When Japan attacked the United States at Pearl Harbor, millions of infuriated Americans, especially on the west coast, instantly changed their views from isolationist to avenger. Based on the clip we watched in class, is this statement valid? Prove your point of view using evidence or links. Be sure to build off of each other's posts and let your intellectual curiosity guide the conversation. You are responsible for posting AT LEAST once.
Here are the clips if you would like to watch them again:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1e6h9h7ky0E&list=FLgCWFWjRTcDFHTZxwO_4dhQ&index=7&feature=plpp_video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QnS1vDO-phQ&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3X6jzVvQ_vM&feature=related
http://www.history.com/topics/pearl-harbor
ReplyDeleteThe Sunday morning attack on Pearl Harbor is integrated in every American's mind as the day we entered World War II. Before that, America tried its hardest to stay neutral with things like the Neutrality Acts. Also, we went as far as to simply ask for an apology after Japan sank the American gunboat, the Panay. Our efforts to stay neutral were obvious and perhaps over the top. However, Pearl Harbor, 4 years after the Panay incident, changed all of that. People were not expecting the attack at all. A character in the movie excerpt said, “I didn’t even know that Japan was sore at us.” It was, for the most part, out of the blue. Over 2,400 Americans died that day and many more were injured. The United States’ people had a completely different mind-set after the attack. “The day after the assault, President Franklin D. Roosevelt asked Congress to declare war on Japan; Congress approved his declaration with just one dissenting vote.” One dissenting vote for passing anything in Congress is amazing. They wanted war and so did the American people. We clearly moved from isolationists to avengers and it paid off in the end.
I thought it was interesting how there was only one dissenting vote! Knowing everyone was angered by it, I wanted to know who would go against fighting back after the Pearl Harbor attack so I found more about the woman who was that one vote. :)
Delete"Montanan Jeanette Rankin, the first woman elected to Congress and a dedicated lifelong pacifist, casts the sole Congressional vote against the U.S. declaration of war on Japan. She was the only member of Congress to vote against U.S. involvement in both World Wars, having been among those who voted against American entry into World War I nearly a quarter of a century earlier.
While her commitment to pacifism was politically harmful during World War I, Rankin knew that in the case of World War II, it would be downright suicidal. The surprise Japanese attack on the U.S. military base at Pearl Harbor was devastating, and zeal for revenge was at a fever pitch. The vast majority of Americans supported President Roosevelt's call for a declaration of war.
Rankin, however, believed that Roosevelt deliberately provoked the Japanese to attack because he wanted to bring the U.S. into the European war against Germany; she was determined not to cooperate with the president's plan. After a 40-minute debate on the floor of the House, a roll call vote began. When her turn came, Rankin stood and said, "As a woman, I can't go to war and I refuse to send anyone else.""
I want to respond to a little bit of what you said- you mentioned the fact that President Roosevelt might have staged the Pearl Harbor attack. I did a little digging on this, and I found some sights that promoted the Advance-Knowledge conspiracy, stating that we knew that the attack was going to occur before it did. Other conspiracies seem to hold little weight, but this one seems pretty well thought out, and supplies a lot of substantial evidence to prove its point. They believe that President Roosevelt had determined that we were going to have to join the war soon, and that the public would need to be convinced to do so. A quote from Frank E. Beatty, the Vice Admiral at the time and an aide to the Secretary of the Navy, Frank Knox states the following:
Delete“Prior to December 7, it was evident even to me... that we were pushing Japan into a corner. I believed that it was the desire of President Roosevelt, and Prime Minister Churchill that we get into the war, as they felt the Allies could not win without us and all our efforts to cause the Germans to declare war on us failed; the conditions we imposed upon Japan—to get out of China, for example—were so severe that we knew that nation could not accept them. We were forcing her so severely that we could have known that she would react toward the United States. All her preparations in a military way—and we knew their over-all import—pointed that way."
The advocates of the advance-knowledge conspiracy believe that President Roosevelt poked Japan with a stick until Japan couldn't do anything except lash out. And lash out they did, as Sean said, killing over 2,400 Americans in the process. They believe the fact that the attack came just as FDR seemed to be motioning the nation in the direction of war is a little too convenient. I think there may be some basis for the belief that Roosevelt, however indirectly, deliberately prompted the attack on America from Japan so that America had a reason to get into the Second World War.
Hey Cristee i agree that Roosevelt provoked japan as well i posted mine before reading this, but check it out they sort of go hand in hand also
Deletehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McCollum_memo
This is really cool it shows exactly what FDR would have had to do.
The McCollum memo is really interesting! Thanks for that, Tyler. I want to supply a bit of my own research for this thread.
Deletehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hull_note
The Hull note was given to the Japanese before the attack on Pearl Harbor, and at the time it seemed like a good idea, an ultimatum that would hopefully end in the Japanese getting out of China so that we could resume trade with them. However, after the attack on Pearl Harbor occurred, one must re-evaluate the significance of the note. Were we really trying to get the Japanese out of China? Or were we poking the lion in the eye while he wasn't looking at us so that he responded with a roar that would wake up the nation? This is widely debated amongst historians, and I think it is a very good point to address.
In truth I would have to say with how America had been responding at the time and how the country runs now it would be most likely that they would have rather aid in getting Japan out of China. Because it seems least likely America would have gone out of there way to start a problem, when in the history America just hid often.
DeleteIt is important to remember that we should not be referring to America as a whole when discussing conspiracy theories. The question is not "Would America have tried to provoke Japan into attacking us?" but "Would President Roosevelt have had the audacity to get Japan angry enough for us to attack us intentionally so that he had a reason to send troops into Europe?" Because we tend to think of America as a female character in charge of her own destiny, when really her destiny is shaped by a few key individuals high in her government. Conspiracy theories like this one don't focus on the character America, they focus on the characters within the government of America. But to respond to your point: there is enough counter-evidence to construct an argument against the Advance-Knowledge conspiracy, so your point is totally valid- we might not have provoked Japan and the attack might have been a complete surprise to us. But I like looking into conspiracy theories, because they through a wrench into the mix of history- "What if this story didn't go exactly how the textbook says it did?" That's a fun question, in my opinion, to evaluate.
DeleteStephen brings up a good point i guess you cant really single out america as a whole in this situation. Like i said i dont completely agree with the whole conspiracy theory i just find it hard to believe that Japan out of no where would attack us. It seems to be that our goverment did have some intell that the Japan was not completly happy with us at this time. It was a complete suprise to the people that this attck came. We have seen the goverment not tell us things for our own safety before. I believe this is one of those times. FDR new aht he had to do to anger Japan, i think he did it. Did not warn the American People of an attack, and found the back door in the war. Do i think he knew the attack was going to be so bad? No, but he knew somehting bad could happen just not to that extent. The Hull Note is really cool by the way Stephen i did not see that before, but it also shows that like you said we were poking the lion. Which is something that FDR did.
Delete"The blow was heavier than he had hoped it would necessarily be. ... But the risks paid off; even the loss was worth the price." A quote from Jonathan Daniels, President Roosevelt's administrative assistant. I belive he was quoting Roosevelt in this, I'm not sure. Something to mull over.
DeleteYes, it is true that after the attack of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 sparked up an irresistable anger that spread throughout America. Not only did Japan attack unexpectedly, they attacked on a Sunday, a holy day. This proved that Japan didn't respect the U.S. in any way and didn't make this war fair for they attacked America during their most vulnerable time. "Hell, I didn't even know they were sore at us!" was a quote said in the movie like we had discussed in class, showing how surprised they really were because they weren't given any hint or warning to this attack and were not in the least bit prepared.
ReplyDeleteBecause of this sudden attack, isolationists turned to intervention. They no longer wished to be stepped on. The reason of their primary view of being isolated from foreign affairs was to avoid being dragged into foreign issues including wars. To have isolationists abruptedly and instantly want to avenge, when they had been absolutely against intervening with any foreign affairs beforehand, showed that this attack resulted in more than just a sunken ship. It effected the Americans as a whole because they had wished to stay out of the war as best as they could doing as much as they could, and have not actually attacked Japan in any way yet they came to attack on such a day. In 1936, 60% of Americans were isolationists supporting America turning inward, favoring neutrality for America in any European War. Yet, over years, isolationists were changing their minds. Then the Pearl Harbor attack happened which angered them even more, because the point was to avoid war, but now that they were being attacked was unfair and they weren't going to allow it to pass by like it did before just accepting an apology for their sunken ship, Panay. By December of 1941, 70% of Americans officially favored America fighting back and re-applying themselves to foreign affairs. They weren't playing games anymore. I believe that it was inevitable for them to enter the war regardless of their decision to send arms and equipment to Britain or not. If they did not pass the Lend-Lease Bill and decided not to send over arms, which was what the isolationists desired, the European powers may find themselves angered for we had not picked a side, and decide to attack us one day. Internationalists hey believed that it was in our duty to aid others as a world power and because the Lend-Lease Bill was indeed, passed, other nations saw it as we were abandoning our neutrality act and decided to attack which was why Japan probably did what they did without a warning.
