General Winter: The Invasion Of Humanity

“Everything that needs to be said has already been said. But since no one was listening, everything must be said again.” – André Gide
Although historic events do not occur identically in the future, there are some instances in which history seems to repeat itself. Wars, revolutions and remarkable personalities can be found throughout humanity’s background. Some famous events, however, are identical in such a way that humanity appears to be acting with the same behaviors. The invasions of Russia, the revolutions in Cuba and Venezuela, and the assassinations of the American presidents Lincoln and Kennedy are the examples chosen to prove the reality of historic recurrences and the nature of human beings. By scrutinizing these occurrences, choosing

It is responsible for the defeat of two powerful armies in a completely different time periods. In 1812, Napoleon Bonaparte’s army invaded Russia with the intention of arriving at Moscow. What could most likely be the largest army ever formed to the date, was defeated in short period of time because of one main reason: winter. On the other hand, one hundred and thirty years after, the Operation Barbarossa, driven by Adolf Hitler, was established to invade the Soviet Union. With four million soldiers of the axis power, what could be one of Hitler’s greatest desires, according o his book, Mein Kampf, turned out to be a failure, being winter an important factor. The Germans had serious deficiencies. They severely underestimated their opponent; their logistical preparations were grossly inadequate for the campaign; and German industrial preparations for a sustained war had yet to begin. But the greatest mistake that the Germans made was to come as conquerors, not as liberators–they were determined to enslave the Slavic population and exterminate the Jews. Thus, from the beginning, the war in the East became an ideological struggle, waged with a ruthlessness and mercilessness not seen in Europe since the Mongols (Murray, "Operation

That is why behaviorism is very useful in this case. In his book Psychologists as Behaviorist View It, the famous psychologist John B. Watson stated that, “it is only possible to judge objectively while observing behaviors, thoughts and sentiment should be ignored”. A materialistic view in which could bring more questions concerning human nature, specifically its free will. Perhaps, all human behaviors are innate, determined by genes, brain size, or other biological attributes. This theory stands in contrast to the notion of human behavior being determined by culture or other social forces ("Determinism, Biological"). If everything works by physical laws, can we someday figure our destiny as a human race? Wars, revolutions and remarkable personalities are a constant in history books. That is why, it is very important to not forget about the past, in order to plan a better future. It is proved that technology may advance, but the essential necessities of human beings remain intact: freedom, food, shelter, and education. Confucius once said, “ Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but rising every time we fall”. A quote that defies the popular belief of human’s dark