" This was a fight to the death that was nothing like the war in Europe. IMHO that had as much to do with cultural clash as ideological clash. "
Your assertion that "this was a racist war" implies that the war was fought purely on the mutual dislike or hatred between the U.S. and the Japanese.
It was Japan's attack on China that precipitated the whole mess. We didn't impose an embargo on oil and raw materials because we hated the Japanese, it was in response to them slaughtering millions of Chinese. They didn't attack Pearl Harbor because they hated us, it was because we stood in their way (Thank God) of conquering and killing their neighbors.
What you've written shows what the war became and not really why it was fought.
You may infer anything you like. I doubt there was an American anywhere, including Roosevelt, whose reasoning was, "I hate these people. Let's fight them." Yet, I can tell you from many discussions with people that were right on the point of the fighting that Americans with guns were happy to kill Japanese by the bushel (as G. C. Scott would have said).
I believe American fighters respected the Japanese without any love lost for them. In fact, I think so many Americans hated the Japanese like the devil hates holy water.
I don't think the Japanese had much respect for anything that wasn't Japanese.