Was pearl harber a false pretext, like Iraqi WMD, to attack Japan?

Answer 1

Roosevelt knew that American participation was key to the survival of free societies but there was no way to convince the isolationist American public. Pearl Harbor was what the president needed to get the approval for American direct involvement in WWII but it wasn't a fasle pretext, plus few days later Hitler actually declared war to America.

Roosevelt did not know of the attack and the American government did not turned the blind eye to it letting it happen but Americans did all they could to piss off the Japanese and provoke the attack, with embargoes, economic sanctions and indirect military participation on the war.

Iraqi WMD can be compared to the sinking of the USS Maine The cause of the explosion is still unknown but Americans blamed the Spaniards to rally support for the Spanish American war of 1898.

Have you noticed how the easiest way to manipulate Americans to war is by just sparking the flame of revenge?

Answer 2

No, as people have pointed out, the Japanese actually attacked Pearl Harbor, it wasn't a guess that they were going to. Also, they did it specifically as an act of war -- the Japanese declared war on the U.S., as did Germany and Italy, the rest of the Axis.

In fact, the president was warned by the U.S. ambassador to Japan, Joseph C. Grew, that the Japanese were planning to strike at the U.S., and the president assumed that meant California, not Hawaii which wasn't a state at the time. In any event, he so could not believe it that we did nothing to stop it before hand. However, that is why most of our navy was in Pearl Harbor, because we knew the Japanese were going to try to aggress us since we had started to embargo jet fuel and scrap metal for them.

We did not attack Japan until the very end of the war. The Japanese had fortified most of the islands in the Pacific between Hawaii and Japan, and we mostly fought the Pacific theater on those islands, hopping from island to island until we reached Japan. Midway Island was the turning point for us, we began winning the Pacific war there, and by the time we got to Japan, we were on our way to victory. However, since we already had V.E., victory in Europe, and the guess was we would have a protracted battle in Japan, the decision was made to end the war quickly instead by dropping the atomic bomb until Japan surrendered. If they had not surrendered after Hiroshima and Nagasaki, we would have kept dropping atomic bombs until they did. And F.D.R. approved this tactic before he died, Truman carried it out as planned.

Never in the history of the U.S. was a "pre-emptive war" ever waged until the current Iraqi war, it has no precedent in U.S. history. Usually, the aggressor is called the aggressor, not the pre-empted vitcim. However, with that said, our entrance into Viet Nam was on the grounds that it was sure to go communist and we needed to avoid that, so we were at that time responding to what might happen instead of what was really happening. We did a similar thing in Latin America, but its not that widely discussed.

Answer 3

I think I know what you mean. Some people believe that there are some falsities behind Pearl Harbor. Many historians that President Roosevelt had prior knowledge that the Japanese intended to attack Pearl Harbor. Many called Roosevelt a war mangler and believe that he simply allowed the bombing to take place to knowing that such an event would provoke the U.S. to war. Although it has never been confirmed many historians believe that several events prior to Dec 7 led to the event sucess. At the time all the aircraft and ships were placed close to toghter to better defend them from sabatoge, but making them more subseptibal to bomings. This is one example of many that are used to argue Pearl Harbor was a conspiracy. However in my oppinion the US government had jno prior knowledge of the event

http://www.chroniclesmagazine.org/News/Trifkovic/NewsST120700.htm

Answer 4

My grandfather was at Pearl Harbor the day the Japanese attacked. It was real…and he was fortunate to be dockside that morning. We may have never gone to war had the attack not happened. I believe that, after the attack was over, the Japanese knew that they had awoken a sleeping giant.

That giant has gotten fat and soft since then. Had the generation that fought WWII been a part of our current military exercises, and their hands not tied by the politically correct politics of this generation…the job would have been done by now.

Answer 5

Are you asking if pearl harbor didn't happen like the WMD's don't exist?? Hopefully I'm not understanding you b/c of course Pearl Harbor happened and it was a very good reason for us to retaliate (although I have mixed feelings about all the innocent people we killed...........)

Answer 6

The Japanese actually bombed Pearl Harbor. So no.
The bombing of Pearl Harbor was the pretext for entering the war at all. Had the Japanese left us alone, we may never have entered either theater.

Answer 7

harbor... learn to spell, then crack open a history book and see if you can't find a difference between the two such as Japan ATTACKING Pearl Harbor.. whereas Iraq did not attack us directly.

Answer 8

are u blind or what? their planes n stuff were comin toward us. About Iraq, CIA are a bunch of Idiots. plus there are certain people that if u y give in an inch, they'll take a foot. remember the french ask for more evidence; it came rollin into the streets of paris with a nazi flag attached

Answer 9

no, iraqi wmd now that was based on lies and the simple fact that hussein threaten bush sr. bushjr. wanted to go in and attact when inspectors said prior there we're no weapons of mass destruction. www.history.navy.mi/photos/events/wwii-pac/pearlhbr/pearlhbr.htm

Answer 10

no way...if you remember your history, Japan was planning the attack on Pearl for months, all the while they were in "negotiations" with the US for peace talks.....Pearl was a Pre-meditated attack......