World War Three 1946 Series Boxed Set: Stalin Strikes First

by Harry Kellogg

  We urge the unwitting stooges and lackeys of the capitalists to lay down their arms, and join us in our glorious worldwide workers' revolution, against your brutal oppressors!

  The time is NOW!

  Workers of the world, unite! [xvii]

  ***

  This is a small glimpse of the true state of affairs in the USSR. This was taken from testimony and recordings.

  ***

  Come in

  “Come in, Walter. What can I do for you?”

  “Thank you for seeing me on such short notice Carl. I know that you're a busy man.”

  “What have you brought me?”

  “Well, take a look at this chocolate bar and tell me what you see.”

  “Looks pretty ordinary to me; the wrapper is, obviously, poorly-made Russian paper. Can I open it?”

  “Of course.”

  “The chocolate looks like it's been melted, just enough to hide the lettering. Why, this is just a Hershey's chocolate bar, made to look like a Soviet domestic product. Are they truly that desperate?”

  “That's right. They're taking our supplies, and making it look like they are made in the Soviet Union. They are doing the same with our cigarettes, and even Spam. They are actually opening the cans of Spam, and re-canning it.”

  “Why, those sneaky sons-of-bitches!”

  “This stuff is starting to enter the Soviet markets. They're stripping the territory they've just recently occupied of every consumer item they can find. Then they are repackaging it to make it look like it's made in Mother Russia. From the other reports we’ve seen, they're using our captured military supplies to augment the Lend-Lease equipment that we'd already given them.”

  “What are they doing with the CRations?”

  “They're giving them to their soldiers. They're not even hiding what they are, or where they came from. I guess it tastes so bad; they don't care if the folks back home know where it came from. The spoils of war and such.”

  “They're like a plague of locusts.”

  Sergo Peshkov’s Briefing to Comrade Stalin

  The Kremlin,

  Moscow, The U.S.S.R.

  June 6th, 1946

  02:31 hours

  “Sergo, come in and brief me. What have you done with all the scientists and intelligentsia I have given you over the past few months? Beria has assured me that we have the solutions you promised to counter the American B-29 bomber.”

  “Yes Comrade Chairman, I believe we have. The only question is producing enough of the various weapon systems in time. I'm confident that the systems we have chosen will be able to make our losses bearable, and will inflict heavy losses on the Americans and British bombers. Again it is a matter of if we have enough time to produce them in the numbers required to cover enough of our strategic assets.”

  “I will worry about that Sergo. Our spies are feeding us with all the information we need. We will know when, and where, their large raids are going to be scheduled. This will allow the army the time they need to redeploy the planes, and prepare the positions for the rockets you keep telling me about. To the capitalist swine, it will seem as though we have the entire Motherland covered with a curtain of iron. Everywhere they go they will encounter fierce resistance.”

  “I agree, Comrade. If we can foretell where the first few targets of the raids will be, we can set the trap. As far as the enemy knows, it will be as if we have every possible area covered. If we have a week, we can set up everything ahead of time and if our calculations are correct, and the tests are accurate, we should be able to achieve twenty percent, or more, casualty rates. According to the estimates I have made with the information that the NKVD has so graciously supplied me with, they will not be able to absorb that level of attrition and will have to abandon their bombing campaign. The key is the advanced warning provided by the NKVD and its agents.”

  “I hope that you are right Sergo. We have made an enormous gamble, in order to secure the Motherland for future generations. If we can convince the capitalist pigs that we have the means to defend ourselves in the short run, from their terror-weapons, we can then, make sure we have the means to defend ourselves forever. They do not have the will or bravery, to meet us man-to-man on the battlefield and will try to rely on their long-range bombers to rain death and destruction down upon us. They think they can do this with impunity. You, Sergo, have given us the opportunity to make even this threat too costly for the svolochy.”

  “Thank you, Comrade Stalin. I am confident that our new weapons will work and will cause the enemy to pause and reflect, before they attack us from the skies.”

  “One more detail Sergo. The British are planning a limited bombing raid in two weeks, and we know the target. We will allow this raid to proceed without spoiling the surprise. We will use our conventional forces to intercept the British bombers. We will retain your most advanced technological innovation for the arrogant Americans, who believe that their Superfortress is unstoppable. From what I have been told you have used your time wisely and have made skillful use of the three B-29 bombers that have dropped into our laps.”

  “Spasibo, uvazhayemyy Tovarishch Stalin. We will not allow the Motherland to be destroyed by capitalist warmonger terror-weapons.”

  ***

  Testimony and diary entries demonstrating the pressures everyone from child to national leaders were experiencing. Millions of refugees were on the move trying

  to outrun the Soviet army; trying once again to flee the ravages of war.

  ***

  Just One More Step

  “We must keep moving Greta! You can always take one more step. You are thirteen today. This is not the day to meet the Red Army soldiers face-to-face. You must leave your toys behind, and just keep moving.”

