PRE-PUBLICATION DRAFT — GUIDE TO WW3
Chapter 2: WW2 — The March Towards Fascism
Creation of the UN, IMF, World Bank
“In spite of everything I still believe that people are really good at heart. I simply can’t build up my hopes on a foundation consisting of confusion, misery, and death. I see the world gradually being turned into a wilderness, I hear the ever-approaching thunder, which will destroy us too, I can feel the sufferings of millions and yet, if I look up into the heavens, I think that it will all come right, that this cruelty too will end, and that peace and tranquillity will return again.”― Anne Frank (1929–1945), German diarist and author of The Diary of a Young Girl (1947 — published two years after she died in a German concentration camp at the age of 16.)
World War II wasn’t just another war — it was a cataclysmic event that shook the world to its core. We’re talking about the Holocaust, where millions of innocent lives were snuffed out in the most horrific manner imaginable. We’re talking about the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, where entire cities were reduced to rubble in the blink of an eye. And we’re talking about the devastation of cities across Europe, Asia, and beyond, leaving behind a trail of death and destruction that would scar the world for generations to come.
But amidst all the tragedy and horror, there’s something else at play here — something darker, something more insidious. See, World War II wasn’t just about fighting Nazis or defeating Japan — it was also about power, control, and the march towards global governance and totalitarianism.
Now, you might be thinking, “But wait, didn’t we just talk about global governance in the last chapter?” And you’d be right — we did. But here’s the thing — global governance is always described in glowing terms, but it isn’t a force for good. Mostly, it’s a smokescreen for tyranny, oppression, and the erosion of individual freedoms. After all, controlling the entire world population doesn’t leave much room for personal freedom. If we can all do our own thing, how do the controllers control?
Take the 1944 Bretton Woods Conference, for example. On the surface, it was all about creating a new international order, fostering cooperation, and preventing future conflicts. It was — apparently — about lifting the world out of economic disaster after WWII. But scratch beneath the surface, and you’ll find something else entirely — a web of power and influence, controlled by the same old players pulling the strings from behind the scenes.
The Agreement embraced Keynesian economics, which pushed for active government intervention to manage economies and combat recessions. The thinking was that inflationary policies were a good idea for progress and development — all we’ve enjoyed is persistent increases in prices with steadily dropping quality and standards. Attendees at the conference assumed that inflation would foster economic growth. Instead, it led to a cycle of inflation followed by periods of stagflation — high inflation coupled with low economic output. By encouraging inflation, the Bretton Woods Agreement indirectly supported state dominance over economic life. The impact of bigger government has, over time, started undermining our individual freedoms and liberty. The state has slowly crept further and further into our private lives.
Three major institutions emerged in quick succession after Bretton Woods: the United Nations, the International Monetary Fund, and the World Bank. All of these institutions have done more harm than good to those they claim to serve.
The United Nations — which replaced the League of Nations on October 24, 1945 — was a noble idea in theory, but in practice, it has become a breeding ground for corruption, ineffectiveness, and the perpetuation of the status quo.
The UN was heralded as the big kahuna of global institutions and the supposed guardian of world peace and security. Once again, the transition from the League of Nations to the UN was bank-rolled by the Rockefellers and John D. Rockefeller Jr. donated the land for the UN headquarters in New York City. While the UN has certainly done some good over the years — providing humanitarian aid, promoting human rights, and mediating conflicts — it’s also been accused of being slow, bureaucratic, inept and corrupt.
Critics argue that the UN is beholden to the interests of its most powerful members — namely, the permanent members of the Security Council — and that its decision-making processes are often mired in politics and gridlock. Plus, let’s not forget about the scandals — the corruption, the mismanagement, and the peacekeeping missions gone wrong.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is another institution established (and funded by the Rockefeller Foundation) as part of the Bretton Woods Agreement. It may have begun with good intentions of helping countries with their economies and preventing problems like having to lower the value of their money to get ahead in trade. They wanted to make sure countries could trade fairly and smoothly. However, over time, the IMF’s actions have shifted towards making countries sell off their public assets and resources to private companies. This means that entire countries end up being owned or controlled by (foreign) private businesses instead of the government or the people.
This move towards privatisation can have serious consequences. When public assets like water, electricity, or transportation systems are sold to private companies, it can lead to higher costs for people and less control over these essential services. It can also mean that decisions about these services are made based on profit rather than what’s best for the public.
The shift towards public-private partnerships, where governments work closely with private companies, can be a slippery slope towards fascism. Fascism is a political system where a strong partnership between business and government has total control over society and the economy. When governments give too much power to these partnerships, it can lead to a situation where the partnerships override government decisions. This can limit people’s freedoms and lead to unfair advantages for those with money and power.
