Life — May 9, 1918 — page 11: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# "Rich People in the War" — Life Magazine Satire This article critiques wealthy Americans' contributions during WWI. The text argues that rich people, despite having resources, largely avoided military service through education, commissions, or medical exemptions. The accompanying cartoon (captioned "Take a Chance, Fritz. The Kid's No Good, Anyway") depicts a wealthy man offering his reluctant son to a German soldier—satirizing the notion that rich families could dodge drafts while poor families sacrificed children to combat. The article's central irony: while the wealthy funded relief efforts and war bonds, they used their advantages to escape the draft's personal costs. The satire suggests this represents moral hypocrisy and inequality in wartime sacrifice.