@Toleich
"So it's all just about money?" "Always has been."
@AlternateHistoryHub
Fantastic video. Im glad I got to contribute a bit to it!
@Warmaker01
I'm a retired US Marine. All recruits in Boot Camp go through a period of learning the Marine Corps' history. Along with it many of its key figures. Smedley Butler is one of them. We're taught a lot about his military service and combat experience. We even learned about the Banana Wars that Butler was in the thick of. But we never knew WHY Butler and the Marine Corps were there to begin with. We knew about the Boxer Rebellion, how it was a big multinational effort against China. Dude, we were even side by side with the British, Germans, and Imperial Japan, as well as a host of others. But we never learned WHY there was even a Boxer Rebellion to begin with. "Rebellion?" you wonder to yourself. How can we have a "Rebellion" against America, Germany, Britain in a friggin' foreign country? We don't know about this. This isn't taught about in our schools in the USA. The Marine Corps didn't even mention in teaching about Butler, how he viewed war, as well as his other actions for veterans, the average American, and his protection of our democracy. I didn't even know about Butler's "War is a Racket" booklet until over a decade after I was in the Marines, and it was purely by accident. I was surprised as hell. I did not how Butler turned once he realized he and the Marine Corps were acting as thugs for big business and the banks. Butler is already a legendary figure in the Marine Corps' history. We don't even talk about the rest of his life that also made him a fantastic American.
@iammrbeat
Thank you so much for making a video about Smedley. So many people don't know about him!
@briangarrow448
My father, a WW2 veteran, had a saying about the country he loved. America would support Al Capone as a dictator as long as he said he was anti-communist. My old man was right. Somehow I think he read Smedley Butler.
@danielbtwd
I spent 8 months fighting "communism " as a conscript in Angola for the south African defense force. Paid for by the Reagan administration. Who knows where the money went?? We were being paid 10 dollars per month. Also when we got home no one believed us as the government were denying any SA involvement. I finished school with a testimonial referring to my "considerable intelligence ". 25 yes later I learned that I have been living with the symptoms of PTSD. Seems like many of my brothers suffer the same. Personally I don't think there would have been the same level of interest by the powers that be if it weren't for the diamonds and de beers. All paid for with tax money.
@SmedleyDButlerIV
Maj General Smedley Darlington Butler was my great grandfather! The man knew what he was talking about! RIP
@Osric24
I'm convinced Butler was a man ahead of his time. Incredible fella, stood up for the right thing as much as he could as loudly as he could. A true voice of justice we should listen to. But sadly, justice doesn't turn a profit.
@pfcaraujo
Read “War is a Racket” by Smedley Butler. Given to me when I was a young Marine. Thank you for such a great history lesson.
@krankarvolund7771
So, the businessmen called an anti-fascist, anti-business veteran to lead their fascist coup? Genius!
@garypowell4565
“You can fool some of the people all of the time, and all of the people some of the time, but you can not fool all of the people all of the time.” ― Abraham Lincoln
@eo7097
Man, your comment about how the Philippine-American War is a D-list war reminded me of the time that an American-educated friend of my brother insisted that no such war happened and that the Filipinos welcomed the Americans with open arms. Clearly, clearly, the guy who didn't grow up in the Philippines knew the country's history better than those who lived there. Antonio Luna and Gregorio del Pilar would like to say hi to that guy.
@johnsmith3085
Haven't clicked on anything so fast ever. I saw Smedley Butler and got after it. I recently read "War is a Racket" and it was refreshing. We were taught in the Marines that Ol' Gimlet Eye was a god of war. Turns out, he was more multifaceted than he got credit for. Happy Veteran's day!
@yokogoph
How forgotten the Philippine-American War is, and more so what caused it. It hurts legitimately since there is so much to go through.
@joschafinger126
Here in Spain, that "splendid little war" had a very different impact. In the public and literary imagination, it put an end to Spain's empire and colonial ambitions; the " '98 Generation" is the most pessimistic, and pretty much most-studied, literary and generally artistic movement here. That war marks the beginning of a national identity rooted in past greatness lost, an image later to be used by Franco and, these days, his ideological heirs, as well as more reputable politicians. It has a great part to play in Spaniards' reaction to Gibraltar's being British, to Catalans and Basques wanting to go their own ways.
@ScienceAsylum
"Then you have your B-List wars. These are the ones that most Americans a least know the name of and have a vague idea of when they happened, but the details are fuzzy and the reasons why are even more so." "This is what I would classify as a D-List war... because most Americans today have no idea we ever tried to take over the Philippines." I feel called out.
@lylecosmopolite
General Smedley Butler is one of the most interesting career officers in American history. Even though I came of age during the Vietnam conflict, I was over 60 when I first read about him. I explain him by assuming that in some sense, he returned to his Quaker roots.
@oracle8192
The only reason I even know who smedley butler is, is because he is a choosable field marshal in kiasseriech. I should really get out of the house more often haha
@michaelriley2
Gen. Butler was rough around the edges, but he was committed to America and it's veterans. He was a good man, we should have listened to him.
@unclearsector4266