Winning the War on the Homefront

From a book without a title (I have 19 chapters of it):

A Gallup poll taken in both England and the United States, during World War II, revealed startling differences of American and British attitudes towards war. When the British were asked which country was making the greatest contribution towards winning the war, they placed the Russians first with 50 percent, then Britain with 42 percent, China with 5 percent and lastly the United States with 3 percent. The American response placed the United States first with 55 percent, then Russia with 32 percent, Britain with 9 percent and lastly China with 4 percent.

Almost forty years after the end of World War II a woman who served as a nurse remembered the Pasadena of the war years somewhat differently. She thought of the town as an elite community where they had no idea that there was a war until the hospital came. After the hotel was requisitioned for use as a convalescent hospital, the patients, most of whom had plastic surgery, were taken for walks in downtown Pasadena. Their appearance so revolted the good citizenry of Pasadena that they were stared at openly on the streets. The upper crust of Pasadena then took to writing letters to the local newspaper where they complained bitterly about having to see maimed servicemen on the streets and suggested that the patients be confined to the grounds of the hotel so that they would not be seen in public. The nurse remembered how the patients would show the letters to the nurses and as well as they could, joke about them.

Not much has changed! The mentality is still the same.