I agree with Cristee that America’s joining of the war was inevitable. Even in Pearl Harbor never happened; we still would have joined at one point. Before we did, Germany’s plans were going swimmingly with Britain and Russia in Hitler’s sights. It was painfully obvious during that time period that if America did not join, Germany would have conquered all of Europe and attacked America anyway. Furthermore, if we did not lend other countries materials with the Lend-Lease Act, the countries at risk would have nowhere near enough materials to fight a war. They would have been stepped on while we watched. So, if we did not do anything, we would have been dragged in by an ultra-powerful Germany, however we did act and that brought us in because Hitler saw it as an end of our Neutrality. As a combatant of World War I, we were bound to get dragged in sometime, considering the Treaty of Versailles was just an armistice. The old enemies had to settle loose ends.
DeleteI believe Pearl Harbor instantly changed the views of isolationist Americans to avengers. The video clips do a fantastic job of providing an example of how Americans reacted before, during and after the attacks. Before the attack, there was a fierce debate in the United States regarding a decision on what route to take in this war. As Cristee said, in 1936, around 60% of people were isolationists and were perfectly comfortable staying out of war and letting the other countries resolve their own problems. She also mentioned how they slowly started changing their minds as the years went by. This was due to things like German and Japanese invasions. Finally, by December of 1941, after the attack on Pearl Harbor took place, around 70% supported revenge. In other words, half of the isolationist population deteriorated. This along with the fact that it only took the US three days to decide to go to war shows that Pearl Harbor had a massive effect on us and makes the statement valid regarding the impact of Pearl Harbor.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6tzy-_2c-A
This is a very thorough video packed with good information regarding Pearl Harbor. Craig Shirley, who is an expert on American history, describes how Pearl Harbor goes down as one of the most influential days in American history. Around 3:50 he starts talking about how dramatic the population responded. He talks about the impact throughout the whole video and brings up interesting fun facts while doing so.
As Cristee has mentioned, the Pearl Harbor incident had made isolationists abruptly change their mind. They wanted to avenge what the Japanese had caused. Americans were hoping they would stay out of any foreign affairs, but now, since American blood was spilled, they knew they had to do something about it. Many Americans minds change quickly. They did not care about their problems or anything. They were still in an economic recession, but they did not still entered war. Also, not only the soldiers, but the American people, were fighting the war. People in America were waking up, and the first question they would ask was “what can I do to help the war effort?” Kids were being encouraged to do scrap drives, paper drives, metal drives, rubber drives, grease drives. Even the media was supporting the war. During after the US had entered WWII, almost all the movies being releases at the time were war-related, and they encouraged American people to support the war. Some car companies stopped producing cars for a while, that way they could produce more supplies for the war. All this showed how American people were all unify under the same basis and it also showed how quickly (in less than a day!) America went from being isolationist to being involved in European affairs one again.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.usatoday.com/USCP/PNI/NEWS/2011-12-07-PNI1207opi-adkersonPNIBrd_ST_U.htm
Deletehttp://www.usnews.com/opinion/articles/2012/01/06/how-america-changed-after-pearl-harbor
I like how Jesus talked a little about the social aspects of the attack on Pearl Harbor. Not only did it change every American’s mind about the involvement of the war but it also changed their views on the Japanese people. Right after America had joined World War II, over 127, 000 Unites Sates citizens were imprisoned for being of Japanese ancestry. The Unites States now thought that these people were now dangerous to the country especially because they were living in the U.S. This opinion increased among everyone in the country because of the large Japanese presence in the West Coast. A year after the attack on Pearl Harbor, Franklin D. Roosevelt signed an order of relocation of all American of Japanese ancestry to concentration camps in the United Sates. Many of these people lost their homes and everything else they owned. They had to struggle in the camps because they were not the most comfortable place to be in. Once the war was over, that was when they got their freedom again. Most of them died in the concentration camps and they were just innocent people that had to be punished for something they had nothing to do with. The attack on Pearl Harbor affected the American Japanese people dramatically.
DeleteLuisa is right, the United States gathered up all Japaneese americans and held them against their will in camps. This violates their civil rights and is technically "Unconstitutional". However during times of war, certain amendments are allowed to be overlooked and simply disregaurded. Not to mention that we also gave them a way to get out of the camps if they would simply fight on our side which at the time isnt asking much, considering that if they were patriotic Americans, they would already want to fight and aid our troops. Im not trying to agree with the way we went about securing our nation, but certain things had to be done in order for our country to feel safe from another attack on U.S soil.
DeleteBased on the clip we watched in class, the statement is very much valid. The Pearl Harbor attack outraged the Americans and the government. After the attack it was nearly impossible for the country to remain isolationist. There was warning and distant events that lead to the attack on Pearl Harbor but no one expected it.
