two terms, all but Lenin and Stalin himself, were executed. Three of five marshals were executed. Three of five military regime commanders were executed. All of the second rank of military regime commanders, totaling ten commanders were executed. Among eighty-five army commanders, fifty-seven army commanders were executed. Among 195 division commanders, 110 commanders were executed. In 1937 and 1938 alone, a total of 35,000 army officers were executed. Almost all essential officials were lost in a series of executions. At the same time, the remainder of the Red Army displayed an inferior quality in its invasion of Finland, leaving Hitler the impression that Russia was not as powerful as before. That was when Hitler decided to stop fighting with England and turn the gunpoint to Russia. German Minister of Foreign Affairs, Joachim Vom Ribbentrop, told the Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Gian Galeazzo Ciano, (paraphrasing) "If Hitler can defeat Russia within eight weeks, he will not have any fear of a stab in his back." After Hitler acquired food, petroleum, metals, machines, and manpower from Russia, he would be ready to fight with England again.
The evil is not always smart and the dictator is not always correct. Stalin's meticulous plan led him astray and ended up hurting him in the end. Until June 22, 1941, only 22 months after the Nazi-Soviet Non-aggression Pact, Stalin and millions of Russians paid the disastrous price. If a government does not have any moral standard, it might seem that it always gains an upper hand and can do whatever it wants to do. "But at the end of the day, things will even out. When the end day comes, everything will have evened out," said Winston Churchill [Paraphrase].
III. There is No Middle Ground between Good and Evil
It is necessary to describe how France was lost to Germany. As we all know, France built a 400-mile fortress on its border with Germany. The fortress was robust enough to take the impact of attacks from tanks and cannons. England and France decided that if Germany planned to invade France, it would not stand any chance of success if it tried to bypass Switzerland to enter France, or tried to conquer the fortress along the French border. The only option left would be to invade Holland and Belgium first in order to invade France from the north.
That being the most probable invasion plan, Belgium's attitude toward Germany's invasion would be decisive to the preservation of France. Winston Churchill wrote in The War Speeches, (paraphrasing) "On January 10, 1940 a major of the seventh German air force was ordered to deliver some documents to the main commanding unit in Cologne. Because he missed the train, he decided to fly to Cologne instead. However, the plane flew past Cologne and was forced to land in Belgium. Belgium arrested him and confiscated the documents. These documents were Hitler's plans for the invasion of Belgium, Holland, and France." If Belgium decided to fight with Germany at the time, England and France would naturally have dispatched their troops to help with the defense of Belgium. However, at this decisive moment Belgium chose to observe Germany's attitude, hoping that it would let go of Belgium if it remained neutral in the war between Germany and France. Germany's combat aircraft and tanks that launched attacks upon Belgium proved Belgium's expectation to be ignorant. From the evening of May 9th into the 10th of 1940, Germany launched a blitzkrieg, right after its intensive air raids on Belgium's airports, transportation lines, military command centers, and arsenals, without a trace of warning or any excuse for the invasion. On May 28 Belgium surrendered to Germany. Soon afterwards German troops marched southbound quickly from Souillon, a city on the border between France and Belgium. On June 14, German troops occupied Paris.
In hindsight, Belgium's passive attitude toward the threat of Germany does not justify Hitler's crimes. However, the initial peace policy initiated by France and England, combined with the Soviet communists and German Nazis' aggressiveness, together resulted in World War II. The League of Nations refused to believe the aggressiveness of Germany until they had been attacked. Because these invaded countries chose to appease, give free reign to, and help the aggressive countries with their invasion plans, their supreme military forces collapsed quickly. What followed were increasingly stronger enemies and defeats that they were forced to face. The short-term profits that England and France reaped from assisting or encouraging the invasions were quickly lost to the invaders at the beginning of the wars declared upon them. Churchill said, (paraphrasing) "If you refuse to fight for righteousness even when it only takes a small war, or a war that you are guaranteed to win, one day you will find yourself falling into a worse situation where you will be forced to defend yourself. It may be even worse. You might be forced to fight a losing war, in which there is no other choice for you except to die defending yourself or live to be a slave."
IV. At the Juncture of A Historical Transition
Sixty years has elapsed since the outbreak of World War II. The smoke from gunpowder had long disappeared. The whistle and explosion of the bombs seem to be from a generation ago. Much of the vestiges of the war have turned to dust. Just as the people of the world become fascinated with the peaceful environment, singing and dancing to extol the good times, a war that challenges virtue and morality, and targets the kindhearted people of the world is lurking in. The most sinister aspect of this war is that there is no smoke from gunpowder. People are unconsciously dragged by the turbulent undercurrent into a fathomless danger, entering a trial of the heart and soul where their decisions determine their survival or complete annihilation!
