Word: neutral
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Dates: during 1930-1939
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Finally he acknowledged what all knew to be the fact about himself and probably 99.99% of U. S. citizens: "This nation will remain a neutral nation, but I cannot ask that every American remain neutral in thought as well. Even a neutral has a right to take account of facts. Even a neutral cannot be asked to close his mind or his conscience...
...heard in Western Europe on Black Sunday, but soon after midnight, The Netherlands listened to wave after wave of thrumming, high-flying airplanes speeding southeast-by-east along the coast. (The neutral Netherlands next day duly "protested.") Monday brought word that some of these planes had "bombarded" Germany with 6,000,000 leaflets in German, telling A. Hitler's people...
Fact was, B. Mussolini's reasons for staying neutral were not all happy ones. Whereas A. Hitler behind his West Wall was comparatively safe for the time being from the wrath of Great Britain & France, B. Mussolini was in just about the world's hottest spot. One martial move by him, he well knew, and Italy would suffer the full fury of the French Army and two navies. She would probably lose Ethiopia, have to fight hard to hold Libya and not starve. And the Turks would make life unbearable by driving behind the Greeks at Albania...
...Herr Hitler and Mr. Moscicki he suggested three ways of settling their difficulty: direct negotiation, arbitration by an impartial umpire, conciliation (compromise) through the good offices of a neutral in Europe or the Americas. He reminded Herr Hitler that his last message had gone unanswered, and warned: "The people of the United States are as one in their opposition to policies of military conquest and domination. They are as one in rejecting the thesis that any ruler, or any people, possess the right to achieve their ends . . . through . . . action which will plunge countless millions of people into war . . . bring distress...
...Britain-France could not be sure of being masters of the Mediterranean because Italy would always be a potential threat. All this added up to the most curious proposition of last week: that Britain-France would be better off if Italy fought with Germany than if Italy stayed neutral...