Lastly, we must look at the role of the World Bank, which was established to help countries build roads, hospitals, schools, and other vital projects — especially in places without enough money or resources. Once again, the influential Rockefeller family played a significant role in the establishment of the World Bank. Their initial goal was to reduce poverty across the developing world. Over time though, things changed. One example of this change is the World Bank’s Carbon Fund and its connection to ‘Debt for Land Swap’ deals.
The World Bank’s Carbon Fund claims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by investing in renewable energy projects and forest conservation initiatives around the world. While this sounds positive at first glance, critics point out that these efforts sometimes come with unintended consequences. For instance, the World Bank often offers financial aid for renewable energy projects in developing countries if they agree to hand over land to foreign investors for large-scale agricultural or mining operations. In exchange, the World Bank helps set up big business ventures on lands previously used by indigenous communities or small rural farmers.
Naturally, this leads to several challenges. Firstly, it displaces local populations who lose access to their ancestral lands and livelihoods. Secondly, it concentrates natural resource extraction into fewer hands, increasing inequality and environmental damage. Thirdly, it encourages unsustainable practices, since the new owners focus more on short-term profits than long-term ecological sustainability.
See, the tragedy of World War II wasn’t just the loss of life or the destruction of cities — it was the start of the slippery slope towards all-powerful public-private partnerships. The launch of the UN, IMF and World Bank was an early warning sign that we were heading down a dangerous path. Since we didn’t pay attention then, we’re facing the consequences we’re experiencing today.
This doesn’t mean all is doom and gloom, though. Next, we’ll close out Part 1 with a look at the patterns that have unfolded throughout the 200,000 years of human civilisation. These patterns will lay the foundation for Part 2.
Key Takeaways
With the benefit of hindsight and a right-brain perspective, we can — without blame or fault-picking — see the unintended consequences of global institutions like the Federal Reserve, League of Nations, Bretton Woods, UN, IMF, and the World Bank. We will build on these foundations in subsequent chapters.
Further Exploration
- Revisionist history is a term used to describe the reinterpretation of historical accounts. It usually involves challenging the mainstream views held by scholars about a particular historical event, timespan or phenomenon. It introduces contrary evidence or reinterprets the motivations and decisions of the people involved. The revision of the historical record can reflect discoveries of new facts, evidence, and interpretation, which then results in a more complete understanding of history. Malcolm Gladwell, the English-born Canadian journalist, author, and public speaker, has produced a fabulous series of podcasts that takes a long hard relook at history. See details here: https://bit.ly/RevHist.
- One such revisionist history book is The Unseen Hand: An Introduction to the Conspiratorial View of History by A. Ralph Epperson, originally published in 1986. It is a lengthy but concise explanation of the extensive social control systems that have over the centuries been put into play by hidden powers that are never voted in and yet have immense sway over our lives. The book explores how they control our elected politicians, news media, education system, and the Western military-industrial complex. In addition, the book explains how continual pressure is exerted on the middle class in an attempt to install a feudal master-servant system on humanity. You can find summaries, commentaries, explainer videos and interviews with the author of the book in my research database: https://bit.ly/UnsHand.
- As we have seen, the UN, World Bank, and IMF have faced significant criticism for a variety of reasons. One of the most complete books to address these shortcomings is the 1984 book, From Bretton Woods to World Inflation by Henry Hazlitt. You can find commentaries and a PDF copy of the book at https://bit.ly/BW2WI.
- As you read Hazlitt’s book, consider what has happened in Ukraine, particularly immediately after Zelenskyy negotiated directly with Larry Fink of BlackRock to finance the reconstruction of Ukraine. You can find commentary on the privatization of Ukraine at https://bit.ly/PrivUkr.
Next Chapter: Stay Tuned!
This is a serialized version of The Pacifist’s Guide to WW3, due to be self-published in mid-2024.
To orientate yourself, see this announcement post, where you can also find a Table of Contents with links to all the draft chapters published so far.
Please do leave your feedback, commentary and ideas. I’d like to make this book as useful as possible and I cannot do so without your help. 🙏
Do you know a Gen Z or Gen A who has lost hope? Please share this with them. It’s my genuine desire to bring hope to what looks like a hopeless situation.
“I’m not an optimist. That makes me sound naive. I’m a very serious “possibilist” — someone who neither hopes without reason nor fears without reason, someone who constantly resists the overdramatic worldview. As a possibilist, I see all this progress, and it fills me with conviction and hope that further progress is possible. This is not optimistic. It is having a clear and reasonable idea about how things are. It is having a worldview that is constructive and useful.” — Hans Rosling (1948–2017), Swedish physician, academic, and co-founder and chairman of the Gapminder Foundation.
