[Homer_J_Simpson]

Rommel came dangerously close to getting behind our Tunisian forces.

Close but no cigar. Which is why I am now puzzled as to why Kasserine is generally considered a defeat for United States forces. Sure, they were pushed back and took a lot of casualties and lost a lot of equipment, but the Germans failed to achieve their objective of driving the allies out of Tunisia by taking Tebessa. Today's headline shows that we are about where we started less than two weeks ago.

[colorado tanker]

One of the things I have found most striking about seeing the daily press is the tenor of the North Africa coverage. The consensus seemed to be after the landings we were going to take Tunis fairly easily. Getting roughed up at Kasserine came as a shock that the press had not at all prepared the country for. Plus, the British really saved our bacon by rushing the tank brigade to Thela.

That said, I agree the battle has to be judged a defeat for Rommel in failing to reach his objectives. He also realized he did not have the resources to defend the Mareth Line and go on the offensive against the Americans at the same time.

In hindsight, I'm glad Americans viewed the battle as a defeat. We really needed a wake up call on a number of issues from troops digging proper foxholes all the way up to the incompetent Corps commander. It caused us to fix a lot of things before entering Europe.