James F. Byrnes Quotes
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German militarism and Nazism have devastated twice in our generation the lands of German neighbors.
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I have come to Germany to learn at first hand the problems involved in the reconstruction of Germany and to discuss with our representatives the views of the United States Government as to some of the problems confronting us.
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Offering hope to the German people, I said that freedom from militarism would give them the opportunity, if they would but seize it, "to apply their great energies and abilities to the works of peace — and in time to take an honorable place among the members of the United Nations.
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The American people want peace. They have long since ceased to talk of a hard or a soft peace for Germany.
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Most of the victims of Nazi aggression were before the war less well off than Germany. They should not be expected by Germany to bear, unaided, the major costs of Nazi aggression.
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The conditions which now exist in Germany make it impossible for industrial production to reach the levels which the occupying powers agreed were essential for a minimum German peacetime economy.
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The German people were not denied, however, the possibility of improving their lot by hard work over the years. Industrial growth and progress were not denied them.
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The nearest approach to immortality on earth is a government bureau.
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The world so clamors for action that men and women devote little time to thinking. Many believe in secondhand thinking. They find it easier to ascertain and adopt the thoughts of others than to think for themselves.
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The working out of a balanced economy throughout Germany to provide the necessary means to pay for approved imports has not been accomplished, although that too is expressly required by the Potsdam Agreement.
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That was the principle of reparations to which President Truman agreed at Potsdam. And the United States will not agree to the taking from Germany of greater reparations than was provided by the Potsdam Agreement.
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Provision was also made for the distribution of Germany's foreign assets among the Allies.
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It is not in the interest of the German people or in the interest of world peace that Germany should become a pawn or a partner in a military struggle for power between the East and the West.
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What we want is a lasting peace. We will oppose soft measures which invite the breaking of the peace.
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I hope that the German people will never again make the mistake of believing that because the American people are peace-loving, they will sit back hoping for peace if any nation uses force or the threat of force to acquire dominion over other peoples and other governments.
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Too many people are thinking of security instead of opportunity. They seem to be more afraid of life than death.
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Important as economic unification is for the recovery of Germany and of Europe, the German people must recognize that the basic cause of their suffering and distress is the war which the Nazi dictatorship brought upon the world.
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We have learned that peace and well-being are indivisible and that our peace and well-being cannot be purchased at the price of peace or the well-being of any other country.
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Power intoxicates men. It is never voluntarily surrendered. It must be taken from them.
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The carrying out of the Potsdam Agreement has, however, been obstructed by the failure of the Allied Control Council to take the necessary steps to enable the German economy to function as an economic unit.
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Friendship without self-interest is one of the rare and beautiful things of life.
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James F. Byrnes
- Born: May 2, 1882
- Died: April 9, 1972
- Occupation: Former U.S. Representative
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