Echoes of Appeasement points out a delicious irony:
Neither the protester holding this sign nor the Reuters copy editor who captioned the photo have any idea of the historical significance of its message, or what it says about the so-called “anti-war movement.”
In September 1938, British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain returned from the Munich Conference after throwing Czechoslovakia to the ravening Nazi wolves, and gave a speech that lives in infamy as a symbol of craven appeasement: Peace in Our Time.
“We, the German Fuehrer and Chancellor, and the British Prime Minister, have had a further meeting today and are agreed in recognizing that the question of Anglo-German relations is of the first importance for two countries and for Europe.
“We regard the agreement signed last night and the Anglo-German Naval Agreement as symbolic of the desire of our two peoples never to go to war with one another again.
“We are resolved that the method of consultation shall be the method adopted to deal with any other questions that may concern our two countries, and we are determined to continue our efforts to remove possible sources of difference, and thus to contribute to assure the peace of Europe.”
Chamberlain read this statement to a cheering crowd in front of 10 Downing St. and said; “My good friends this is the second time in our history that there has come back from Germany to Downing Street peace with honor. I believe it is peace in our time.”
Having learned nothing from history — indeed, having learned no history at all — the fools above rush gleefully into the arms of dictators who promise peace.