Thread, and oh my god yes.
One of these days I'll do a whole big thread about what I learned in my twenties from reading books of World War II journalism and oral history. Short version, for now: Almost everybody really hated the whole thing.
Whenever someone asks "Why don't ordinary people today behave with the grace and poise that their predecessors did during past times of crisis?" they're not only insulting the people of today, but they're insulting the memory of those who went before.
People who lived through crises of the past were angry and confused and afraid and fragile and imperfect, just like today. AND they had to do their best to muddle through while being hectored by smug assholes, just like today.