ReplyDeleteThe Japanese wanted more natural resources therefore they began attacking and invading land that was rich in oil like Indonesia. They believed that an attack on the American military was necessary to prevent American interference in their invasion plans. They concluded that it was necessary for them to attack the U.S forces in the Philippines and most importantly, the navy ships at Pearl Harbor. Little did the Japanese know that the U.S. was able to succeed in victory. Right after the attack on Pearl Harbor, the Japanese had also invaded British Malaya and followed by an early attack on the New Territories of Hong Kong. Pearl Harbor was just something inevitable and America needed to seek revenge and fight the new enemies. The Japanese aggression needed to be stopped and America had to join the war in order to keep the world safe for democracy and against all anarchy and dictatorship.
http://www.dark-stories.com/eng/pearl_harbor.htm
This website does a really nice job covering everything about the Pearl Harbor attack. Everything is in so much detail and it talks about the before and after of the attack which further helps to understand the spark of World War II.
I like the route that Luisa took with her post here. It is very important to understand why the Japanese were "sore at us". She briefly touched on a variety of reasons for their attack, and I'd like to further expand on them.
DeleteThe major reason for the Japanese attack was the fact that America, as well as other Allied forces, cut off trade with Japan. They did so because Japan took control of Manchuria, a large chunk of land in-between China and Russia. The United States, as well as Britain and other nations did not agree with their attacks, so they stopped trading. This trading cut off supplies that Japan desired (and needed) such as oil and other natural resources.
This cut off from Japan angered them. Like Luisa mentioned, they were on the hunt for more resources and desired new lands. If we take a brief look back to the Imperialistic Era, we can recall that Japan excepted our Imperialism and learned from it. Clearly, they had plans of enacting the same kind of control over other nations. The Allies did not agree. In addition, their harsh aggression towards the Chinese in particular was disturbing. (Many Japanese tactics were downright disgusting, as I mentioned in my own passage.)
Japan mainly wanted to control the Pacific area. In their minds, America was their only threat - and as Luisa said, Japan felt they needed to attack the U.S. in the Philippines, and at Pearl Harbor. If they could take over America, the Pacific would be theirs. However, as so many of us are aware, the Japanese were sorely mistaken to think that they would obtain an easy victory. They did have somewhat of a right to assume that, however, because their attack on the Panay received a laughable consequence. But, to their complete and utter shock, America was indeed a force to be reckoned with!
Lastly, Pearl Harbor was specifically selected for - mainly - two reasons. First, it was closer to Japan than any other United States coastal cities such as San Francisco. Hawaii is in the Pacific Ocean, fairly close to Japanese territory. This would obviously make the attack easier for the Japanese with less travel for so many vessels and planes. Secondly, the Japanese knew that in order to cripple the American forces, they would definitely have to attack the navy first (because the navy was one of our strongest powers.) Since Pearl Harbor was such a huge base, they knew that attacking our fleets there by surprise would be the best way to injure our forces. They were right to some extend, because the damage was horrific, but we surely shot back!
Americans instantly turned from an isolationist country to an avenging country, intent on seeking revenge and gain respect after Japan walking all over them.
ReplyDeleteBefore I speak about America, we need a general background on Japan. For one, Japan is just a small island in the Pacific Coast and before the Europeans walked on the island, they were cut off from any type of involvment industrially. So when they realized how the west side started influencing the world and how other country's became a world power by conquering other countries, they did that as well. Japan began gaining and occupying both countries and islands, like the country Korea and the city Manchuria in China.
Japan's hunger to become a world power made them greedy to try to conquer Hawaii, since Hawaii was in the Pacific coast and would be a great industrial port to use for trade and producing. Since Japan was conquering different territories around the Asian territory,and since America was still inward to isolationism, Japan thought that it would be easy to take over US territory, since America was appeasing Japan before.
America, however, was appeasing Japan too much and let Japan walk all over them like a flight of stairs. For one, when Japan invaded China in 1937, Franklin Delano Roosevelt addressed the Quarantine Speech, which allowed China to obtain arms from America, but Roosevelt did not address it as a war, since it would violate the Neutrality Act, stating that America would not be involved in the war if declared by Franklin Roosevelt or any other president after him. This is just one of the many instances of Japan getting away from punishment from America.
When America's gunboat, the Panay, was sunk by the Japanese, America did not punish the Japanese by going to war, even though Japan was testing America's patience. Instead, they asked for an apology for what they have done. It's almost like Japan shooting America's cat and America just wanting an apology for Japan shooting the cat, which makes America look susceptible for attacks from Japan. America might have saw it as a way to avoid the war, but avoiding it would be inevitable, no matter what sly way they can attempt at dodging war.
From the Pearl Harbor Clip, Japan is attacking America on a Sunday morning, a day where people are either sleeping in or going to church. It may seem like a petty thing for Japan to do, attacking America on a day where they are in church, but if you look at their perspective, the Japanese not only have different cultures where their religions are different from the Americans, so Sunday might not be a significant day for them, but they want a gain from the attack and get America by surprise. By doing so, it will inable Japan to successfully obtain Hawaii and possibly the west coast of America.
