history up to that point and poland was, had a, sizable army. small air force, small navy. it was basically a poor country. it didn t have the sense and financial wherewithal germany did. they thought they could hold off germany at least for a while but germans rolled over them. cspan: you say it wasn t a surprise. the date was maybe a surprise but was the rest of europe preparing for war at this point? guest: they expected war was coming. most european countries hoped it wouldn t happen. half the european countries were neutral. they declared neutrality. some prepared for war to a certain extent but none of them were really ready for what was about to happen to them. they hoped somehow something would happen to prevent germany from embarking on what, you know, hitler had been really preparing for a number of years. so they were basically keeping their fingered crossed. obviously that didn t work. cspan: why weren t they prepared? if they were aware of what hitler wanted?
chris mississippi archives and history, i have been asked to remind everyone that you re more than welcome to take photographs to social media. this is the conversation of library in congress panel and sponsored by the mississippi humanities council and the southern mississippi friends of the library. mississippi is fortunate to have so strong a supporter of literature, music and arts as congressman greg harper, now in fifth term, harper shares the committee on house administration and serves house committee of energy and commerce and joint committee on printing an more pertantly chair committee. here is congressman gregg happen harper,. what a great day. all the work that s been done, you can t say enough to all of the people that have participated, but it s my honor to have in mississippi dr. carla hayden 14th librarian of congress. still new on the job. we had an incredible day yesterday with her here at the state library commission and also we we had just an amazing
segment for you joining us here on the set is author david horowitz s newest book is called big agenda doesn t feel like the 60s renown america greg. much worse. first of all, the movement of the 60s was benign in my view. but even bill left was not as violent i don t recall a speaker inviting the campus to shut down like mario or mcdonald nothing of that ever happened to destroy the $100,000 worth of property and individual sent to the hospital is terrible and it comes to encouragement by the obama administration and the obama justice department for violent people the civil-rights movement now celebrates the career criminals. freddie gray is somebody who parade of black people why would anybody defendant? so i do think there is a more but the new left was committed until the end of the decade to american ideas. listening to the other side with respect but now they have no respect for those different views. host: what we doing in the 60s? [laughter] i was a radical i
evening especially would have meant a great deal to him. unfortunately, he s a bit under the weather, is so he sent me in his stead. i m humbled and honored to make the introduction. it s been said that there s the story and then the real story and then the story of how the story came to be told. the book whose 50th anniversary we celebrate tonight, making it, is an important story any way you look at it. [laughter] and tonight we re going to tell the story behind the story. in his book, norman says that all writers who become famous go through ups and downs. these fluctuations, he says, reveal less about the writer s actual work than they do about the changing fashions of the times. here s how he put it in his own words 50 years ago. every morning a stock market report comes out on reputations in new york. it is invisible, but those who have eyes to see can read it. did so and so have dinner at jackie kennedy s apartment last night? up five points. was so and so not invite
as far away as new york. maybe further. we are always delighted to welcome our visitors. we want to also welcome our viewers by c-span. so i want to let folks in the room know that c-span is here to cover this afternoon s conversation. after alvin felzenberg i speak we will open up the floor for q&a. we will ask those with questions to come down to the microphones that are just here. and ask your question from the microphones. speak right into the microphone ck the madison program here is dedicated to providing our students and members of our community with the best possible civic education. we believe, as mad dissen taught, only a well-educated people can permanently be a free people. so we want to do our part by contributing to the education of our fellow citizens, students and others, when it comes toby fundmental questioned of american constitutionalism and basic political thought. of course, like princeton university as a whole, we re a nonpartisan organization and we we