Reply-To: pen-l at galaxy.csuchico.edu Message-ID: <C0C7B22E37 at ooi.clark.edu>
------- Forwarded Message Follows ------- From: "James Michael Craven" <cravjm at ooi.clark.edu> Organization: Clark College, Vancouver WA, USA To: pen-l at galaxy.csuchico.edu, lnp3 at panix.com, dhenwood at panix.com Date: Mon, 31 Aug 1998 13:08:50 PST8PDT Subject: [PEN-L:1350] Capital and "Patriotism" Priority: normal Reply-to: pen-l at galaxy.csuchico.edu
The following is exerpted from "Trading With The Enemy: An Expose of the Nazi-American Money Plot 1933-1949, by Charles Higham, Dell Books, N.Y. 1983
"What would have happened if millions of American an British people, struggling with coupons and lines at the gas stations, had learned that in 1942 Standard Oil of New Jersey managers shipped the enemy's fuel through neutral Switzerland and that the enemy was shipping Allied fuel? Suppose the public had discovered that the Chase Bank in Nazi-occupied Paris after Pearl Harbor was doing millions of dollars worth of business with the enemy with the full knowledge of the head office in Manhattan? Or that Ford trucks were being built for the German occupation troops in France with authorization from Dearborn, Michigan? Or that Colonel Sosthenes Behn, the head of the international American telephone conglomerate ITT, flew from New York to Madrid to Berne during the war to help improve Hitler's communications systems and improve the robot bombs that devastated London? Or that ITT built the Focke-Wulfs that dropped bombs on British and American troops? Or that crucial ball bearings were shipped to Nazi-associated customers in Latin America with the collusion of the vice-chairman of the U.S. War Production Board in partnership with Goering's cousin in Philadelphia when American forces were desperately short of them? Or that such arrangements were known about in Washington and either sanctioned or deliberately ignored?
For the government did sanction such dubious transactions--both before and after Pearl Harbor. A presidential edict, issued six days after December 7, 1941, actually set up the legislation whereby licensing arrangements for trading with the enemy could be granted. Often during the years after Pearl Harbor the government permitted such trading. For example, ITT was allowed to continue its relations with the Axis and Japan until 1945, even though that conglomerate was regarded as an official instrument of United States intelligence. No attempt was made to prevent ford from retaining its interests for the Germans in Occupied France, nor were the Chase Bank or the Morgan Bank expressly forbidden to keep open their branches in Occupied Paris. It is indicated that the Reichsbank and Nazi Ministry of Economics made promises to certain U.S. corporate leaders that their properties would not be injured after the Fuhrer was victorious. Thus, the bosses of the multinations as we know them today had a six-spot on every side of the dice cube. Whichever side won the war, the powers that really ran nations would not be adversely affected."
And it is important to consider the size of American investments in Nazi Germany at the time of Pearl Harbor. These amounted to an estimated total of $475 million. Standard Oil of New Jersey had $1230 million invested there; General Motors had $35 million; ITT had $30 million; and Ford had $17.5 million. Though it would have been more patriotic to have allowed Nazi Germany to confiscate these companies for the duration--to nationalize them or to absorb them into Hermann Goering's industrial empire--it was clearly more practical to insure them protection from seizure by allowing them to remain in special holding companies, the money accumulating until war's end. It is interesting that whereas there is no evidence of any serious attempt by Roosevelt to impeach the guilty in the United States, there is evidence that Hitler strove to punish certain German Fraternity associates on the grounds of treason to the Nazi state. Indeed, in the case of ITT, perhaps the most flagrant in its outright dealings with the enemy, Hitler and his postmaster general, the venerable Wilhelm Ohnesorge, strove to impound the German end of the business. But even they were powerless in such a situation: the Gestapo leader of counterintelligence, Walter Schellenberg, was a prominent director and shareholder of ITT by arrangement with New York--and even Hitler dared not cross the Gestapo." (pp 14-15)
GENERAL LICENSE UNDER SECTION 3(a)
OF THE TRADING WITH THE ENEMY ACT By virtue of an persuant to the authority vested in me by sections 3 and 5 of The Trading with the Enemy Act as amended, and by virtue of all other authority invested in me, I, Franklin D. Roosevelt, President of the United States of America, do prescribe the following:
A general license is hereby granted, licensing any transaction or act proscribed by section 3(a) of The Trading with the Enemy Act, as amended, provided, however, that such transaction or act is authorized by the Secretary of the Treasury by means of regulations, rulings, instructions, licenses or otherwise, persuant to the Executive Order No. 8389, as amended.
FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT
THE WHITE HOUSE
December 13, 1941 H. MORGENTHAU, JR:
Secretary of the Treasury
FRANCIS BIDDLE
Attorney General of the United States
(exact reproduction) p. 19
Jim Craven
James Craven
Dept. of Economics,Clark College
1800 E. McLoughlin Blvd. Vancouver, WA. 98663
jcraven at clark.edu; Tel: (360) 992-2283 Fax: 992-2863 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ "The utmost good faith shall always be observed towards Indians; their land and property shall never be taken from them without their consent." (Northwest Ordinance, 1787, Ratified by Congress 1789)
"Labor is prior to and independent of capital. Capital is only the fruit of labor and could not have existed had not labor first existed. Labor is the superior of capital and deserves much the higher consideration." (Abraham Lincoln)
*My Employer has no association with My Private and Protected Opinion* --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
James Craven
Dept. of Economics,Clark College
1800 E. McLoughlin Blvd. Vancouver, WA. 98663
jcraven at clark.edu; Tel: (360) 992-2283 Fax: 992-2863 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ "The utmost good faith shall always be observed towards Indians; their land and property shall never be taken from them without their consent." (Northwest Ordinance, 1787, Ratified by Congress 1789)
Those who take the meat from the table, teach contentment. Those for whom the taxes are destined, demand sacrifice. Those who eat their fill, speak to the hungry, of wonderful times to come. Those who lead the country into the abyss, call ruling too difficult, for ordinary folk. (Bertolt Brecht)
*My Employer has no association with My Private and Protected Opinion* --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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-- Rosser Jr, John Barkley rosserjb at jmu.edu