America's lights came on after the attack on Pearl Harbor, after, as Sean stated, 2,400 people died and many others were injured. The attack of Pearl harbor was the last straw of Japan, pushing their last button of coyness with Japan. America finally made the decision of going to war with Japan, seeking revenge from the many footprints Japan implanted on America's face after they stepped on them.
Im going to go in a little different way than everyone else and I would like to talk about the American people throughout our history. From our revolution to the civil war all the way to the 9/11, when our people are mistreated they do something about it. Our population has always had a special ability to rally together in times of sorrow and struggle and when we get knocked down we always get back up. This attack on Pearl Harbor was an inhumane act and took the lives of many innocent Americans. This was a major blow to the American people and it was a day that noone would forget, but our people rose up. Every man, woman, and child who was for or against war could now agree on one thing, we would get revenge on Japan. It was no longer a view on what was right or wrong because innocent American lives were lost and the attackers showed us no respect. Just like in 9/11 when people kill innocent Americans and disrepect our country, we fight back and stand together as one. This is a truly special ability that the American people seem to have always posessed and it has been passed down from the original founding fathers who would not take the unfair rule. One common feeling throughout our country was that quite simply, the japanese would not get away with this. This flag sums it all up, USA BABY! AMERICA!!
ReplyDeletehttp://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs1380.snc4/163200_498715703188_159589298188_6043409_283258_n.jpg
I can picture you saying everyword of this. Read my post i want to see if you think Roosevelt might have known what was coming.
DeleteCasey makes a great point, we have been known for our intent on strength through unification which is what we consider just our “American way”. Everything that we have accomplished throughout our history as a nation has really been amazing considering the odds that are always pitted against our side. Take for example pearl harbor, the Japanese crippled our Navy to a point where we lost most of our most important “Battle-ready” ships. However, even this didn’t stop us from winning over the Battle of Midway where we defeated Japan and sunk four of their most significant aircraft carriers. This comes to show that numbers are not needed to win battles, just enough will and the right cause.
ReplyDeleteI wanted to add to what Zach said here. He stated that the Japanese did cripple our navy, but we quickly got back on our feet and fought with air, navy, and land warfare with full vengeance. The primary weapon of tactical strikes was the fighter-bomber. The fighter-bomber was a fast, heavily armed and armored plane, sturdy enough to withstand steep dives, rapid maneuvers, and some of the ground fire that its low-level attacks would encounter. Typical armament included bombs, heavy machine guns, automatic cannon, and air-to-ground rockets. Fighter-bombers were used to strike enemy armor and defensive positions, destroy supply and communications centers close to battlefields, and harass enemy troops behind the lines. They were often called upon by ground troops to attack entrenched enemy positions, or to lay down a barrage of fire before an attack. Also, the principal weapon of the submarine, and of some surface vessels, was the torpedo. One of the most successful torpedoes was the Japanese "Long Lance," which was used to sink four cruisers at the Battle of Savo Island in 1942. Aircraft Carriers. The most significant development in naval warfare in World War II was the use of aircraft carriers as capital ships, that is, as the main warships of a fleet. Before the war, aircraft carriers were generally viewed as support ships, intended to provide air protection and air inspection for battleships. The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor showed the carrier's potential as an offensive weapon. In May, 1942, the Battle of the Coral Sea, fought entirely by carrier-based aircraft, took place. It was the first naval confrontation in history where the opposing fleets never came within sight of each other and were never close enough to exchange gunfire. From that point on, the carrier was the dominant warship in the war in the Pacific. Another weapon that had a great effect in the war was tanks. Tanks were a vital weapon in defeating the enemies abroad. Because of the different role it was intended to play, the World War II tank was quite different from the tall, unwieldy vehicle invented during World War I. Instead of being used to accompany and protect advancing troops or to break the stalemate of trench warfare, the new tanks were designed for independent offensive action as the spearheads of blitzkrieg attacks. They were fast, low, heavily armored, and armed with powerful large- and small-caliber guns. These were the ways American soldiers fought. Had a great effect on the war, and in technology.