  “But Papa I’m so tired! We have been walking for days. All I want to do is sleep. Please, Papa, just a few moments rest?”

  “We cannot stop! If we stop, we will die. Your fear must overcome your sleepiness. Keep moving. You can always take just one more step. Just one more step. Just one more. And then, another...”

  Do Something

  “Damn it, General they’re getting slaughtered...we have to do something!” The President thunders angrily

  “Mr. President we have to stick with the plan. If we feed our troops in piecemeal straight off the ships, it will be like putting branches in a wood chipper. They'll just get eaten alive, one by one. We have to wait till we have the Louisville Slugger ready, and hit 'em when they come over the plate.”

  “This is the hardest decision we will ever make. I know right now, it looks like we are abandoning our troops and all the people of Europe, but we have to stick to the plan. To do anything else would be suicide. At this point we can only transport one or two divisions a week over to Europe. We need five full Corps just too even hold the line against the Reds.”

  “Damn it Bob, the press is handing us our hat and kicking us out the door. They're printing story after story about how we're turning tail and giving up without even a fight. They're writing stories about how we're just giving up and letting the Russkies take over the world. We've got the damned atomic bomb, for God's sake!”

  “Sir, we have to stay committed to making the plan work. I would suggest that we cannot change horses in midstream.”

  “I know the press and world opinion is against us; for now and they are calling us cowards. For the plan to work, we have to maintain absolute secrecy and a 'need-to-know' only policy.”

  “We can't even tell the Brits, sir. We have overwhelming evidence that there is a mole, or moles, in the British leadership. Someone is feeding the Reds every move we make. The same is true for our atomic secrets. They know more about our atomic bombs than I do. They know full well that we can't just bomb them back to the Stone Age with what we've got.”

  “Sir in just a few more weeks, we should have enough units in place to stop them. In the meantime, we have to draw them in, and keep 'em thinking that we're running scared. The trap is almo
st set in France. The Navy is almost in position to give them a big welcome; we just have to keep them getting closer to the coast and not thinking about anything else. That's the key. Distract them from what is really going on.”

  “Damn it, I know the plan! It's just holy hell watching our boys getting the shit beat out of them.”

  “Don't worry, sir. Our time's coming to start swingin' back hard.”

  Diabolical

  “What do you think of the plan for controlling our “comrades-in-arms,” Nikandr? Checks and balances, divide and conquer, keep your friends close, but your enemies’ closer, no?”

  “It looks good, Nikolai. You have the Poles watching the Germans and the Germans watching the Czechs, and the Czechs watching the Hungarians, and so on. Then, we have the Ukrainians watching everyone, with us occupying the Ukraine. I see no reason why it would not work. They distrust each other enough to make it so they will have no qualms about following regulations and stopping sabotage, yet they will not be so ruthless knowing that their families are under similar occupation from an equally ruthless enemy. I think it is brilliant. Use their distrust of each other to keep each other from bothering their comrades who are at the front. Divide and conquer; very well played indeed Nikolai.”

  “There will be virtually no men who are not at the front, or working on the collective farms, or watching for saboteurs, and none of them will be home for very long. Any male caught outside of his duty station will be thrown in prison, and be sent on his way to the GULAG. It will be possible to keep track of everyone for the next year in any case. Things will start to malfunction after that, but in the meantime this will work.”

  “Your 'no man’s land' idea along supply routes will help, also. Anyone caught in the zone will be shot, and the closest community will suffer and all routes policed by ethnic enemies, who will not hesitate to shoot. It's all quite fantastically sinister, and it should work. Not much chance of graft since no one speaks the same language, or even trusts each other. Where you do have problems, you make examples of the occupying troops by punishing them; along with their loved ones back home and all the surrounding communities.”

  “Well, it's working so far. We will have to constantly rotate commands so that they do not form attachments. It is a good place to make use of the zampoliti, the political commissars, as well. That'll keep them off our backs. They can command the occupation forces, and teach the proletariat at the same time. One of the keys is to keep the troops rotating on an erratic time schedule. Different commanders and noncoms do things differently despite regulations so there is little chance that patterns can be formed and used against you.”

  “Part of their duties is to work on the communal farms, and how well they produce determines how well their families eat back home.”

  “That sounds a lot like capitalism Nikolai. You had better be careful.”

  “It works so well, that you can actually let the troops go on leave back to their homes every six months. It gives them something to look forward to and reminds them of all they have to lose if they fail in their duties. It's good to have them look into the eyes of their loved ones, lest they forget how they will suffer should they aid saboteurs and rebels. Not only they will die, but so will all of their loved ones back home. Rotating only twenty-five percent at a time works well too. If one deserts, they all pay, so they keep track of each other. Plus, they guard the trains and trucks, both ways.”

  “It's brilliant, that you are using married men with children, as well as the occupiers. They have more to lose, than bachelors with old mothers and sisters.”

