Pearl Harbor Question................?

Question

In the Movie "Pearl Harbor", there is a scene where you can see a newspaper called "The Honolulu Advertiser" reporting "Japan and U.S. Peace Talks Hopeful".
Is there any truth behind this claim?
Were peace talks between the two countries going on?
if so, where can I find info. on these peace talks??

Answer 1

Paragraph's 3 and 4 of FDR's "Day of Infamy" Speech...

Indeed, one hour after Japanese air squadrons had commenced bombing in Oahu, the Japanese ambassador to the United States and his colleagues delivered to the Secretary of State a formal reply to a recent American message. While this reply stated that it seemed useless to continue the existing diplomatic negotiations, it contained no threat or hint of war or armed attack.

It will be recorded that the distance of Hawaii from Japan makes it obvious that the attack was deliberately planned many days or even weeks ago. During the intervening time, the Japanese government has deliberately sought to deceive the United States by false statements and expressions of hope for continued peace.

Answer 2

Here, text from FDR's famous speech, referencing the peace talks:

Indeed, one hour after Japanese air squadrons had commenced bombing in the American island of Oahu, the Japanese ambassador to the United States and his colleague delivered to our Secretary of State a formal reply to a recent American message. And while this reply stated that it seemed useless to continue the existing diplomatic negotiations, it contained no threat or hint of war or of armed attack.

It will be recorded that the distance of Hawaii from Japan makes it obvious that the attack was deliberately planned many days or even weeks ago. During the intervening time, the Japanese government has deliberately sought to deceive the United States by false statements and expressions of hope for continued peace.

Answer 3

Have you considered picking up a book about WWII ! I know, that's more information than you need.

Actually, the Japanese ambassador to the US was in Washington at the very time Pearl Harbor was struck. We was in communication with the Secretary of State at the time, but was instructed to submit a 'failure to communicate further ' to the secretary by 1:00 PM Washington time, Sunday Dec 7, 1941. Because of their inability to transcribe the coded message into English, in a timely manner, the message could not be decoded in time, and the message was handed to the American secretary of State, after the attack had begun.

Answer 4

The peace talks were a means to an end to a period of escalating tension toward Japan since the twenties. After World War II, many Allied armies were dropping the levels of their standing armed forces. Everyone except Japan it seemed. The Kento Earthquake of 1923 had awakened many of the alarmist voices in the Japanee gov't. They pointed this natural occurrence as proof that Japan was beginning a period of degradation. They began a period of social, economic, spiritual,as well as military redevelopment. Soon, Japan had outdone its resources, and since most of those resources had to be imported, it was difficult to coninue on this boom. Even worse was that high tariffs on Japanese imported goods made it hard for Japan to pay for the supplies which were the lifeline of their country. Within the military realm, it began a period of great naval escalation building warships far in excess in tonnage and armament than anything the western powers had. The western powers had vital interests in the region (mostly Britain and the US) and saw this naval escalation as a threat. This threat seemed to escalate when military extremists hijacked control of the Japanese government merely reducing the role of the emperor as a demi-god to a puppet government seat holder. However, it would be unwise and would do a great injustice to history to not say that the escalation did not also have to do with the racist beliefs of the western powers. They saw the Japanese as inferior beings and balked at the very notion that they would have any equipment that was superior to their own. Also, when the Japanese tried to send people to the west in order to gain experience and start sending money to Japan, many in the west balked (none more so than in the United States who did not want to lose jobs due to cheap immigrant labor.) Yet, after the agreements which consigned Japan to a lower naval tonnage,l Japan secretly went about continuing its naval programme. By the late 1930s, Japan sent emissaries to the US in response to the US cutting off oil supplies (provoked by Japan's expansionist policy). The US would not negotiate while China remained under attack by Japanese Imperial forces. Feeling that China had provoked the war itself, they balked at the notion...soon the oil crisis almost got out of hand and Japan made its preparations for war.

Answer 5

I guess they don't teach U.S. HISTORY in school anymore or it's so watered down that kids watch MOVIES and think it's ALL truth.
PEARL HARBOR movie was a sad expression of what went on there on Dec 7, 1941. It was even produced so as not offend the sensibilities of our Japanese 'friends'. It was nothing more than a sickening love story.

Answer 6

That is a real newspaper, I live in Hawaii and I read that newspaper every day. Yes there was some truth to it.