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Meanwhile in the real world, when Washington DC talked Bonn listened. Still applies today to some level. Edit: Public opinion can also be shaped, not least aft

Meanwhile in the real world, when Washington DC talked Bonn listened. Still applies today to some level. Edit: Public opinion can also be shaped, not least after the trauma of the Nazi period and in the midst of the Cold War. Actual influence behind the scene is usually not made known to public, and the influence of the US over Germany has been overwhelming.

WalterBright 2y ago
I lived in Germany from 68-71. The Germans wanted us there, because they were afraid of a Soviet invasion. Wanting the US military there is quite different from the US forcing themselves on them. Not once living there did I ever get the impression that the Germans felt the US presence was forced on them. They appreciated that the US was there to keep the Red Army at bay. Of course, sometimes they'd complain about the Americans having bad manners, usually justifiably, and sometimes they'd envy the wealth of the Americans. I even attended a German elementary school for a while, and nobody bullied me because I was an American. I was even invited by other students to their homes to play. The US bases were of mutual benefit to the Germans and the Americans.
daedrdev 2y ago
Perhaps there was an aggressive imperialistic authoritarian empire next door that had split germany in two and run their half into the ground economically? No, it must be that America is bad and this country had no agency as you said
- mytailorisrich 2y ago
  This is childish. I never made value judgements and just pointed out that the reality is not what's sold to the public in official stories (and that holds true everywhere).
WalterBright 2y ago
Evidence, please. I've provided mine, and my father was "behind the scene". What's yours? P.S. my father went from: 1. bombing Germany in WW2 2. being part of the military occupation in the early 1950s. 3. being part of NATO planning headquarters in Wiesbaden in 68-71. This was not an occupying force

WalterBright 2y ago

I lived in Germany from 68-71. The Germans wanted us there, because they were afraid of a Soviet invasion. Wanting the US military there is quite different from the US forcing themselves on them. Not once living there did I ever get the impression that the Germans felt the US presence was forced on them. They appreciated that the US was there to keep the Red Army at bay. Of course, sometimes they'd complain about the Americans having bad manners, usually justifiably, and sometimes they'd envy the wealth of the Americans. I even attended a German elementary school for a while, and nobody bullied me because I was an American. I was even invited by other students to their homes to play. The US bases were of mutual benefit to the Germans and the Americans.

daedrdev 2y ago

Perhaps there was an aggressive imperialistic authoritarian empire next door that had split germany in two and run their half into the ground economically? No, it must be that America is bad and this country had no agency as you said

mytailorisrich 2y ago
This is childish. I never made value judgements and just pointed out that the reality is not what's sold to the public in official stories (and that holds true everywhere).

WalterBright 2y ago

Evidence, please. I've provided mine, and my father was "behind the scene". What's yours? P.S. my father went from: 1. bombing Germany in WW2 2. being part of the military occupation in the early 1950s. 3. being part of NATO planning headquarters in Wiesbaden in 68-71. This was not an occupying force