Wednesday, November 11, 2009

The Fall of the Berlin Wall - The Real Heroes

Berlin, the capital of Germany, is a beautiful city of parks, lakes and classical buildings. It is hard to imagine today, that more than 50% of rebuilt Berlin was destroyed during World War II as a result of Allied bombing. After World War II, Berlin was divided among the victorious Allies; the US, Britain, France and the Soviet Union; though it was completely surrounded by East Germany, which was controlled by the Communist Russians. After the war, Berlin was divided into east and west, as the Soviets attempted to control the city by prohibiting access by rail and road to prevent escape by East Germans into democratic West Germany. "Give them hell" President Harry Truman ordered the Berlin Airlift with around the clock shipments of food and other supplies to break the blockade, which eventually was successful. The Russian and East German Communists responded by building the Berlin Wall dividing the city, which stood for decades. More than 130 people died trying to escape over the Berlin Wall as Soviets and East Germans shot them dead.

On November 9, 2009 Germany celebrated the 20 year anniversary of the Fall of the Berlin Wall, marking the end of the Cold War, which began during the Truman Presidency and lasted until Bush One. Eventually, the Fall of the Berlin Wall led to the reunification of Germany into one nation and the reestablishment of Berlin as its capital city. Angela Merkel, the conservative Chancellor of Germany led the celebration calling the events of November 9, 1989, an "epic" moment in history. Mrs. Merkel is Germany's first Chancellor to be raised in the former Communist East Germany. Present at the celebration were the leaders of all 27 European Union Countries, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton representing the United States. 78 year old Mikhail Gorbachev was also there, who was recognized as the hero of the day by Chancellor Merkel for allowing the wall to come down when he was the leader of the Communist Soviet Union. Conspicuously absent was President Obama who sent a video. Obviously, President Obama, who is a Socialist, wasn't interested in celebrating the fall of Communism. President Obama went to Copenhagen to pitch Chicago for the Olympics; but he did not go to Berlin to celebrate the end of Communism; go figure.

What is particularly interesting is that the real heroes who brought down Godless Communism were not even mentioned during this celebration. First, Democrat President Harry Truman, who stood up to the Soviets to preserve West Berlin and Western Europe through a policy of Containment of Communism, should have been honored. But most important, my hero President Ronald Reagan and Pope John Paul II, who worked together to bring down Communism, should have been named as the heroes of the day. It was Ronald Reagan who refused to accept the status quo and the Cold War when he referred to the Soviet Union as the "evil empire".

Past US Presidents; both Democrat and Republican, prior to Reagan who in his simplicity turned out to be a brilliant strategist, accepted Soviet dominance over Eastern Europe. Ronald Reagan dared to think otherwise as he conspired with Pope John Paul II, the Polish Pope, to bring down Communism in Poland. Together they supported Solidarity and Lech Walesa in Poland when he stared down the Soviet tanks and led the protests in the street that caused the fall of Communism in Poland. Reagan and the Pope knew that Poland, one of the larger countries in Eastern Europe and the most Catholic of Eastern European countries would serve as the domino to end Communist domination over all of Eastern Europe.

At the same, President Reagan rebuilt the military of the United States, after years of Carter neglect, including the beginning of our missile defense system, which the liberals called Star Wars. It was this expansion of our military that eventually caused the down fall of the Soviet Union because in trying to keep up with us, the Communist bankrupted their country. The Berlin Wall fell a few years after Ronald Reagan left office; but there is no doubt that President Reagan made it happen when he stood at that wall during his Presidency and implored Gorbachev to "Tear Down This Wall". Ronald Reagan is the man most responsible for the fall of the Soviet Union, Communism and ending the Cold War. Yet, at celebrations commemorating the fall of the Berlin Wall; there was no mention of Reagan by politicians or the left wing media. Obviously, those in attendance have short memories and did not learn the lessons of history. And, let's face it, Democrat Socialists like President Obama and many in his administration miss the old days when the "evil empire" and Communism were still around because they support big government and a command economy. Obama stayed home because he wasn't interested in celebrating the fall of Communism. Actions speak louder than a video; that's for sure.

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