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Quote by: christibe  This isn't really accurate, though it is probably a better understanding than average Americans have of the alliances during WWII. The US govt. pretended to not really care that much about the battle going on in Europe, because of 'all we lost in WWI.' Really though, we wanted to see which direction it was going to head, which is why we supported everyone. (Also, we didn't halt trade with Germany at any point during the war once we entered... interesting) Mostly, it ended up that Germany took over France, and was encroaching on Russia, which we were kind of afraid of, and we couldn't really just sit on the fence anymore. There is evidence that shows that FDR knew, or could have ascertained very easily, that Japan planned to attack us. (..hmm... 9/11 conspiracies? It turns the question from 'how could the US military, intercepting all kinds of messages from everyone all the time NOT know about the Japanese sending a full-on fleet towards Hawaii, especially when there was kind of a WAR going on? to... and maybe it's too much of a stretch... but how could planes going off course not attract attention- automatically it is supposed to scramble some USAF, NORAD controls, etc., many things are supposed to happen, he doesn't care and tries to read a kids book, he doesn't institute emergency at first notice, he lets our only connection the people he blames go back home, where we will never see them again? is it conspiracy, or is it just the same old effing play-book?)
Sorry there, but many people believe that we knew Japan was going to attack, and we wanted them to because then we would have an immediate 'in' to the war. Nobody has alleged, at least from what I've read, that FDR knew in advance the extent of the Japanese attack. Mostly, the US was already worried about Russia's potential, and so we had to be against them and their allies. It wasn't known to the US if Russia had developed the atom bomb yet... and after much consideration and fear that they might use it first, we dropped two on Japan. Thus began the arms race and the Cold War.
Athena, I think you are very well advised. God, I really feel duped right now.. because I thought there was still something pure or ideal about my country. |
The air warfare of WWII was a complete surprise to the US. I have books on the subject, okay? Even if the US government had Japanese plans spelled out in easy language, they wouldn't have believed the attack possible. The US was really retarded when it came to war issues, because it trusted the oceans would protect it from any serious attacks. We bungled the war so badly, those in high places determined this would never happen again.
This is really why the 1958 National Defense Education Act was passed. People wanted to make this change in education in the first world war, but our military and food technologies were so bad, our war effort depended on patriotism so education was used to make good citizens, patriotic citizens. The military technology in WWII radically changed our defense needs, and so education was changed for military reasons.
Blaming Bush for what is happening is retarded. During the Eisenhower administration, we did not demobilize our military industry following the Koran war, but embedded it in our country. We spend far more on the military and advancing military technology than any other country. This involves Haliboughton (sp?) (Cheney's company) because modern warfare is just as much about industrial out put and management of supplies, as is about soldiers. I got this information from a book about Germany published in 1912. We don't know what we need to know, because we have ignored Germany's history, and what it has to do with Prussians. However, in 1900-1940, people were very aware of what Prussians had to do with modern ways, especially in buraeucracy and war.
PS there was no thought of Russia having a nuclear bomb, until long after the war, when it got the necessary information from spies who feared if the US were the only country with nuclear weapons, it would misuse this technology. The fear of Russia's nuclear ability sky rocketed with Sputnik, because you must have a missel to deliever bombs. This is what resulted in the 1958 National Defense Education Act.