December 8th, and December 11th, 1941 were the most significant and impactful days in the World War II era. It was not the invasion of Poland, or the invasion of Czechoslovakia. It was not the invasion of China or the attack on Pearl Harbor. December 8th and December 11th were the days that the United States declared war on Japan and Germany. Why were these the most significant events during this tumultuous era? Because it is reactions, not actions, that change history . As we have watched Russia invade Ukraine over the last few days it is hard to ignore that very similar actions were taken by Germany and, oddly enough, Russia in 1939, when both nations invaded Poland. Many of the justifications offered by Hitler and Stalin, just days later, sound very similar as those given today for Russia to enter Ukraine. In 1939 both Russia and Germany invaded Poland in order to protect ethnic Germans and Ukrainians (Russians) in the region. Did you see that? Russia indeed entered Poland in