What often strikes me is how controlled the media was compared to the life I grew up in. Now a gaggle of voices scream into an infinity about how bad or good a war is or whether a war is or isn’t a war until there’s a wave of refugees and a trillion added to the deficit somewhere. It must have been such a different experience to have such a consistent front presented across media (for good or ill).
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That’s the common view, that is comforting to Americans. The truth is that American Nazi groups had large membership, armed training camps, and a lot of the organizations where they flourished are still active. Cleveland’s Nazi history has some easily available documentation, but most of the stuff in it is shared by other cities. https://teachingcleveland.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/The-Cleveland-Nazis_-1933-1945.pdf
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The rise of fascism was a global event. There’s a reason so many other countries were quick to ally themselves with Germany. We’re seeing the same thing now. Right wing extremism is on the rise in substantial pockets all over the world. It’s not just Trumpism in America. We see it in the UK, and many parts of Asia and Europe. Even Canada had our flirtation with Harper, the most conservative guy in the big chair we’ve ever had. Trudeau is more typical for us, but read any comment thread about him and you’ll find the Albertans spouting Trumpist talking points.
The other thing that bugs me when people talk about “the greatest generation” is that those same people also started the war they take credit for winning. What’s that? Only Americans of the generation count in the definition? Exactly. This idea that people in different countries are fundamentally different from each other is tiresome. Humans the world over are basically all the same. We differ in small cultural ways, but nothing very substantial. So yah, the generation that won that war also started it. Change my mind.
A kinder, gentler version of this idea is how everyone thinks their people are uniquely hospitable to visitors/strangers, or how everyone is always surprised when they travel and find “everyone was so nice!” Of course they were. Humans are mostly all very nice! We’re all the same everywhere, regardless of what holidays we celebrate or what food is on our tables.
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