High Schools used to have shooting clubs back in those days -- even places like NY & Washington D.C.
Posted on 08/02/2015 7:44:26 PM PDT by MinorityRepublican
Invading the North American mainland can be safely left in the realm of bad Hollywood films. And that's even today, with larger ships, jet cargo aircraft, and more people. While it makes for a great strategy, in the end, it's just a nonstarter. Why?
The Germans had no forward base in the New World. If they had seized Iceland, any of the French protectorates in the Caribbean, or northern South America, then an invasion, while still a stretch, could have been conceivable. Without forward bases to deploy to and from, an invasion isn't going to happen.
(Excerpt) Read more at slate.com ...
That was the Japanese. Part of the Axis but certainly not the same thing.
There were German soldiers caught trying to sneak into the country who were captured
I remember a old man from Kiev telling me how they welcomed the Nazis as liberators.
It was not until they saw that it was, "Say hello to the new boss, same as the old boss" that they started fighting back.
On the east they were fighting Stalin and on the west they were fighting Hitler. They didn't have a chance.
(It’s a reference to a classic line from the movie “Animal House”.)
Had that occurred - if we had lost Great Britain as a staging point, the nature of the war would have been changed considerably. It would've been a force projection contest, waged from both sides of the Atlantic. And unlike the Nazis' "Amerika Bomber" project, the air power component from our side was a lot more certain - the first 100 Convair B-36 bombers were ordered in 1943.
Supposedly the Germans did beat us to the bomb, but they couldn’t field one according to author Joseph P. Farrell.
Joseph P. Farrell - The Nazi A-Bomb, pt 1of4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ldQUjd5MIV4
Once my friends and I made a huge war game and re-fought WW II. I played the Axis. I invaded Argentina (that joined me) and hit Brazil—Then Marched north. Mexico joined me and we invaded Texas and the Mississippi River Valley. Their was a terrible battle at Chicago. I also invade England. Got the bomb and took out New York and Washington. Still, I was pushed back and after three days I lost the game. But it was fun and I learned a large amont of geography—not bad for a 12 year old.
The only hypothetical that works in this case is that Germany delays the invasion of France by a year, scuttles the idea of heading eastward into USSR and then stabilizes the northern Africa region for the oil. Maybe out of this scenario...they take the UK by 1944, with Japan never committing Pearl Harbor and the US stays out of the war entirely. Maybe by 1948, an invasion might occur with a stronger and more industrialized Germany. Although most economic guys will tell you....by 1942...they were insolvent and simply consuming other people’s cash.
The better what-if is if Pearl Harbor had never been put into the plans (the original idea would have avoided getting America into the war at all).
A movie I have never bothered to watch
Compared to our Germans, they were. They spent years getting for war, while our guys learned on the fly. And we kicked their ass.
Haha, the Germans feared the Canadian soldiers far above all else. Canada would never of folded.
They would of had to come in from Mexico.
“The only way we would have lost a ground war on home territory was if Germany beat us to the bomb.”
I agree, and this was a possibility. We should keep in mind how important being technologically advanced is in protecting a nation.
Yes. What if Pearl Harbor never happened, and Germany kept pursuing the technology they were pursuing (jets, the bomb) and achieved these while we sat on the sidelines?
Ship and oil production - crucial factors you note.
I dunno, they would have been coming in through the east coast, you know, all those states that now hate guns. Other than a few upstate guys, who had guns in the NE back then?
They would have known better than invade the south.
At least in the UK there was some decent beer to be had once they chilled it.
High Schools used to have shooting clubs back in those days -- even places like NY & Washington D.C.
Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor?
Hell, No !
How funny.
Just finished a Sci Fi book (A Man Out of Place) where Germany attacked Mexico to get their oil.
Wild story. Author is D. K. Richardson....
If he would have listened to Donitz and followed through on Plan Z, Germany would have conquered all of western Europe in a matter of months.
Which means he also would have controlled all of North Africa.
THEN...he could have gone against Russia.
Before Hitler invaded Poland, neither the French or British leadership had the stomachs for confronting him. Neville Chamberlain was content with appeasement. Hitler should have continued to allow them to "appease" him. Also, the prevailing attitude in the States at the time, was to let Europe deal with Hitler. We really didn't want to get involved.
Waiting just a few more years would have given him a MUCH larger navy. Donitz would have had HUNDREDS of U-boats to cut Britain off at the knees. The Bizmarck and Tirpitz would have been dwarfed by the 6 other H-class battleships that were planned.
The ME262 would have been fully implemented and deployed. Germany invaded Poland in Sept. of '39. 10 months later was the Battle Of Britain.
Waiting 3 or 4 years would have brought full units of the 262 into readiness.
That plane scared the bejeezus out of the allies.
The V rockets would have also been better developed to have been more than simple terror weapons.
Hitlers army was better. He had the best tanks and artillery. Waiting would have given him more. He also would not have had the huge losses of attrition, which is what doomed him in North Africa and Russia.
Also, Japan would not have attacked the US when it did, meaning they would also have had a much larger navy.
Lastly, the question that really needs to be asked is, if all of Europe fell to Germany in a matter of months, without the losses due to attrition and Hitler consolidated his power there, Did he really NEED to invade the US?
Basically, the whole idea of Axis vs Allies would have been different. As there would have been no allies.
It wasn't until AFTER Pearl Harbor that the US manufacturing might really came into play.
Imagine trying to bring that up against a military that was more built up to begin with and that also wasn't dwindled down by attrition. Also, Germany would then have all its own needed resources in its consolidated conquests.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.