To The Editor:
Donald Trump told Bob Woodward that he did not level with the American public about the coronavirus because he did not want to cause a “panic.” Shame on him. I have just started reading a fascinating book new book titled “Humankind” by Dutch historian Rutger Gregman. In the opening pages the author recounts how Hitler believed that relentless bombing of England would break the spirits of the English, cause widespread panic and destroy their will to resist. That proved not to be the case. British citizens came together in the crisis and united to help each other out, just as Vermonters did when Tropical Storm Irene struck in 2011. In fact, comparison studies of cities that were bombed and those that weren’t revealed that industrial production was actually higher in the places subject to bombing.
Likewise, the English thought that the same strategy would break German morale later in the conflict, but post-war research demonstrated that the German populace reacted in the same way as the Brits by coming to each other’s aid in a time of calamity. And, of course, saturation bombing during the Vietnam War never broke the spirt of the North Vietnamese.
The point of all these examples seems to be that adversity can and does bring out the best in people, not the worst, even when offered only “blood, toil, tears and sweat” as Winston Churchill put it to the British public during the Blitz. We rose to the occasion during the Great Depression and after Pearl Harbor. There’s no reason to believe we can’t do it again now, but our leaders need to trust us, help us face reality and provide the long-term support, strategy and resources we need to do what needs to be done.
Paul Hanke
Warren