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ReplyDeletePearl Harbor was the final driving force that switched the isolationist view possessed by millions of Americans to one of fiery revenge. Before this event, feelings against the vicious European dictators like Italy’s Mussolini, Germany’s Hitler, and the Japanese warlords were building up inside Americans as the result of their aggressive conquests, but most Americans still wanted peace. For example, the US addressed recent aggressions like Japan’s invasion of China in 1937 when President Franklin Delano Roosevelt called for a quarantine of Japan. This allowed the US to continue trade with China and stay out of war as Roosevelt never labeled the conflict a “war.” America had many reasons not to go to war. The United States had a hasty entrance into the previous world war, and the nation suffered over 300,000 casualties. The deaths of WWI affected the attitudes of many Americans, shown anywhere from the disillusionment of the youth in the 1920’s to the United States turning inward, away from the threats and ideas of foreign nations. Not only were casualties a reason for isolation but so was the Great Depression the US was going through that put the country in millions of dollars in debt. The 1933 London Conference was a failed attempt to solve the depression with 66 other nations, but the idea of getting involved with foreign nations was refused by the US, who did not attend the conference.
ReplyDeleteAs presented in the film, Pearl Harbor was a wake up call for Americans. The US was ill-prepared for this surprise attack. For instance, many people in the film mistook the Japanese carriers for American planes. In fact, on the day of the Pear Harbor attack, Sunday, December 7, 1941, a group of American planes were expected to arrive in Hawaii. Also, as portrayed in the film, prior to the Japanese attack, Americans were simply enjoying another peaceful day. The United States felt like it was protected in the “bubble” it created by isolating itself from other countries, yet this Japanese attack proved this mindset wrong; the Japanese had easily penetrated the American’s “shield” of isolation, creating a feeling of vulnerability, and creating a very aggressive, vicious image of the Japanese. Even without any interference in the war at this point, the US still suffered great damage including over 2,000 deaths, almost 200 destroyed aircrafts, and a severely damaged fleet within a single day. The fact that the Japanese had damaged the major US naval base was already alarming.
For a country who once boldly fought for its independence against a world leading nation, the United States would not let this day be forgotten. Propaganda like the poster pictured in the link below not only reminded people of the destruction of Pearl Harbor, but it rallied them against the Japanese and further pushed the country toward war. In this specific poster, citizens were being encouraged to finally react with violence and use their “bullets” to “avenge Pearl Harbor,” essentially avenging the deaths of servicemen and other innocent Americans in the Pacific. Combined with the destruction of Pearl Harbor and the sudden cries of the people for involvement, it is no wonder that President Roosevelt and the US Congress declared war on Japan the very next day.
http://ids2210sectionbgroup1.springnote.com/pages/3054844/attachments/1376288
As Liz said, propaganda played a huge role in making America get involved in the Second World War. At the time, there were many types of national movements that were encouraging America to avenge for what the Japanese had done. However, Pearl Harbor not only had an impact in American people, but it also shocked many international movements, like the Moral Re-Armament Movement. The MRA, an international Christian moral and spiritual movement, was founded by Frank Buchman, an American minister born in Pennsylvania, and it wanted to encourage participants to continue as members of their own churches. At first, this Christian character, did not want America to get involved in the war, and for that reason, his movement mainly helped the allied powers, like England and France; on the other hand, it also helped the Germans, since Hitler had said earlier that all he was doing with the Jews was to fight for the “right” religion. However, as soon as the Pearl Harbor occurred, Mr. Buchman quickly switched from praising Hitler to “waving his American flag” and becoming extremely patriotic (Now he supported the war). That showed how a religious person, who at first was against the war, thought the Pearl Harbor was an unfair attack, and that something had to be done about it. One way that the MRA encouraged American people to support the war, was by producing a play called “You Can Defend America.” The play showed how anyone, no matter what career a person had, could do something to help America in the war. Ironically, he never included himself in any of his plays. He always said “YOU”, but he never said “WE, can defend America”
Deletehttp://www.orange-papers.org/orange-YCDA-16-17c.png
This link shows how the MRA movement encouraged American People to support and be part of the war.
“The deaths of WWI affected the attitudes of many Americans, shown anywhere from the disillusionment of the youth in the 1920’s to the United States turning inward, away from the threats and ideas of foreign nations.”
DeleteLooking at America after World War I, it turned inward into itself and tried to heavily isolate itself from the rest of the world. Society was very lenient and very concerned about living life to its fullest. Its youth was confused and conflicted in the “Lost Generation.” Overabundance of production occurred after the war due to the advanced technologies that the war provided. Because of these overabundances, farmers ended up having great difficulty selling produce and ended up with a controversial act such as the Agricultural Adjustment Act, where farmers were paid to not sell their own crops and, on occasion, to burn their produce. Everything that used to be expensive became much cheaper, like the America met its deepest pains in the Great Depression as it crawled out of an unprepared war and into a terrible, paranoid, isolationist state.