  “We use the best troops at the front and leave the cowards to occupy their neighbors, and all with Czechs and balances, or Bulgarians, if you prefer.”

  “Ha, good one, Nikolai!”

  Chapter Five:

  The Home Front

  P-80 Shooting Star

  ***

  The Americans are not eager to once again jump into the fray in Europe. The US is 106% in debt compared to its Gross Domestic Product. Millions of former soldiers are starting new lives and cashing in on the GI Bill. [xviii]

  ***

  It's Reveille Again For Some; Draft to Begin Again

  June 6th, 1946

  By Robert Nelson

  Associated Press

  In a not-so-surprising announcement before a rare joint session of Congress, President Truman announces the renewal of the draft. As one senator put it "We knew it had to be done".

  The President called on all servicemen to reenlist, and promised increases in rank and pay for those who did so voluntarily. Every returning veteran would get a one rank advancement if they volunteered for two more years' service.

  The first round of draftees would all be eligible males who did not serve during the last World War, and are between the ages of eighteen and twenty-one.

  Then the luck of the draw would fall next on those with least number of points, as follows:

  Service credit -- One point for each month of Military Service since September 16, 1940. More than 15 days will be counted as a full month.

  Overseas credit -- One point for each month served overseas since September 16, 1940.

  Parenthood credit -- Twelve points for each child under 18, up to a limit of three children.

  Combat credit -- Five points for each award of combat decorations since September 16, 1940.

  Combat credits, the War Department said, will be based on awards of the Distinguished Service Cross, the Legion of Merit, the Silver Star, the Soldier's Medal, the Bronze Star, the Air Medal, Purple Heart and bronze service stars for distinction in battle.” [xix]

  Former enlisted men up to the equivalent rank of Sergeant will receive double-pay for the first six months of active duty if they reenlist within 30 days. Veterans with amphibious warfare training will receive an extra $300 signing bonus. Aviators will receive an additional $1,000 signing bonus.

  The White House Map Room

  The President's Briefing from the Joint Chiefs of Staff

  June 7th, 1946

  “Are you going to be able to do this in time, Admiral?”

  “It will be tight sir, but we can pull it off. We'll have to count on a thick air-umbrella coverage provided by not only our own resources but also from the R.A.F. We should be able to concentrate on their massive artillery parks and not worry about air attacks. So far the Soviets have shown no signs of kamikaze behavior, and we expect no such activity.”

  “How are we coming along in getting our new jets into the fight General?”

  “We're moving some units to England as quickly as possible. We don't want to commit them in a piecemeal manner. We will be conducting limited operations over strategically important objectives, but the tactical stuff will still be up to the prop jobs. The Reds have so many planes in the air and we don't want our new jets to be wasted going low and slow and getting swarmed by Yaks.”

  “It will be nice to see the Shooting Stars finally in action.”

  “Yes, it's quite a plane. We should have had it much sooner but we were able to hit the German jets on the ground, or when they were taking off or landing, early in 1945. Similar to what would happen to our jets if we put them too close to the frontlines, in Germany or France.”

  Chapter Six:

  The French

  ***

  The French decided to fight back. They have had enough of occupation. They are a proud people with some among them who would rather die, than live with one more unanswered defeat.

  ***

  French First Army Field Headquarters

  The following quote was transcribed from a radio address, given by the supreme commander of the French Army, the recently-promoted Marechal, Charles De Gaulle, from his field headquarters, on the night of 7 June 1946:

  “Our allies will call us fools. They are willing to give up OUR land, so that they may fight again. We do not have that luxury. Their homes and families are not in danger from the boot of communism. They are not in danger
of losing their freedom and honor yet again to a petty dictator, who hates all that France stands for. They will not have the iron fist of oppression weighing down upon them for generations. They will not have the dishonor of being a conquered people, who did not fight.”

  “Would the British just retreat away from London without a fight? Would the Americans run to Mexico if they were invaded by Stalin's slavish sycophantic henchmen? No, I think not, and neither shall we.”

  “As of this hour, effective immediately, I resign my commission to the army that I love as a dear brother, as I have been betrayed by the civil authority, that constrains me against mounting an effective defense of our blessed mother, France. I shall fight as a maquisard, leading brave volunteers who wish to aid me in such a defense. Furthermore, I call upon the Americans to use the atomic bomb. I would rather prefer to die, in the bomb's horrifying fire, than live under the oppressive boot of communism.”

  “I call on every true Frenchmen to come to the aid of their country and culture. Together we can make the brutish Cossack invader from the east shed copious amounts of blood, for every village and town they rape. We can make them pay dearly to steal our freedom. We can make them pay horrifically for trying to take our honor.”

  “Today, we make our stand, and here is where we shall make it. Not one more meter of French soil will be given up without the stain of French blood! We will retreat no more! We will sacrifice our lives for the sacred honor of France!”

  “God bless the French people, and God bless the Republic.”