Discussion » Questions » Life and Society » How can you possibly "reset relations" without erasing everything that went on before? And that isn't ever possible is it?
RosieG

How can you possibly "reset relations" without erasing everything that went on before? And that isn't ever possible is it?

On the other hand we were at war with Germany and Japan and today the US has cordial relations with those countries.  Did we forgive Japan for Pearl Harbor? Did they forgive us for Hiroshima and Nagasaki? Have our Japanese American citizens ever forgiven us for putting them in interment camps? What does forgive and forget consist of? Loss of memory? I believe there is a Holocaust Museum in Germany. Germany apologized for what the Nazis did and I think tried to make reparations although I am not certain of that. Have the Jewish people forgiven the German people? Forgiveness is such an elusive thing. It's easier to forgive if you forget but how do you forget the horrors of war and what terrible things people do to one another? I know. It's complicated.

Posted - March 20, 2017
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Responses


  • 14
    Reset what? Its business and politucs and history. You do what needs doing, personal feelings unimportant. You carry a grudge and make it personal and you never get anything done. You become North Korea - angry, paranoid and isolated. If each generation staus angry and vengeful about things that occured in previous generations nothing gets done, no or few advances are made. You can see proof of that right here in the USA with a certain people group who are determined to carry vengence and anger foward forever. And theyll never make the advances they want because they cant get past history. If we did that on an international scale we would be, as i said, be North Korea. Even if you dont personnally like another country you deal with them like mature adults in business and politics. I real life you have to deal civilly with people you dont like. You cannot go through life behaving like a bad tempered brat toward everyone who doesnt behave by your standards. That goes the same for nations and their leaders. Many countries, many of our allies, despise us politically but they are still our allies - unless Trump manages to truely alienate them all with his infantile pettyness.
      March 20, 2017 8:56 AM MDT
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  • 318
    Do you think countries should be like the "Hatfield and McCoy" feud. Continue hating and fighting each other until we no longer know why we are fighting, except that they are them and we are us?  The people of the countries of WWII are not the same as the people of those countries today. The people have changed and the countries have changed.
      March 20, 2017 9:09 AM MDT
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  • 22891
    not sure how they did that
      March 20, 2017 9:18 AM MDT
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  • 5354
    People often try that, but are rarely capable of actually doing it. The past cast shadows into what should have been a 'new leaf'.
      March 20, 2017 9:35 AM MDT
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  • 5614
    The winner does not need to forgive when they have won the war, The reward is victory and setting the rules as a result. As the U.S has around the world. After WWII there were war trials and many things settled there so entire nations would not have to suffer the burden of punishment for what was done. Some captured enemy were executed so their countries could move on. This post was edited by O-uknow at March 20, 2017 10:13 AM MDT
      March 20, 2017 10:12 AM MDT
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