Mometrix Academy: ‘President Woodrow Wilson’s 14 Points’

Source:Mometrx Academy–  with a look at President Woodrow Wilson’s 14 Points.

“Make sure you are prepared for your exam by reviewing Woodrow Wilson’s 14 points. Know why he created them and how they affected the aftermath of WWI.

Mometrix Academy is the world’s most comprehensive test preparation company. This channel will provide you with videos that will help you learn about many different subjects.”

From  Mometrix Academy

As I argued before President Woodrow Wilson wanted to create a world, or at least an America and Europe, that was safe for democracy. Where countries wouldn’t go to war with each other because times were good. Countries were at peace, free trading with each other, living in prosperity and freedom. I also argued that President Wilson was about 30 years ahead of his time on this front. Because what we got post-World War II with the United Nations, NATO, and in the 1950s with the European Union, was exactly that.

Free, democratic, wealthy nations, tend not attack other free democratic wealthy nations. Because those countries aren’t run by dictators who are simply looking to consolidate and expand their own power both inside of their country, but outside of their country. Because those countries tend to believe in at least some form of democracy. Whether it’s liberal democracy which is what America has. Or social democracy which is common in Europe.

And democrats whether they’re on the Center-Left or Center-Right, tend to believe in these values along with checks and balances and respecting one’s borders and territory. Dictators obviously look at things differently and are interested in power. Staying in power but also expanding their own base of power. Whether they’re on the Far-Left or Far-Right politically.

So in this sense at least Woodrow Wilson was a visionary in the same class as a Richard Nixon or George H.W. Bush when it came to foreign policy. Men who not only understood how today’s world worked and operated, but saw decades into the future for how the world could look into the future. Where countries would no longer be fighting each other. Especially developed free countries and that instead they would work together to not only project their won freedom and economies, but work to promoted democracy, freedom, and prosperity around the world. When it comes to vision President Woodrow Wilson doesn’t get enough credit for the visionary that he was as a foreign policy leader.

Khan Academy: Sal Khan- President Woodrow Wilson’s 14 Points

Source:Khan Academy– talking about President Woodrow Wilson’s 14 Points.

“Woodrow Wilson attempted to build a more peaceful world after the horrors of World War I. Created by Sal Khan.”

From Khan Academy

1917 is huge year in both American history as well as European history, as well as Russian history. The Bolshevik Communists take over Russia and rename the country the Soviet Union of Russia and become a gigantic Marxist/Communist state the largest country in the world at least as far as land with all of these people now being forced to live under Marxist/Communist statism.

Think about North Korea today, but add a couple hundred-million more people to Russia living under this Marxist/Communist system. While President Woodrow Wilson in America attempting to create a new internationalist world order that would be there to protect, defend, and promote liberal democracy over authoritarianism including and even especially communism.

Post-World War II is the start of the Cold War between America and Russia. With Western Europe being on America’s side and the eastern non-democratic countries like China allying with Russia to promote communism in the world. But 1917 and post-World War I starting in 1918 is where you see this competition start. With America and Britain being on the side of liberal democracy or at least democracy in some from. Britain being more of a social democracy than liberal democracy. But both countries believing in at least some levels of personal autonomy and property rights, along with private enterprise. With Russia and their Slavic allies in Europe, prompting this communist form of statism with no personal autonomy or property rights.

President Wilson was a foreign policy liberal internationalist idealist. He wanted World War I to be the war that ended all wars and create a world that was safe for democracy. Safe for private enterprise and free trade. Where people would have personal autonomy and be able to self-govern themselves. He was an idealist especially in a country like America at the time that was very isolationist and not a fan of America’s involvement in World War I.

Woodrow Wilson like with President Richard Nixon, who was twenty years ahead of his time when it came to seeing that the Cold War was destined to end and where America would work with Russia and China, instead of being enemies with them, President Wilson was about thirty years ahead of him time in seeing that there would be an international community with America being one of it’s major players to defend, protect, and promote liberal democracy and private enterprise in the world. Which is what we got with the United Nations in the mid-1940s and the European Union in the 1950s. In this sense at least President Wilson was a brilliant man.

Hip Hughes: Keith Hughes- ‘The 14 Points Explained: U.S. Government Review’

Source:Keith Hughes– Keith Hughes, talking about President Woodrow Wilson’s 14 points.

“Woodrow Wilson’s Fourteen Points broken down and put into context so you can easily soak up the main ideas. Ideal for stressed out students as well as lifelong learners and the cray cray on the internets. Be sure to subscribe for over 200 fun, focused and FREE HipHughes History videos at:Hip Hughes.”

From Keith Hughes

As Keith Hughes says in this video the League of Nations was the key point ( no pun intended ) in President Woodrow Wilson’s 14 Points. And even though the U.S. Senate didn’t ratify the League of Nations treaty Europe and other countries did. And the LN managed to stay in business for a while and was the forerunner to what became the United Nations post-World War II.

The 14 Points was about ending World War I but also about how America and Europe and how the countries in Europe would relate to each other after World War I. Including Germany which lost World War I going away. And the 14 Points was about not just winning the peace post-World War I and doing by the stabilizing the economies in Europe so countries would flourish and not feel the need to go to war to improve their economies, but to settle issues about land and who can use what waters and when.

As I’ve written before Woodrow Wilson was not just a liberal internationalist when it came to foreign policy, but he is also at the very least one of the father’s of liberal internationalism. And believed that liberal democracy had to be defended and promoted in order to keep authoritarians from coming into power especially by force, but also through democratic means as we saw with Adolph Hitler in Germany.

And that unlike Neoconservatives and neoconservatism, Wilsonian liberal internationalists, believe that America should work with their allies in order to promote and defend liberal democracy. Mostly through diplomatic means but if necessary through military means as we saw during World War II. Neoconservatives tend to be more military first and tend to be more unilateral than Liberals when it comes to foreign policy.