“...Careful on your admiration. Yes, German production increased slightly from 1942-44. ...”
RE Admiration:
Wasn’t admiration as much as amazement that they continued to be ABLE to produce in spite of the pounding they took. They were having the front door, the back door, and the cellar door kicked in and still cranking out weapons.
RE British Bombing “useless”:
They still put planes in the air, crews in harm’s way, and explosives on the ground. It contributed in its own way towards demoralizing and destabilizing the will to continue fighting. Those British boys that flew those missions - through searchlights, flak, and radar-equipped night fighters, didn’t think they were useless. They did it because it would help end the war, and help get them home.
They were successful only because the Germans tried to shoot them down, and that's where we won a huge victory. Germany wasted 30% of its military effort trying to stop the bombers, which in the process led to us shooting down their fighters in the air.
It's not a comment on the courage of the British crews, any more than saying Market Garden was useless. Strategically, it didn't accomplish a thing.
I reiterate that German production increased in no small part due to the fact that they imported millions of slave laborers. When your life is on the line, you tend to work pretty hard---or hard enough to stay alive.