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Read up on your history before making assumptions
King Leopold's Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror, and Heroism in Colonial Africa https://www.amazon.com/dp/0618001905/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_aB8TBbCQ7Q6M1
Highly recommend reading "King Leopold's Ghost" to anyone interested in the history of Belgian colonialist atrocities in Africa. Warning: it makes for grim reading.
It's utter bullshit. Finding a coherent definition for what fascism is as an ideology has been likened to looking for a black cat in a dark room that isn't there. Fascists advocated many policies, but only in order to accomplish goals that were not shared by leftists, communists or socialists. The goals of fascism were nothing like the goals of leftist ideologies–neither in form nor in principle.
For example, its critique of capitalism wasn't learned or economic as it was on the left, but rather a revulsion of what it considered a feminizing, decadent way of organizing society that reduced the ability of states to wage war. Its desire to reform infrastructure was likewise to facilitate the ability of the state to wage war and reclaim its lost territory, not increase public welfare.
OP fancies himself some even-keeled moderate but finds himself drawing demonstrably false conclusions from equally flawed premises, falling victim to fascism's creaky argumentation at least seven decades down the road. That is quite an accomplishment.
If you're interested in fascism's many iterations, and what its leading lights advocated and desired, Carsten's <em>Rise of Fascism</em> remains one of the best surveys out there. One cannot walk away from that book thinking that fascism is not a far-right ideology.
Check out Exterminate All the Brutes, for example. /u/mantasm_lt is right.
The idea that other peoples were subhuman and unworthy of living was not invented by the Nazis. Actually, the Nazis were inspired by Manifest Destiny in the US. Spain also worked the Native population to death, until they didn't exist anymore. There's also genetic evidence to show that they integrated into the population by replacing the men.
The Nazis viewed Eastern Europe as their Native Americans and wanted their own Empire, the same as all the other European powers tried to have.
They applied industralisation to it and did it at a time when history could make a very good record of it but they weren't so much more evil than every other genocidal European power. (and it's not like Europe is the only ones who wanted to do genocide)
Note: I am saying everyone was insanely evil, not that the Nazis weren't evil.
> it coudl be argued much of africa has a better life and opportunity under colonialism
Read King Leopold’s Ghost from cover to cover before you ever make this claim again.
King Leopold's Ghost is a powerful book on Beligian atrocities in the Congo during its colonial period. Highly recommended for understanding what's taking place there to this day.
If anyone wants to know more about what King Leopold II did to the Congo, I recommend reading King Leopold's Ghost. (amazon link)
Also watch the Band of Brothers TV movies ( find the full length ones, not just the U-tube clips!). It is a wonderful introduction to the US Army in WWII.
For Battle of the Bulge, read "Time for Trumpets" ( plus get a map of Germany/ Lux/ Belgium and France!). Make arrows/ pin flags... circle towns and cities... really helps you understand all about the Battle. https://www.amazon.com/Time-Trumpets-Untold-Story-Battle/dp/0688151574
Don't switch over to the Pacific so quick ( although the USMC/ US Navy in the Pacific did a super hella good job...); The European Theater of Operations ( plus No. Africa) is a pretty big bite of History to chew on first... spend a year or two reading about it, and of course watching movies... Both "Longest Day" and "Patton" are must sees... oh, and add "A Bridge too Far" too!
Or read a book. Shit, if you even read your own comment it shows that Belgium only sent troops to protect the white civilians. If you actually read that thread you'd see that the other UN members were opposed to providing support to the Belgian-backed secessionists and eventually even intervened to block and engage them. The only reason the US ended up involved on the behalf of the secessionists was because after they didn't want to back up the rebel factions those factions sought and received aid from the Communist bloc.
Though you did remind me that if we get any Free French forces for the Paris Liberation phase, we should probably get some Senegalese representation.
The US economy? The iPhone ur using to write that message? Where do you think the material to make these technologies comes from? They don't just appear out of thin air
Start with this. This is how it all started
I recently read King Leopold's Ghost per a recommendation in one of the "audiobooks similar to HH episodes" threads:
https://www.amazon.com/King-Leopolds-Ghost-Heroism-Colonial/dp/0618001905
It definitely explores the history in a way that is reminiscent of a HH episode.
That said I would also like to hear Dan's take.
Read A Time For Trumpets. There were dozens of Alamos at the Bulge where American troops decided they were not giving up or going backwards no matter what the odds.
Read King Leopold’s Ghost. It’s horrifying and very well done.
