GIs in Germany The Social, Economic, Cultural, and Political History of the American Military Presence
Book contents
- GIs in Germany
- Series page
- GIs in Germany
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Contributors
- Acknowledgments
- Introduction
- Part One Strategy and Politics
- Part Two Military Communities
- Part Three Tensions between Neighbors
- Part Four The German Armed Forces and the American Model
- Part Five The 1970s and 1980s
- 12 “Army in Anguish”
- 13 The U.S. Military and Dissenters in the Ranks
- 14 The U.S. Armed Forces and the Development of Anti-NATO Protest in West Germany, 1980–1989
- 15 GIs under Siege
- Appendix: Population Statistics for U.S. Military in Germany, 1945–2000
- Select Bibliography
- Index
14 - The U.S. Armed Forces and the Development of Anti-NATO Protest in West Germany, 1980–1989
from Part Five - The 1970s and 1980s
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 October 2013
Book contents
- GIs in Germany
- Series page
- GIs in Germany
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Contributors
- Acknowledgments
- Introduction
- Part One Strategy and Politics
- Part Two Military Communities
- Part Three Tensions between Neighbors
- Part Four The German Armed Forces and the American Model
- Part Five The 1970s and 1980s
- 12 “Army in Anguish”
- 13 The U.S. Military and Dissenters in the Ranks
- 14 The U.S. Armed Forces and the Development of Anti-NATO Protest in West Germany, 1980–1989
- 15 GIs under Siege
- Appendix: Population Statistics for U.S. Military in Germany, 1945–2000
- Select Bibliography
- Index
Summary
The expensive and controversial Pershing II and cruise nuclear missile systems deployed in Western Europe became the most famous or notorious of the modernization measures, but the NATO modernization program also boosted spending in conventional weapons and equipment. Increase in war materiel affected the European communities surrounding military bases even more than nuclear weapons did, at least in terms of their immediate impact on quality of life: re-invigorating the conventional armed forces brought more maneuvers, noise, construction, pollution, and military personnel to hundreds of towns and cities, mostly in West Germany. Local communities that had negotiated successfully for decades over similar quality-of-life concerns were losing their patience with the fumbling intercontinental bureaucracy of the American armed forces. They began to increase the volume of protest and opposition but also appealed to the highest military and civilian authorities in the United States and the Federal Republic.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- GIs in GermanyThe Social, Economic, Cultural, and Political History of the American Military Presence, pp. 311 - 329Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2013