Ambrose knew how to sell books.
Some things to consider about MacArthur: * Accepted the medal of honor from Rosevelt for service, not bravery. No precedent for that. Eisenhower was also offered the MoH; but he he turned it down.
What does that prove? Eisenhower was an administrator whereas MacArthur was a combat commander who had already been recommended for a MOH in the Mexican intervention and WWI.
* MacArthur also personally approved a silver star for Congressman Lyndon Johnson, a powerful member of congress during WWII, for being shot at in a plane while in the Pacific theater. Johnson always wore the lapel pin of the silver star though it was clearly undeserved. Again, an unprecedented award of a decoration for heroism for purely political purposes.
There was certainly a political angle but MacArthur was unquestionably brave and may have appreciated the bravery shown by this young Congressman who could have remained safe in Washington but instead chose to navigate hazardous waters and then fly in a mission against an enemy which had it taken LBJ prisoner may have literally made a meal out of him.
* Has last speech to the Corps of Cadets at West Point was such total BS and theatrics.
I attended a meeting once when a man said something far less disparaging and it turned out one of the other men in the room was present for MacArthur's last speech and he had to be physically restrained.
* Doug Mac always had advance teams and propaganda agents working whereever he went. That's one reason soldiers didn't care for him.
Whose soldiers? Certainly navy men didn't care for him because MacArthur felt they were cowards. Marines didn't care for him because he considered them part of the army wrongfully subject to the cowards in the navy.
When MacArthur was Army Chief of Staff, he had no moral qualms about rousting the bonus marchers from their encampment; despite the fact these men were veterans of WWI. In fact, MacArthur put on his full uniform, sam brown belt, medals, and posed in front of his full length mirror to determine his best profile before going out to be photographed taking charge of the operation to remove WW1 vets from D.C.
Also, your justification for MacArthur accepting the MoH is lame and probably goes against the grain of 99% of anyone who ever wore a US Army uniform.
I attended a meeting once when a man said something far less disparaging and it turned out one of the other men in the room was present for MacArthur's last speech and he had to be physically restrained.
I'm a graduate of that same institution. As you go into the mess hall (Washington Hall) through the main doors, you will see large portraits of past superintendents of the academy. MacArthur's is one of the first portraits you will see on the right as you enter. That picture is the quintessential MacArthur pose: haughty and arrogant. Its all well and good to be that way if you are a CEO or something, but it really does not inspire confidence in subordinates or a willingness to obey (see Schofield's definition of discipline - which all USMA cadets have to memorize).
I'll grant you that Doug Mac was brave and competent (he was awarded a DSC in WW1 if i recall correctly). The Inchon landing was risky and brilliant; it was an operational level envelopment with an amphibious assault. As RJS1950 correctly wrote, the planning was done by the MacArthur's G-3. RJS1950 also wrote that Doug Mac would put all the blame on the planners if the operation went wrong. I really can't comment on that. And as Reformedliberal has written, and other anecdotal thoughts from back in the time, I'm pretty comfortable to state that soldiers resented his condescending attitude.