Foreword xiii
Introduction: Rebirth of a Nation 1
1. Writing History with Lightning 3
The Birth of a Nation 3
The Facts of Reconstruction and the Ku Klux Klan 4
The Embellished History 7
2. The Rumblings of Revolution 10
The Paris Commune: An Example for American Workers 11
The Rumblings of Protest 12
"The American Commune" 13
3. "Workingmen, to Arms!" 17
"The Concern of All" 18
Hay market Massacre 19
Private Greed versus Greater Good 22
Part 1 Roots of an Empire 23
4. All That Glitters 25
"A Splendid Little War" 27
"To Rule, We Must Conquer" 29
What Really Happened in the Philippines 34
5. I Pledge Allegiance to Big Business 38
Presidential Assassination 39
"South Americans Now Hate Us" 41
6. Wars South of the Border 43
For the Sake of Money 43
War Is a Racket 46
Mexico, Inch by Inch 47
7. The "Great War" Begins 52
A Single Spark 53
Neutrality 55
The Lusitania 56
From Neutrality to War 58
8. Preaching to America 61
Four Minute Men 62
Liberty Bonds 64
Propaganda and Discrimination 65
9. R.I.P. Freedom of Speech 67
The Spread of Censorship 69
Chamberlain-Kahn Act of 1918 71
The Cost of Control 73
10. Weapons of Mass Destruction 74
All Gloves Are Off 76
The Chemists' War 80
11. Revolution in the Air 85
Lenin's Rise to Power 86
Fourteen Points 88
The Aftermath in Russia 88
Opposition at Home 89
12. The War to End All Wars? 91
"Extremely Serious Problems" 92
The Rise of Fascism 97
13. Disillusionment 99
Disillusioned Americans 101
Wilson's Conflicted Legacy 105
Part 2 The New Deal: "I Welcome Their Hatred" 107
14. The Stock Market 109
The Bank Takes a Holiday (with Your Money) 111
The Rest of the World 113
Banksters 113
Enter Franklin Delano Roosevelt 114
15. "People Can't Eat the Constitution" 117
The NIRA and NRA 120
American Fascists? 121
Abandoning the Gold 125
Baloney Dollars 125
Democratic Strength 127
Universal Health Care 127
16. "Why Should Russians Have All the Fun?" 131
Workers Unite 133
How to "Save" the USA 137
17. "The Time Has Come" 138
The Nye Committee 140
Taking the Profits Out of War 145
18. The Profiteers 146
Growing Tensions in Europe 147
American Folly 149
Solutions to Combat War Profiteering 151
The Real Reason for War 152
Infamous Charges 153
The Final Report 156
19. Death Calculators 157
"World Peace Through World Trade" 158
Another Hero for Hitler 158
Doing Business with Nazis 162
Unintended Consequences 165
Part 3 World War II: Who Really Defeated Germany 167
20. A Deal with the Devil 169
Japan's Military Prowess 170
The Spread of Fascism 171
"A Grave Mistake" 173
Peace in Our Time 175
Blitzkrieg 175
21. Radical Ideas 179
Principles over Politics 180
The Responsibility of Science 182
"A Grave and Serious Situation" 184
"Working America into War 184
22. Betrayal 189
Nazi Onslaught 190
Americans Fail to Deliver 191
Behind the Scenes 192
War Provocations 194
Intelligence Failure 195
A Sleeping Giant Awakened 198
23. Russia, Disappointed 200
"Not One Step Backward" 203
Abandoned Plans 205
The Soviet Union's Heroic Struggle 206
Second Front Now 208
24. The God of War 210
Uncle Joe 212
Finally, the Second Front 214
25. The Road to a New World Order 217
A Shift in Power 218
"Hands Off the British Empire" 219
A Naughty Document 221
"A Great Hope to the World" 223
The Death of a President 226
26. A New President 229
"Pray for Me Now" 230
The Education of President Truman 232
His Cause Must Live On 234
Tough-Guy Act 235
One More Betrayal 237
27. The End Is Near 238
The United Nations 240
A Stickler for Reciprocity 241
German Defeat 242
Another Kind of Reciprocity 246
The Truth Comes Out 247
The Number One Problem 249
Part 4 The Bomb: The Tragedy of a small Man 251
28. "Thank God for the Atom Bomb" 253
Entering Another World War 254
"I Told You So" 255
The Luminaries 259
A Black Day for Mankind 260
29. The Man Would Be President 263
A Dangerous Man 265
The Party Bosses 270
Just Five Feet More 274
30. An Unconditional Surrender 276
A New President 277
A Fierce Fight 278
Terms of Surrender 280
Uncompromising Terms 282
31. No Foe So Detested 285
Executive Order 9066 288
Concentration Camps in America 290
A Moral Crisis 295
The Atomic Decision 299
32. Doubts on Destruction 301
One More Card to Play 304
"Now I Am Become Death" 306
Misgivings? 309
No Need for the Russians 309
"A Peep into Hell" 311
33. The Race Is Not to the Swift 318
The Real Target 319
The Decisive Factor 321
Was It Necessary? 323
A "Cry-Baby Scientist" 327
A Different Outcome 328
A Time Line of Events 331
Photo Credits 353
Sources 361
Acknowledgments 369
Index 371