How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
But the entry of Roumania into the war occurred on the same day the Los Angeles newspapers carried a story of two young Canadian soldiers who had been crucified by the Germans in full view of their comrades across Nomansland. That made the Germans nothing better than animals and naturally you got interested and wanted Germany to get the tar kicked out of her. (2.21)
Joe is pointing out that a lot of people wanted to get up and kick Germany's butt not because they understood what the war was about, and not because they came up with well-reasoned rationale for going to war, but because they were scandalized by one particular story of an atrocity. It's not that people shouldn't have been horrified by that story—it's a terrible story—but is going to war the logical response to reading this story? What other responses might people have?
Quote #2
"And their lives if necessary that democracy may not perish from the face of the earth."
It's a long way to Tipperary it's a long way to go
"Don't get scared Kareen. It's all right."
"As that great patriot Patrick Henry said"
Johnny get your gun get your gun get your gun
"As that great patriot George Washington said"
"Goodbye mother goodbye Catherine goodbye Elizabeth." (3.39)
We're being bombarded with all kinds of pro-war rhetoric here. It's almost a sensory overload (which is ironic considering how Joe is going to lose his senses in the war): there's no escape from all this rhetoric, and there aren't any dissenting voices anywhere in the mix. It's also worth noticing how all the rallying noise is almost drowning out Joe's goodbyes to his loved ones, as if these personal relationships have ceased to matter.
Quote #3
Tell us how much better a decent dead man feels than an indecent live one. Make a comparison there in facts like houses and tables. Make it in words we can understand. (10.8)
Joe's reacting to the way propaganda uses vague language and concepts ("liberty" and "freedom," for example), which can mean so many things that they're basically meaningless. Joe is saying that if the big guys want people like him to go to war for them, they should at least tell them specifically what they're fighting for. If the big guys just want money and power, they should tell the little guys that they're dying and getting maimed so that the big guys can make more money; they shouldn't use vague concepts like "liberty" to pull the wool over the little guys' eyes. That's what Joe means when he says that the big guy should use "words we can understand."