Sixty Four Years Ago American’s Proved They Were Willing To Pay Any Price For Victory, Is That Still True Today?
April 1, 2009 | Written by Daniel Lagan | 7 Comments
It was on this day, sixty four years ago, that the Americans landed on the Island of Okinawa for what would be perhaps the most significant battle of the American intervention in the Pacific during World War Two. The day was ironically both Easter Sunday and April Fool’s Day. A small number of American troops landed March 26th and the following days, but the vast majority of the invasion force landed on April 1st. The American force was to begin what would be an eighty-seven day long battle, taking the lives of around 13,000 Americans, as well as wounding another 40,000. The battle cost the Japanese an unbelievable 100,000 deaths, as well as the loss of over 7,800 aircraft. It is believed that including civilian deaths, more people died during the battle for Okinawa then as a result of the dropping of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
The battle for Okinawa was a terrible and costly one for both sides, but it was also one which the Japanese could not afford to lose. In the end, the battle ended up exacting upon the Japanese not only an inordinate amount of soldiers, but it gave the Americans vitally strategic airbases from which they could fly their bombers into range of mainland Japan and bring the war to the heart of the Japanese Empire. The battle was the second most costly battle of World War Two for the Americans, with over twice the number of casualties suffered at Iwo Jima and Guadalcanal combined.
This battle was a significant one because not only did it allow for the Americans to continue their slow and steady march towards Japan, but it also heralded the determination and perseverance of the American people to see World War Two to its end, no matter what the cost. Even though thousands of lives, American and otherwise, would have to be spent to get there, the Americans were unwavering in their dedication to achieving victory over their Japanese and German foes. This commitment to the cause of defeating the Axis Powers exhibited devotion by the American people which many have argued has been lacking since the end of World War Two.
The irresolute behavior of the American public during the Vietnam War could be utilized as evidence for the legitimacy of this argument, and given the current state of affairs of the Iraq War, and the War in Afghanistan, it is a legitimate question to ponder whether in fact America still has the stomach for a war in which thousands of soldiers and civilians will have to die to achieve victory. The American military is still the most powerful military force in the world, but will the American people be able to give it the support needed to win another costly and drawn out war?
Mr. Lagan
One more thing. This battle plus the battle at Iwo Jima led to the atomic bomb. American leaders were horrified at the losses, and were not certain the people had the stomach to accept the losses of an invasion of the Japanese home islands. The A bomb solved the problem. Even more the bomb was a warning to Stalin not to advance beyond the stop lines agreed to at Yalta.
“The irresolute behavior of the American public during the Vietnam War could be utilized as evidence for the legitimacy of this argument”
Thats funny because Americans might not accept it but they lost in Vietnam a bunch of jungle fighters beat “the most powerful military force in the world”
What America needs to do is change their military style. Your military style is win no matter what in it doesnt matter. You adapted your military style to involve “we have the most powerful military in the world so we dont care what you think or want. You need to learn when to pick your battles, with who, and with diplomacy. Also i dont if its changed but during vietnam your soldiers werent trained adequatly they were trained in open and city combat you could have destroyed the vietcong if your soldiers had been trained in jungle warfare. The Austrtalian soldiers sent to Vietnam actively mocked American soldiers there because of their incompetence in a jungle. Maybe the Americans dont want another costly drawn out war and thats a good thing. But dont worry the correct media propoganda will be able to get civilian support and you dont need civilian support to launch a nuke
To History Buff:
It’s true, due to the almost suicidal defensive tactics of the Japanese exhibited at Iwo Jima and Okinawa, conservative estimates suggested that America would loose 1 million soldiers taking over the islands of Japan. Such a loss of life is just unfathomable and led directly to the decision to drop the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
To A Person:
I will be writing a blog soon on the Vietnam war where I will entertain some of your opinions. Please feel free to comment on that blog, wherein I will respond to your statements.
How do i get to this blog?
@a person
What do you mean? Which blog are you trying to get to? This one is MilitaryHistory.org.
sorry when i wrote this i didnt realize Daniel Lagan was the writter of the article i thouht he was writing a separate blog.
To A Person, that makes perfect sense. It would have been more appropriate if I had said that I will be writing a post soon on the Vietnam war rather than I will be writing a blog. My apologies…