[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 7]
[House]
[Page 9076]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




    RECOGNIZING THE SIXTIETH ANNIVERSARY OF THE END OF WORLD WAR II

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the order of the House of 
January 4, 2005, the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Stearns) is recognized 
during morning hour debates for 5 minutes.
  Mr. STEARNS. Mr. Speaker, on May 8, 2005, we will mark the 60th 
anniversary of the end of World War II. So I rise today to honor the 
men and women that did their duty in this war to comfort the families 
that lost loved ones.
  World War II was truly a world war conflict, spread across the globe, 
and it is estimated that some 50 million people died as a result. The 
impact of the war was felt everywhere. Men and woman from every walk of 
life were encouraged to do their bit for the war effort, and they 
responded magnificently.
  It is hard to imagine the relief and joy that those who had lived 
through the war experienced when at last the war finally ended. 
Veterans remember ripping the blackout curtains from their windows, 
turning on their lights, and sharing with their family, friends and 
neighbors or complete strangers their joy at hearing the news that the 
war was over.
  However, we should remember that for many, the end of the war came 
over a period of months. For those who were serving in the Far East and 
their loved ones, the war continued long after the victory celebrations 
that are etched in our popular memory. World War II extracted a 
terrible toll, most brutally in terms of the dreadful human cost in 
dead, injured and of course disabled.
  Year after year of sacrifice and uncertainty, of making do and going 
without, left its mark on each and every Nation. But it also helped 
forge an attitude of never again.
  The images we see of people celebrating the end of the war are people 
shaking off their recent past and looking forward to a better peaceful 
future. As we look back on these images, we might stop to reflect upon 
not only the debt that we owe them, but to consider too the 
responsibility for the future that we have inherited.
  As we look towards the future we look towards democracy. President 
Bush's trip to Europe, in particular the Soviet Union, exemplified his 
strong push towards his foreign policy agenda of spreading democracy. 
As we look towards the future today, President Bush also looked towards 
the past in remembrance of World War II.
  He connected the struggles against Nazi and Communist tyranny in the 
part of the world to his own campaign to bring democracy to the Middle 
East. In an effort to encourage President Putin to acknowledge past 
national mistakes he said, ``In regard to our occupation of the Middle 
East, we will not repeat the mistakes of other generations, appeasing 
or excusing tyranny, and sacrificing freedom in the vain pursuit of 
stability. We have learned our lesson. No one's life is expendable. In 
the long run our security and our true stability depends upon the 
freedom of others.''
  It is a remarkable statement that the President issued. It is this 
freedom, the freedom and benefits of a democratic Nation that President 
Bush is trying to encourage people to reflect on. His scheduled stop in 
Latvia was a way of easing his participation into Monday's anniversary 
celebration in Moscow's Red Square.
  But, of course, a trip like this reopened old wounds between Moscow 
and the Baltic States, which of course were absorbed into the Soviet 
Union in 1940 after the secret Molotov-Ribbentrop deal between Hitler 
and Joseph Stalin in 1939.
  The agreement provided for Soviet occupation of Estonia, Latvia, part 
of Finland and later Lithuania in return for Nazi Germany's control 
over most of Poland. As President Bush looked back on the history of 
the Soviet Union, he tried to compare the United States' past mistakes 
to that of the Soviet Union.
  President Bush noted that lengthy and difficult journey for us here 
in the United States for democracy, with our own civil war that we 
struggled through. As we look to the future, it is essential to 
remember the past and the mistakes we made as a Nation, and other 
Nations should do the same.
  World War II embodies what certain mistakes can result in. Sixty 
years ago, millions of Europeans were suffering from homelessness or 
having been released from captivity or expelled as part of an act of 
vengeance.
  So thousands of Americans and American families were left with a 
gapping hole, as they had lost loved ones in the battles during World 
War II. It is today that we make a stand and seek to liberalize other 
nations and encourage freedom and democracy throughout the world.
  Mr. Speaker, I would like to praise President Bush for his statements 
that were made in Europe this week and again honor the lives of 
millions of soldiers that fought for the end of the war, World War II.

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