King Leopold's Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror, and Heroism in Colonial Africa https://www.amazon.com/dp/0618001905/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_i_YKPBDYMEWV8HBP12BTMC
The setting - the Congo (country and river), and the occasional rogue soldier, stationed during Leopold's reign, in isolated areas upriver during the rubber boom.
I'd advise King Leopold's Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror, and Heroism in Colonial Africa https://www.amazon.com/dp/0618001905, it explains Leopold's history in the Congo in very vivid detail.
Omg, this book is devastating…
From Wikipedia:
> They also burned recalcitrant villages, and above all, cut off the hands of Congolese natives, including children. The human hands were collected as trophies on the orders of their officers to show that bullets had not been wasted. Officers were concerned that their subordinates might waste their ammunition on hunting animals for sport, so they required soldiers to submit one hand for every bullet spent.[53] These mutilations also served to further terrorize the Congolese into submission. This was all contrary to the promises of uplift made at the Berlin Conference which had recognized the Congo Free State.
The Congo Free State was a vanity project of Leopold II of Belgium. The book King Leopold's Ghost is a fascinating and depressing read.
Joseph Conrad's book Heart of Darkness is believed to have been inspired by what happened there. The movie Apocalypse Now is a modern interpretation of Heart of Darkness.
For those who want to know how the sausage was really made, The number one ranked book in Amazon under Belgian history that goes into the grisly details :
https://www.amazon.com/King-Leopolds-Ghost-Heroism-Colonial/dp/0618001905/ref=nodl_
Quite a riveting read.
Not OP, but here's a good place to start: King Leopold's Ghost
I don't know if there's been any studies directly connecting colonialism with the actual state of countries today, but it seems like an oft discussed topic. u/arkatopia is kind of right when it comes to connecting the dots. Countries are like people--they don't overcome abuse easily, and countries live a lot longer, so the result of abuses is very much likely to linger.
All that aside, there's an even WORSE thing to consider, which is that, surprise, colonialism didn't end ! It's still going on ! But now it's done economically, with the capitalist elite relying on local elites in the countries, strong armed by organizations like the IMF, to extract the resources by proxy.
There are a massive amount of problems in African, South American, and South Asian countries, and many of them are the result of government failures, from governments hamstrung, maligned, and hindered by the end of colonialism AND the continued pressure provided by the modern day, seemingly innocent and peaceful, economic variant.
It can come across offensive to some to suggest one needs evidence of that, when the history of these places is obvious, and it is naive to suggest that a country can go from being an English Colony primarily for extracting ores/local resources, and just spring into a modern, fully developed nation over the course of only a few decades. That'd be a feat if they were isolated from the world economy, but with those pressures (coming primarily from the ex-colonizers) it's practically impossible.
For Belgium and the Congo both, I would instead recommend King Leopold's Ghost.
The book "explores the exploitation of the Congo Free State by King Leopold II of Belgium between 1885 and 1908, as well as the large-scale atrocities committed during that period. The book succeeded in increasing public awareness of these Belgian colonial crimes." (Wikipedia)
I don't think that's the book their ambassador would want us to read, though.
All good--for context in terms of my favorite non-fiction reads, this one is pretty high on the list, and it's not exactly riveting reading.
Markowski's Farmhouse Ales is an exceptional source for Saison. He describes the Wallonian water thus: > > > The water in most Wallonian farmhouse breweries comes from wells and, as is the case in the surrounding region, is moderately high in temporary hardness (bicarbonate). Minerals such as carbonate and sulfates have the net effect of emphasizing hop character and perceived dryness in elevated quantities. A water profile such as that shown on table 8* would yield enough residual alkalinity to warrant pH buffering with an acidifying agent. > > > Table 8: Typical Saison Brewery #1 > > Component | Value (mg/L) > ---|--- > pH | 7.2 > Bicarbonate | 350 > Calcium | 52 > Chloride | 20 > Magnesium | 17 > Sodium | 35 > Sulfates | 107 > Total Hardness | 454 >
>
As for my personal preferences, I always put at least .5lb (0.23kg) of flaked wheat in my saisons, for body and head retention.
Are you suggesting that India and Pakistan, before partition, weren't subjected to 200 years of British colonial rule? That the arbitrary colonial borders drawn up by the British didn't involuntarily mash together a part of the world that was largely Muslim with a part of the world that was primarily Hindu? That atrocities and human rights abuses did not occur on a regular basis, including intentional famines? Have you done any historical reading about the actions of the East India Company in SE Asia? Do you have any thoughts on why many in the Middle East have a deep-seated, generational resentment of the Imperial behavior of the West?
