[rexstjohn]

OP does make interesting point. Why didn’t the capitalists (if they are so powerful) bring America into the war sooner?

This is a very valid point. Maybe worded badly but a perfectly valid thing to point out.

There is a clear contradiction here: In Democracies, public opinion does matter. It isn’t 100% capitalism. The capitalists might be able to get away with some excursions here and there, but when it comes to invading Europe and Japan, public opinion still mattered. The lack of public support was a major factor in why USA did not engage sooner, Pearl Harbor put it over the top definitively.

I didn’t read anything into his speech about being against going to war under all situations.

The Nazi war machine was identical to the group of gangsters outlined in this talk: Integrated capitalist warfare by way of industrialists. His point applies perfectly well to that situation. It’s exactly what happened.

Once one side begins the process, there wasn’t much that could be done, have to respond in kind.

[pdonis]

> Why didn’t the capitalists (if they are so powerful) bring America into the war sooner?

Plenty of them were selling products to Germany, including many that would end up being used by the German war machine. If the US entered the war against Germany, all that would have had to stop.