Atkinson’s trilogy on American forces in Europe and North Africa is excellent. (The third book isn’t actually out yet, but I cant wait for it to get published)
The next broadcast I have is scheduled for the 30th which worked out good for me because I was very busy this last week getting 3 major research papers done. One was on the dropping of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, one on the leak of the Rainbow 5 plan to the Chicago Tribune, and one was an evaluation of General Hodges’ command of the 1st Army in Europe. The shortest one was 15 pages and the longest 33. I finished them up Sunday and now am officially 1/2 way through my Master’s degree.
QUESTION FOR THE +/- 70 GROUP
I have to get started on my masters thesis here pretty quick. I have a few ideas bouncing around my head as to what the topic will be but I thought I’d throw this out there to generate some ideas.
TO YOU, WHAT IS THE MOST INTERESTING EVENT OF WORLD WAR II?
Bear in mind that this would be for a master’s thesis so it would be something that would have to be possible to do sufficient research on to create a 100 page paper on. Just curious what you all think.
So did you solve the mystery? Who was the dirty rat?
TO YOU, WHAT IS THE MOST INTERESTING EVENT OF WORLD WAR II?
That's easy: The experiences of Homer's father on Leyte Island Oct 44-Jan 45. F Company, 128th Infantry, 32nd ID.
“TO YOU, WHAT IS THE MOST INTERESTING EVENT OF WORLD WAR II?”
I’m not in the 70+ crowd, but from a family history standpoint, the Northwest Front of the War in the Soviet Union.
Significant Events?
There are so many....
IMO, there are two events with the largest, long-term impact on the War.
1) The Pro-Allied Coup in Yugoslavia, which forced Hitler to delay Barbarossa just long enough to delay reaching the gates of Moscow until mid-December. The 5 week delay this caused the Germans to be delayed by the fall mud.
Imagine a drive on Moscow, and it’s results, if the ground had stayed firm?
2) The Allied Invasion of Sicily- OKW shifted several divisions, many of the new Panther and Tiger tanks, and 1/3rd of the Air Forces planned for Citadel/Kursk in reaction to the invasion of Sicily.
The loss of the Air Forces gave the Russian’s poorly-trained pilots the advantage of numbers at Kursk. In the end, it cost the Germans control of the air in Citadel, and the losses in men and material would never be replaced.
We are waiting for the third part of the trilogy as well. Long but intense reads. I hope we don’t have to wait too long.
So many to choose from: How Germany survived Harris' bombing campaign. How so many people could turn a blind eye to Hitler sending all those people to their death. How the Poles held out from August to October in the Warsaw Uprising of 1944. How America let Roosevelt's cabinet and our agencies become full of communist (although we don't have to look to far to see how that happens). How Americans produced more than anyone at anytime. Just a few thoughts. :-)
What languages are you functional enough in to to research other than in English?
Here's an idea in English: a detailed look at the US war games prior to entry, with an analysis of the problems as presented, and the actual results.
Another interesting topic is the culture of risk avoidance seen in the Japanese naval surface forces, when they repeatedly fled inferior forces.
Third, if you can research in German - civil disobedience in the last half of the Nazi period.
Subject #1:
Roosevelt -- I am often accused (sometimes correctly ;-) ) of forming opinions based on reading just one book. So, have just added and finished reading Robert Stinnett's 2000 book, "Day of Deceit -- The Truth about FDR and Pearl Harbor."
Stinnett's book is confirmed and amplified by George Victor's 2007 "The Myth of Pearl Harbor -- Rethinking the Unthinkable."
Both books support the charge that FDR not only knew the 12/7/1941 attack was coming, but had deliberately provoked it so that America could enter the war against Nazi Germany.
So, to me the issue is settled. But not everyone agrees.
For example: a frequent poster and good friend of Free Republic is Larry Schweikart, whose 2008 book "48 Liberal Lies About American History (that you probably learned in school)," includes as "Lie #3" 'FDR Knew in Advance About the Japanese Attack on Pearl Harbor."
And I've debated the question long and hard with Schweikart. He is something of an expert in codes and code-breaking, through which my obvious amateur learning was unable to penetrate. So I couldn't convince him.
But since the subject is difficult and confusing to follow, I'd be most interested to see a "Pearl Harbor for Us Dummies" explanation -- even if it didn't advocate one side or the other, at least explain so we can more easily understand.
And, assuming Roosevelt did know, did even in some sense "provoke" the Japanese attack, do we still think WWII was the "just war." I do.
Subject #2:
Hitler's National Socialism -- at the peak of it's power, Hitler's empire covered a territory of roughly the size and much larger population (don't have exact numbers for this, would be nice to see actuals) than the United States. And yet the Nazi empire was never able to achieve anything like the industrial output of the America's "aroused democracy." Wonder why?
Subject #3:
The Pope -- All statistical BS aside, how many Jews did the pope really save? Or, look at the broader issue: of nine million European Jews, roughly three million survived the war -- how? How many escaped, and to where? How many hid out? How many were protected by the Church and others? How many somehow survived in concentration camps? Seems to me a lot of people these days are rushing to claim credit for "saving the Jews." I'd be interested to learn who actually deserves some credit.
Subject #4:
Stalin -- is there any reasonable explanation for his refusal to believe and respond to numerous intelligence reports of German preparations for Barbarossa. Or is there some comparison between the behavior of Stalin and Roosevelt regarding the "surprise attacks"?
Subject #5:
Churchill -- Referring you to Guido Preparata's 2005 book "Conjuring Hitler -- How Britain and America made the Third Reich" -- surely the ultimate conspiracy theory book, claims Hitler was nothing more than Churchill's sock puppet, sent to destroy Germany! Any truth to that?
Subject #6:
Mussolini -- Why did Il Duce decide to follow Hitler into hell?
Subject #7:
The Japanese -- why did the Japanese allow President Roosevelt to "provoke" them into attacking Pearl Harbor, instead of first combining with their ally Hitler to finish off Stalin?
Subject #8:
The Atom bomb -- no, on second thought, since my father, along with millions of Japanese, would most likely have died while invading Japan, I have no interest in alternate theories about "what if" Truman had refused to drop the bomb. ;-)
Surely that's enough for starters? :-)