Monday, April 23, 2012
UMBC HIST355: Unleashing the Insect War
Having read various views of the American war on insects from 1944 to
1962, what do you think ultimately was behind the war?--i.e. what
motivations or values propelled these relentless campaigns of
extermination? Did Americans just flat out hate "bugs" during the
period? Or was there something else going on here? Other thoughts?
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I think that it is pretty much because it are a dangerous pest. Throughout American history, there are always efforts to exterminate what they term to be vermin. If Americans try to exterminate crows, why wouldn't they try to kill something they destroy their profits, livelihood, and the bringer of devastating epidemics. Some of the imagery probably would not have happened if WWII or the Cold War did not happen. Nonetheless, there would still be an insect war.
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ReplyDeleteI think the war on insects was a product of it's time and was such a pressing issue due to the growing success of drugs and pesticides largely those used during WWII. The fact that there was a surplus of unused DDT remaining from the war played a factor in the commercialization and widespread use of the pesticides. The mindset at the time of "if we have a method of dealing with pests and insects then why not use it?" was another reason for the supporting chemical warfare. In addition to this is the chemical companies seizing the chance to capitalize on this craze and exploited this chemical "war" on insects for their economic benefit. The effort to fight pests was rushed and led to many harsh unintended consequences resulting in more problems.
ReplyDeleteI think it was just because of all the pests they wanted to get rid of. Who wouldn't want to? I definitely would because I HATE bugs!! WWII was killing most of the soldiers and I don't think they wanted the civilians to get diseased and eventually die (because of these pests). Americans developed something rather new this time like the DDT. With the spread of DDT, it meant something more than killing bugs/insects/pests, it meant being in progress/more technological advancement in the period.
ReplyDeleteBugs. Just bugs. I hate bugs, and if I ignore the warnings of the dangers of all these chemicals like DDT, I'd use it too. Millions of gallons of DDT after the war, people's hatred of bugs, they equal excessive use of DDT on the home front. Unless they were evil engineered Soviet bugs, in which case it was another front of the Cold War. There aren't as many bugs around these days, you know, because we killed them all in the '50s and '60s, but if we have a major "attack" from nature, we'll perform our duty the American way and wipe it out. Even the left-wing folks, if they get lice and typhus and all sorts of bugs and diseases, I'm fairly certain something hopefully less harmful than DDT would be used. Nobody's perfect, and not everybody loves bugs.
ReplyDeleteI think that killing the bugs and the extensive use of DDT to do so was more of a continuation of trying to control wild nature rather than a battle on the home front. The majority of topics in the class have consisted of humans trying to control the wild and natural world around them, and this was just one more way to do that. No one likes bugs, and the health effects were not so prominently forewarned that people actually paid attention to them. So at a seemingly low cost, why wouldn't you take this easy way out to destroying pests? Suburbia was an idealized neighborhood, and bugs were simply not a part of that picture. I think it was more convenient timing that the war was going on at the same time, and so they could depict their enemies as bugs and pests so that they typical American could understand that it was easy to kill off their enemies with no emotional connection.
ReplyDeleteDuring the World War II era, DDT was hailed as the "savior of mankind". The chemical had proved itself to be an efficient because it prevented transmittal of such diseases from fleas and mosquitoes. Its popularity was a result of its cheapness, availability, potency, and "so-called" safety. They used DDT because no likes bugs and they were just taking necessary preoccupations to make the citizens were safe from diseases. But I feel like it might have been more harmful because DDT remains in its toxic state for years.
ReplyDeleteThe use of DDT was nothing more than a step forward in technology. The immediate result of the chemical was acknowledged for its success. The though of insects and bugs carrying diseases that could possibly cause harm to humans made it that much easier to use DDT. To help prevent any illness to humans, DDT was seen as the only way to truly help prevent bugs from transmitting disease. After learning about the long term hazard of DDT, it began being less of an option for most users.
ReplyDeleteFrom the various articles about the American war on insects from 1944 to 1962, I think the motivation behind the relentless campaigns of the extermination of insects was to protect the "public health, household comfort and agriculture” from pest and insects. I think Americans hated "bugs" because they symbolized the fear of an invasion from a foreign force. For example, during that time period I believe "bugs" were associated with diseases that could be life threatening to humans health, as well as having a tremendously harmful affect on farmer’s livelihood and food production (farmers crops were at risks, the country’s food source).
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ReplyDeleteKnowing anything about America, I would have to say that what was ultimately behind the the American War on insects is the underlining value of capitalism and its notions of conquering the environment for financial gains. The Science News Letter expressed, “DDT's promises spreads broadly over three fields: public health, house comfort, and agriculture” (5). Winning the war against insects first means that people will be able to live... longer therefor will be able to work and continue to be a consumer. A dead man is no good for anything. In terms of public comfort, people will want to buy this product (hopefully forever assuming the bugs do not obtain immunity to the chemical) generating a profit for the American manufacturers. And lastly, DDT and the war against insects will make agricultural more productive by killing off the insect enemies that destroy cash crops.