After World War II, America was greatly involved in the course of changing its future by quickening its pace and making quick and strong advancements. A large increase in the need for automobiles occurred, as well as a desire for the developments of other transportation. America was heavily involved in a sort of progression once again. Medicine, communication, weaponry, and other technologies advanced rapidly and continued to spill into the twenty-first century. America was also a lot freer, in the sense that it gave African Americans more freedom for jobs and opportunities, and women were given much more freedom. Women were encouraged to work in their husbands’ places while they were at war, and even when the men returned, some women chose to stay and work in the factories. After leaving a much better prepared war such as World War II, America was able to ease out of war a lot better than before. America opened plenty more doors out of improvement during World War II, rather than by desperate force as it was after World War I.
http://www.academicamerican.com/postww2/index.html
http://l3d.cs.colorado.edu/systems/agentsheets/New-Vista/automobile/
In my opinion it was quiet inevitable for America to go to war. And in another way this attack from .Japan at Pearl harbor shouldn't exactly have been a surprise. Japan had opening hinted at America that they were out for them many times. They practically poked at America thinking we would take the abuse, like previous times. America had seemed like weaklings best prey for some kind of a predator. Japan had begun these pokes with the quarantine speech, then to the sinning of our gunboat. Most countries would have fought then and there but America decided against it and asked for an apology. They even abused white citizens to show anger with us. . I felt that was forewarning.
ReplyDeleteIn the clip the photographer says he didnt realize the japs were spre with us. There had beem hints for it.
Just this site with some clips and informat http://www.history.com/topics/pearl-harbor
There was no such thing as reasoning for the American public when Pearl Harbor was attacked. After watching the Pearl Harbor clip that statement is ultimately valid. Having a country that we didn’t even know were mad at us, come and attack us? How would you react? You wouldn’t sit back and just ask for another apology. We made the right choice to declare war with Japan.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.history.com/topics/pearl-harbor/videos#attack-pearl-harbor
This video is FDR addressing the public about the attack on Pearl Harbor. This speech was a motivator to the American public. It hyped them with the desire for war.
The American public had a right to be filled with rage. Just imagine how your parents felt when they watched the twin towers fall.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qNw0jOhVJ3A&feature=endscreen&NR=1 (sorry no audio)
The reaction of the American public was exactly the same as the people who witnessed Pearl Harbor being attacked. Pearl Harbor took a toll in the hearts of Americans, so did 9/11. Pearl Harbor still upsets people to this day.
I like how you compared the emotions of the people in 1939 to the emotions in 2001. Both attacks, as we said in class, were surprise attacks that America did not suspect to happen from those foreign nations. America could no longer be bullied by Japan's attacks, so they declared that they were going to war and later, blow up Japan to oblivion. Same goes for al-Qaeda (don't judge me if this is wrong) when they attacked the twin towers. They were asking America for a fight, just because we somehow upset the Middle East. So, we can compare both attacks hand and hand because they had the same drive and emotion to take over, but both were unsuccessful. America's drive to get back at them for attacking America only led to the demise of the battle they helped start.
DeleteNow personally I am not one who gets into conspiracies, but since I figured I’m going to answer after everyone else anyway I have to find something that hopefully no one has talked about so without further adieu here is some neat stuff I found on whether or not Pearl Harbor was known about before it happened. You decide what you want to believe. Let’s start by saying no one wants to just join a war because than you look like an aggressor BUT when you are attacked you can play the role of the victim and join and win. It gives you more sympathy and also boosts the morale of the people to fight. Could it be that Roosevelt knew about this attack and let it happen anyway? Clearly the clip does not agree with my statement, but I ask if you read my post to at least here me out. Are secretary of war at the time even said in his journal that him and the president discussed how to get Japan to fire the first shot without taking too much damage, and that high officials were warned in Pearl Harbor and told to be on alert. Another thing is the McCollum Memo a memo sent from Arthur McCollum to Dudley Knox and Walter S. Anderson stating the things that would provoke Japan enough to want to attack us. There are many of other things I could mention in this conspiracy, but I’m only focusing on the ones that stuck out to me most if anybody has anything else feel free to share. Going on THREE of our major air craft carriers just happened to not be in Pearl Harbor the day the Japanese bombed us weird right? The Enterprise one of the man ships was actually delayed twice before it was going to return to Pearl Harbor. It turned out its actual arrival time was supposed to be a 7 A.M. but oddly it did not get to the harbor on time and never made it there. The day of Deceit is written by Robert Stinnett which states that we had received both intelligence intercepts and radio that the Japanese were coming, but purposely did not make Admiral Kimmel commander of the base aware of this. The men working with the radar will also very lazy and did not even think that the Japanese would attack them or anything bad could happen which you see the photographer say in the video. Although it seems as if the conspiracy theory for Pearl Harbor is well farfetched I don’t this Mr. FDR is as honest we all think he is and from what I’ve read he got what he wanted which was an attack on the U.S. by the Japanese so that he could try to persuade the people to fight Germany. And clearly an attack on the U.S. is going to cause us to want to go to war because as CASEY WENZEL said when you attack us we attack back that’s just how we do. And people living in the west had more of a connection to Hawaii and Pearl Harbor giving them even more reason.