Is this just a sensational statement to scare people?
Two thousand four hundred years ago, Plato, a Greek philosopher who set forth the philosophical foundations of the ancient Greek civilization, introduced the world to Atlantis, an ancient and advanced civilization dated nine thousand years previously, in his dialogues, Timaeus and Critias. Plato described in his books that Atlantis was "an amazing island empire located on a landmass the size of Libya and Asia put together, in the Atlantic Ocean west of the Mediterranean Sea. It possessed a cosmopolitan metropolis, with palaces and royal courts, adorned by gold and silver ornaments, as well as harbor works and waterways that constantly received sea-going vessels from afar. It manufactured a brilliant and shining metal. It had passenger vehicles that could fly. Its influence even reached the African continent." Later the people of Atlantis gradually degenerated. "They were blinded by greed, and only knew how to scramble for power and profit." [Note: That was when the empire set its sights on controlling the lands inside the Mediterranean basin. It was at this point that the fair race of Athens rose up against the Atlantean aggressor and in a decisive naval battle defeated its enemy.] Some time afterwards the god Zeus decided to punish them and "convened a meeting of the gods at his divine palace. When the gods were all assembled there, Zeus said […]"Plato stopped his writing abruptly here. There is no telling what Zeus said, but the tragic ending of Atlantis is well known --- "The god Zeus unleashed earthquakes and floods that drowned the Athenian navy and submerged the island of Atlantis in one terrible day and night."
In the "Book of Genesis' of the 'Old Testament' there is also a similar tale. "And Jehovah saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them." (From Chapter 6 Verses 5 to 7 in Book of Genesis.) "The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth by a great flood." (From Chapter 6 Verse 13 in Book of Genesis.) Only Noah had the favor of Jehovah because "Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD." (From Chapter 6 Verse 8 in Book of Genesis.)
All the religious scriptures in history and timeless legends have always taught that the virtue and morality of the human race determined its safety and danger. If a war destroys lives and properties, then the ban on the cultivation of compassion is doubtlessly a massacre of the soul, and the biggest threat to the continuation of our human civilization. The ban on Falun Gong is a more appalling plague than a world war.
Nobody will repudiate that "honesty, kindheartedness, and tolerance" is the cornerstone of the economic development of a nation, a stable government, and a prosperous society. Nevertheless, since three years ago, Jiang banned the right to freedom of belief of "Zhen-Shan-Ren" (Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance). With rumors and propaganda spreading in a Keppel style like a smoke screen, a persecution of violence and gore against the most honest and best people is being staged openly before civilized societies worldwide.
Just like Socrates, who was forced to swallow poison in Athens, and like Bruno who was sentenced to be burned to death on Roma's Flower Square, Falun Dafa practitioners who hold "Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance" as their principle would rather choose to be tortured, sent to labor camps and mental hospitals, and even sacrifice their lives than give up their pursuit of the Truth. The appalling physical and mental abuses they have endured are far more severe and brutal than Hitler's Auschwitz concentration camp and Stalin's Gulag Archipelagos. Despite the fact that over 1,600 practitioners have been tortured to death, hundreds of thousands of people have been put in prisons and numerous families have been broken up, a hundred million Falun Gong practitioners have at all times kept peace and rationality in their hearts and never resorted to seeking blood to revenge blood, violence to oppress violence, nor used killing to stop killing. On one side stand the completely unarmed Falun Gong practitioners, meek as lambs, and on the other side stands the wolf bashing at practitioners with a giant club. In this ruthless persecution, the difference between the righteous and the evil is as clear as black and white.
Facing this contemptible and cruel persecution, the level of peacefulness that Falun Gong practitioners have demonstrated has touched the people of the world. As of the end of August 2002, Falun Gong has received nearly a thousand proclamations from many countries and regions, including the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, France, Japan, the Commonwealth of the Independent States (CIS) and Taiwan. The government leaders and heads of NGOs in many countries and regions over all five continents in the world have passed resolutions or supporting letters to express their sincere gratitude towards the blessing Falun Dafa and Mr. Li Hongzhi has brought to mankind, and at the same time, they have sternly condemned Jiang's violence in trampling the innate rights of man. On July 24, 2002, the house of representatives of the United States passed Resolution 188 by a vote of 420 to zero, demanding China stop its persecution against Falun Gong practitioners.