ReplyDeleteAmericans did not just flat out hate bugs bugs. They only hated the ones that caused disease, discomfort, and destruction. Again, in the Science News Letter, there was a concern for the “beneficial insects” and that “their protection was cited as one of the desirable objectives of [DTT] research” (5). Also, there is no mention in any of these articles that any type of insect that is not considered a pest should be exterminated, only pests that caused disease, discomfort, or destruction should be targeted. It is kinda like the idea of the song bird, insects that bring joy and beauty from nature and the environment should be protected and avoided in the war against insects.
DDT was a breakthrough in dealing with pest during WWII in the prevention of spread of disease by insect vectors. However it had glaring flaws due to the adverse affects to humans when long exposure to it occurred. I believe that the general public at the time disliked insects. But was influenced by the propaganda that the chemical companies that bought the large amounts of DDT from the government to use DDT to wage war on insects even with the us military knew the affects of long term exposure to DDT.
ReplyDeleteDuring WWII, insects and the diseases they carried were, in many ways, more dangerous than the Japanese or the Nazis. Many of these diseases were deadly and almost certainly fatal, plus death from one of these was slow and painful. With the introduction of DDT, this was no longer a problem. This mentality, that insect vectors and the diseases they carried were Death incarnate, carried over into the mindset of the American public. Thus, I say that Americans were thinking that they were fighting against Death itself (further fueled by the ridiculous amount of propaganda [in hindsight of course]) and that they had to win, no matter the cost. Looking back now, however, this was nothing more than an exercise in futility; it's impossible to kill off EVERY single insect on the planet, let alone the ones that are vectors for diseases. In fact, it is common belief that the cockroach will outlive every other living being. Not only that, but DDT was also a form of Death incarnate in that over time it threatened to kill off our nation's symbol, the bald eagle (and other various bird species as well). When that got out, the American public began to realize just how much blind faith they put into a double-edged sword that they thought was the ideal weapon. Nowadays, DDT is banned in the U.S. however the damage has been done. It will take many years before the chemical has been excised from the environment.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the ongoing American motivation to tame the "wilderness" and the value of nationalism propelled the campaigns of insect extermination. Post-WWII, the United States was more affluent as a whole than ever before. The increase in wealth and movement toward the suburbs brought more people away from nature. Affluence and the movement away from nature caused Americans to expect an improved/more cleanly standard of living, free of nature's pests. I think that, previously, living among insects was an accepted way of life.
ReplyDeleteThe way in which companies advertized their insecticides also induced the public to buy products such as DDT, despite the health risks. American troops had been saved by DDT overseas and now the American public could conquer the insects at home. Americans embraced the new technology. Perhaps conquering insects and pests was yet another frontier for Americans to pursue.
The new American standard of living must have pushed Americans to hate bugs more than in the past, but I believe the hatred of insects goes hand-in-hand with the fear of disease. The typhus scare in Italy and the spread of malaria and other diseases by insects in the Pacific and Carribean would have been reason enough to want to wipe out the insect species.
I feel that the war on insects was not initiated by just one factor. It may have been the combination of national pride, desire to use advanced technologies, improved living conditions, hatred of all things creepy and fear of disease that drove Americans to abuse insecticides despite the risks.
I think part of the war on insects was due to people hating bugs. However, from the articles I also think that the excitement of scientific discovery and testing helped fuel the war. Scientist's were really beginning to use technology and had come a long way in experimenting so what better way than to figure out how to kill pests. In the beginning it was very exciting the idea of ridding people of vector diseases and crop killers but people got to extreme trying to kill all pests. Also, During the mid 20th century globalization was in full swing between immigration, wars, trade, travel and with that the transfer of pests and diseases across the globe. I think most people naturally dislike bugs and with more invasive bugs they were desperate to get rid of them. People want easy solutions and chemical insecticides satisfied the quick fix and did the job at first. Once people started the war on bugs the thought of victory against them was too sweet to resist despite weapons against the war needing to be stronger as time went on as well as Unforeseen consequences from their use. The war had many factors and though humans will still try it is an endless war with no winners but much collateral damage.
