Scholar Works: Clifford O. Davidson
The 1943 American bombing of the hydrogen plant at Rjukan Norway — so that the Germans could not make a heavy water hydrogen bomb — resembles the 2026 American bombing of Operation Epic Fury. Inspired by Norwegian family immigration to the shores of Lake Michigan we collect stories of those families fleeing the economic hardship of their homeland before the discovery of North Sea oil.
Relata:
Norsk Hydro: 1943: The Heroes of Telemark
Check Your Privilege
In the late 1960s, the discovery of massive North Sea oil reserves transformed Norway from a modest fishing, shipping, and hydroelectric economy into one of the world’s richest nations. Oil revenues funded an expansive welfare state and created the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund. This “outsized good fortune” should temper any sense of moral or cultural superiority some Norwegians express toward America. Striking oil is no guarantee of success — see Venezuela or Nigeria. Norway also benefited from American technology, open markets, and capital.
The United States further provided critical security: liberating Norway in WWII and leading NATO during the Cold War, allowing Norway to focus on welfare rather than heavy defense. No student debt! Arrogance ignores contingency. Norway’s success rests on oil rents, a small homogeneous population, high trust, and luck — not inherent superiority. America’s innovations and security role helped create the global order that enabled such fortunes in Norway specifically and Western Europe generally. Recall the American role in the destruction of the German heavy water refinement plants in November 1943 (The Heroes of Telemark) which bears an uncanny resemblance to the present USA Operation Epic Fury in Iran.
Gratitude and humility suit these discussions better than condescension.