The same as that the condemnation of the Nazis by the United States government and the passing of "The Land-Lease Act" and "The Atlantic Charter" in providing material aid to England during World War II couldn't stop Hitler's operation, the current support to Falun Gong from the international community hasn't been able to end the torture and killing of Falun Gong practitioners in China. At the same time, Jiang does not hesitate in spending the country's foreign currency in amounts of hundreds of millions to intimidate the democratic countries of the world into being associated with his evil actions on the issue of Falun Gong.
What the people of the world should be alert to is that Jiang's trickery has already been partly carried out. In March 2002, using a contract worth 13.5 billion USD allowing liquid natural gas exports to China and political pressure, Jiang's regime forced the Australian Minister of Foreign Affairs Alexander Downer to sign a certificate which limits Falun Gong practitioners' appeal in front of the Chinese embassy. In June 2002, under threats and political pressure from Jiang, the Icelandic government prohibited Falun Gong practitioners from entering Iceland during Jiang's visit there in spite of the strong protest by 99.9% of Icelandic people. On August 2, 2002, under pressure from and instigation of the Chinese embassy in Phnom Penh, the Cambodian police repatriated two Falun Gong practitioners who had obtained UN refugee status back to China – a violation of the UN Refugee Pact. In August 2002, the Hong Kong government turned its back to the policy of "One country, two systems" under Jiang's pressure and put up an unjust verdict regarding 16 overseas Falun Gong practitioners, including four Swiss citizens, who peacefully sat in front of Beijing Liaison Office in protest against the killing of Falun Gong practitioners in China. The governments that have been similarly intimidated and lured with economic interest also include New Zealand and Germany. In the United States, many cases of Falun Gong practitioners being plagued by Jiang's agents have appeared, including death threats, telephone wire tapping, houses being robbed, cars being destroyed and so on.
In China, the state-run terrorism against Falun Gong is running like machines at full capacity. [Note: "Machines" here implies the systematic operations of persecution nation-wide, e.g. '610 offices', labor camps, police stations, propaganda, etc. "Full capacity" implies the monetary and human resources consumed to persecute Falun Gong practitioners. Jiang Zemin allegedly allocates 1/3 of national revenue on the persecution against Falun Gong.] As a result, among those people who unyieldingly maintain staunch faith in Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance, many have near-death encounters each day. Inhuman tortures continue to be forced upon them every minute. Outside China, Jiang spread lies of hatred through the Chinese embassies to overseas societies everyday, slowly eroding the founding spirits of every democratic country with threats and bribes.
Is there any logical explanation to Jiang's extreme hatred toward Falun Gong and persecution against Falun Gong, a beautiful and peaceful cultivation practice? None. As the chairman of the Chinese Communist Party, why should he become so intimidated by, and hate those totally unarmed people, who conduct themselves with Truthfulness, Compassion, and Tolerance! His gloomy mentality that breeds prejudice and jealousy seems to be the only cause of his actions. Regardless what motivated Jiang to persecute Falun Gong, this brutal persecution against ten million followers of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Tolerance is a clear illustration of "evil" for today's people. This persecution should never have happened, not to mention continuing to exist or being spread to the rest of the world [like a plague.]
Churchill once said, (paraphrasing) "If democratic countries cannot integrate into a larger organization, then perseverance and faith, the elements that warrants mankind's safety, is missing from their organizations and habits." The history of World War II has shown us that righteous forces must purge all evil illusions, resist all temptations of the evil, and unite as soon as possible to end this demoralizing calamity on mankind. Otherwise we will fail to leave to our descendants a planet where they will not have to live in lies and violence and we will not be able to face justice or the conscience in our heart. The righteous voice and action of each citizen, and country made in response of the challenge of this historical moment, will be forever solemnly echoed in the hearts of our descendants.
The development of technology failed to deter the trend of materialism, drug abuse, and sexual indulgence. Roaming desires for wealth has been eroding mankind's standard of good and evil. Comparable to the large-scale "Marshall Plan" that successfully rebuilt Europe after World War II, Falun Gong, a traditional Chinese cultivation that promotes Truthfulness, Compassion, and Tolerance, has restored its practitioners' standard of right and wrong. Falun Gong has an infinitely positive influence on people. Living in the turning point of history, maybe we should inspire ourselves with a famous saying of Abraham Lincoln, "We cannot escape history…We –even we here –hold the power, and bear the responsibility…We shall nobly save, or meanly lose, the last best hope of earth."
Translated from: http://www.zhengjian.org/zj/articles/2002/9/7/18410.html