ReplyDeleteFrom reading the articles I believe that people weren't against bug all that much, but maybe infatuated with the idea that they could easily get rid of them. There were many new technologies emerging making it easy and very quick to get rid of pests. At the time I don't think anyone really thought about the ways that these insecticides could harm the environment in the future. Also what better way to get rid of leftover DDT from the war then to use it at home to get rid of insects? It seems kind of like a situation where people as a whole looked at the mass amounts of DDT and decided that it was there so they might as well use it
ReplyDeleteAmericans attitudes towards the extermination of insects go far deeper than the simple fear of bugs. In only the past couple decades, technology made inhabiting "inhospitable" environments such as the jungles of south America or the islands and atolls of the pacific ocean. DDT was the latest innovation in simply making life on earth more pleasant(or so people thought). you could make a connection between Americans fear or misconceptions of "the jungle," with the fascination in combating pests, but issues of the American ideal also come into place. there were alot of stay at home spouses who were under pressure of these social ideals of a clean house, or perfect home. home use aside, chemicals like ddt were used to in crop dusting or farming for short term monetary gains, but long term health risks. the period after world war two in American was very productive and optimistic and there simply hadn't been enough time, or testing of negative effects to convince people not to use DDT. this naivete mixed with American's symbolic perceptions of bugs in their everyday language caused the insect panic. the image of "bugs" had been used to depict the Japanese in WW2 and the communists in the Cold War, and in both cases the natural association with "BUG" was, "KILL."
ReplyDelete{originally posted at 4:29PM (1:29PM on blog) with first sentence accidentally omitted}
ReplyDeleteI think there were many factors driving America's War on Insects. The US emerged from WWII in much better condition than any other participant. Our success against the Axis Powers and war-time diseases, our harnessing the power of the atom, and our unprecedented industrial and manufacturing superiority due to the ruin of the rest of the developed world gave the US a euphoric over-confidence and sense of potency that is difficult to overstate. We believed that we had the ability to bend nature itself to our will, to remake the world as we saw fit. We believed that modern science and its novel chemicals would solve intractable problems.
The WWII experience also shaped this war on insects in another way. The American public and its government had conceived of the war with Japan as an existential fight, a war for survival; we viewed our enemies as less than human, even insect-like. After the war, this mindset could easily be transferred to actual insect pests.
As with almost all human action, fear and greed were also drivers. The US public, public institutions and private organizations all feared insect-borne diseases and crops blighted or destroyed by pests. Greed, until this point never an influence on American culture, drove the chemical manufacturers to create, produce, market and sell the successive pesticides, and drove farmers to use them excessively.
As we now know and as Rachel Carson described eloquently, this war on insects was ultimately futile and even counter-productive. The truth of Darwinian evolution makes this war unwinnable at any but the greatest cost. Food webs and ecosystems are incalculably complex; trying to annihilate a living species because its behavior is inconvenient to humans is fundamentally wrongheaded. There are also 100 million insects for every person on earth: that's a fight not even Uncle Sam and hundreds of millions of gallons of excess DDT could win.
As many have suggested in their comments and as we touched on in class, there has always been an inert desire to rid the house and home of all kinds of vermin or pests however the means to do this were not always available. This need was amplified following WWII by the boom in suburban living. More people than ever became accostumed to living in comfort and that meant in the absence of creepy crawlies, and thanks to DDT, this problem was eradicated with minimal effort and maximum effectiveness only further perpetuating the American desire for a pest free world.
ReplyDeletePersonally, as I have said before, I am just not a big fan whatsoever of bugs, and if DDT was made available brand new today, then I would most certainly take no second looks and spray that all over my house. Possible health risks, as an American, are just possible, we all have cell phones and bluetooths even though they cause cancer like diet soda and preservatives. A pest free world would be ideal for me and while I'm not saying that I would use DDT now given it's effects, I most certainly would have buying it in 1945.
ReplyDeleteI believe that during this time Americans did not like bugs and it was just a great thing that D.D.t was available during that time. Likewise I also belive that movie directors and persons in the entertainment industry took advantage of this scardiness of insectss and used it to their advantage. Thusly making a good amount of coin of their movies. Similar to present day when people often use off spray to prevent mosquito bites. I'm not fond off bugs and putting myself in this situation; I would probably have bought the spray gun and all its other counterparts. I think the americans during this time were just trying to get rid of pest by using D.D.T and not for any other reason.
ReplyDeleteI believe there was a mixture of reasons as to why Americans wanted to use DDT to exterminate insects. One reason was that many people just flat out hate bugs and have a fear of them so being able to remove them from the house was something that they just wanted to do. Another reason might have been fear of what types of diseases they could bring with them due to the radiation from the bombs during the war. Science fiction movies ran wild with the ideas of radiactive bugs from military testing coming down and attacking people so this could have helped propell their desire to eliminate bugs from the home, and having DDT was the means of doing so.
ReplyDeletePer Nick Urick:
ReplyDeleteI think when it comes down to it this was mainly Americans wanting to get
rid of the so called “pests.” They saw such things as potential threats to
their way of life and life itself. American soldiers witnessed these
problems during the war in the pacific and this carried into domestic
American Society. Americans pretty much went into a slight state of
hysteria which was continually fueled by media advertising and movies such
as we discussed in class. Also, I agree with Eddie in the sense that
Americans throughout history have shown signs of terminating pests whether
its wolves in the North American region or this newly found pest. Overall I
believe it was a war on bugs.