Perhaps it has something to do with the firebombings and mustard gas?
>But most of the unpeaceful ones are Muslim.
This sweeping generalization is laughably ignorant. But engaging you further will not be useful, as your worldview is grounded in faith instead of historical research. If you don't think the atrocities committed by Western imperial powers didn't permanently fuck-up and fuck-over India, Africa and the Middle East, I can't help you.
Your use of the world "unpeaceful" suggests to me that you don't have a college degree. This is not to put you down, it's just to say that engaging you further will be pointless since you already have your mind made up about the "bad guys."
I can make a book recommendation though, if you have the stomach and the balls to read the historical events that inspired Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness.
https://www.amazon.com/King-Leopolds-Ghost-Heroism-Colonial/dp/0618001905
Took this with me x2 as I walked the battlefield(s); super detailed, when combined with army maps... compass/ gps/ good camera...
This Saison is the first recipe I designed from scratch, I read Farmhouse Ales and used those rough guidelines to design it.
Extract with steeped grain. 5 gal batch that I split into two 3 gal glass carboys and pitched the two different yeasts listed below, no starters. So far I've liked Saisons fermented at lower temperatures, I listed some temperature details at the bottom if you're curious.
22 IBU, OG 1.049, FG 1.002 (6.2%)
>5.4 lbs Pils DME >1.2 lbs Wheat DME >0.5 lbs Vienna malt >0.5 lbs Torrified wheat
>0.75 oz East Kent goldings @ 60 min >0.5 oz Hallertau @ 15 min >0.5 oz East Kent Goldings @ 2 min
>WLP564 Leeuwenhoek Saison Blend (White Labs) >INIS-291 Saison: Farmhouse (Inland Island)
I didn't do a great job at keeping this batch's temperature consistent in my carboy coozy, manually switching out ice packs. Time after pitch: >12h - 75F >24h - 70F >36h to 72h - 66F >72h+ - let rise steadily to 75 over the next 3 days
Criticisms? Be mean, I'm trying to learn.
Good Resources is King Leopold's Ghost. http://www.amazon.com/King-Leopolds-Ghost-Heroism-Colonial/dp/0618001905
To get more into it. It was the Age of Colonization and the Carving up of Africa. As the major powers took chunks for the nation for themselves King Leopold decided he wanted a part of the action.
He paid explorers to chart of the Congo River and claimed a large swath of land along it. He was competing with France to his North, and Germans to the East.
It is important to note that the Congo Free State started not as a Belguian colony but as King Leopold's personal colony. He exploited the lands for Ivory and later Rubber by essential enslaving the natives in their own homeland. Those that didn't make quotas had their hands cut off. The population in the Congo crashed, and it is general considered the 4th worst destruction of human life after the Holocaust, Stalin's Soviet Union and Mao's Communist China
The book Heart of Darkness is written about what Joseph Conrad saw when he visited.
Eventually as people learned of the atrocities King Leopold was forced to turn it over to the Belgium nation. When they took over Missionary school and other more "civilized" systems were set up, but the exploitation continued in a slightly less extreme way.
Cool. Cool Cool. Personally, I think the nazi stuff has been done to death on this sub (not to dissuade, if you want to do it!). For colonialism, this boo seems well respected. It focuses on just the Belgian Congo. so if there is anything terrible about that area, this could be a good place to start.
Here is another book on south africa It's from the cambridge concise histories which is generally pretty good. It's expensive though :(
> Most people haven’t heard of him.
and
> Most of us – I don’t yet know an approximate percentage but I fear its extremely high – aren’t taught about him in school.
Really?
I thought King Leopold's Ghost was practically required reading in college.
Read this book if you want to see more about how racist the powers were in Belgium at the start of the 20th Century. Human zoos showed me that the racism extended to the residents as well.
http://www.amazon.com/King-Leopolds-Ghost-Heroism-Colonial/dp/0618001905
Sub Saharan Africa is one of the most natural resource rich regions in the world. Diamonds in South Africa, rubber and later cobalt in the Congo, and oil in Nigeria are just a few. This is an excellent place to get started, and will likely be available at your school library.
Oil has obvious applications, Diamonds, besides being a luxury, have many industrial applications, and rubber was instrumental in the development of combustion engines, both for tires on the vehicles, as well as seal like O-rings.
Sounds like a great place to capture something wild. If you dont already have it you should pick up a copy of Wild Brews by Jeff Sparrow, its going to have everything you need to know about spontaneous fermentation.