Franklin D. Roosevelt Quotes
Against naked force the only possible defense is naked force. The aggressor makes the rules for such a war; the defenders have no alternative but matching destruction with more destruction, slaughter with greater slaughter.
Roosevelt, Franklin D. "Address to the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Chauffeurs, Warehousemen and Helpers of America." 11 Sept. 1940. The Public Papers and Addresses of Franklin D. Roosevelt, Volume 9, Macmillan, 1941, p. 411.
This appears to be the first American utterance of a longstanding doctrine of foreign policy.
He was the first of the modern Western poets and is often referred to as the Father of the Humanities
He grossly underestimated the intensity of the American patriotic feeling and the fighting ability of the Colonists. He Commanded the Royal Marines at the Battle of Bunker Hill where he was killed by a shot fired by ex-slave and Black Patriot, Peter Salem. Note the recommendation to destroy towns. At the time, that was considered improper in warfare between nations, yet it was not so clear in fighting a rebellion. However, this was against British policy and it was not a tactic employed in trying to suppress the American Revolution.
Franklin Delano Roosevelt, often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. A member of the Democratic Party, he won a record four presidential elections and became a central figure in world events during the first half of the 20th century. Roosevelt directed the federal government during most of the Great Depression, implementing his New Deal domestic agenda in response to the worst economic crisis in U.S. history. As a dominant leader of his party, he built the New Deal Coalition, which defined modern liberalism in the United States throughout the middle third of the 20th century. His third and fourth terms were dominated by World War II, which ended shortly after he died in office.