ReplyDeleteI too am not a believer in these Pearl Harbor conspiracy theories, but I find the points these theories make are very interesting. One of the theories that Tyler talks about in his post, is the McCollum Memo. The conspiracy states that Lieutenant Commander Arthur McCollum sent the United States a memorandum which stated eight things that would upset Japan and cause them to go to war with the U.S. Some of these things included keeping the U.S. Fleet parked in Hawaii, instigating a trade embargo with Japan and aiding Chiang Kai-shek and the Chinese military. We violated all of these as well as other things mentioned in the memo. The conspiracy states that FDR read all of these eight points and decided to ignore it and do them anyway. I think this conspiracy is faulty and inconclusive. There is no solid evidence that the memo was put under the presidents’ eyes. Despite the lack of evidence with this conspiracy, I still find it intriguing and it opens up a lot of “what ifs” on the day of the attack of Pearl Harbor.
DeleteI found the discussion of the conspiracy behind Pearl Harbor very interesting. Although it is not completely certain that President Roosevelt purposely provoked the Japanese into war and predicted the Pearl Harbor attack, it is a valid argument. Most Americans opposed going to war because of the period of isolation the nation was going through, where it was essentially being protected from any conflicts from foreign nations. Roosevelt’s 1940 campaign statement further promised to keep American soldiers out of war, stating, “You boys are not going to be sent into any foreign wars.” This was the case unless the US was directly threatened by another country. Additionally, as discussed in the other blog entries, laws like the Neutrality Acts of 1935, 1936, and 1937, further increased isolation by putting restrictions between Americans and belligerent countries when the US president acknowledged the existence of a foreign war. Actions such as these are what initially made about 90% of Americans opposed to war. At the same time, tension was not only rising in Europe but in Asia as well because there was war between Japan and China. Perhaps now Roosevelt felt these nations posed a threat to national security and wanted to go to war because of it. Nonetheless, if he had, it would have been an unpopular decision. As Tyler explained, he needed a direct threat to the US that would rally the country to support war.
DeleteWhile Japan was trying to take over East Asia, the US actually got in its way many times. For example, the high tariffs from the Great Depression in the US hurt economic conditions. Plus, in 1939, Roosevelt did not renew the 1911 Treaty of Commerce and Navigation and Congress passed the Export Control Act, which gave the president the power to control the export of war materials, the following year. Now, Japan’s main source of material resources like oil and scrap metal that they could use for war was gone. These actions increased negative feelings toward the West among the people and leaders of Japan. Also, at home, laws like the Lend-Lease Act did not officially get the US involved in the war, but now more Americans morally supported the Allies. Perhaps the interference with Japan’s affairs and slow involvement in the war while staying neutral was Roosevelt’s way of gradually turning Japan against the US and turning the US against Japan. The video below further discusses the controversy of Pearl Harbor. As discussed in the video below, Roosevelt even told his close advisors he wanted to “maneuver” the Japanese to attack the country. After Roosevelt died, his then-Secretary of War, Henry Stimson revealed that he predicted the Pearl Harbor event. It is no wonder, however, that Roosevelt would keep the fact that he had this previous knowledge about the maneuver because he would be blamed for the deaths and damage caused at Pearl Harbor. If he really was guilty for this, he even caused an admiral and general of the Hawaiian naval base to be disciplined for not taking action during the attack. In fact, it was their superiors in Washington that instructed them not to fight the Japanese when they asked. Perhaps there was a reason behind this. Clearly, although Roosevelt had good intentions going to war, his possible dishonesty had harmed others. Nonetheless, Roosevelt’s deceit would allow him to remain in good standing with the people, who would then want revenge against the Japanese.
http://video.foxnews.com/v/3955697/
As against this as I was Tyler I also have to admit this is intreaging. Although I dont think this is entirely true, I do believe for the most part that Pearl Harbor was a lot of our fault as well. Former attacks on US ships showed that the Japanese were testing us, however we simply asked them to say they were sorry and didnt do anything about it. Just as before 9/11 the terrorists tried bombing the world trades center years before, and we did not make them pay for it. In both cases the US did not punish the enemy for their actions and it came to bite them in the but. Although I believe we could have stopped an attack from happening if we would have taken action earlier, I dont believe that anyone could have imagined such an inhumane attack. It is one thing to keep your eyes open for an attack but it is a completely different thing to prepare for an unknown attack killing 2,000+ people. So yes, in a way this attack could be a little bit our fault but I am going to completely dissagree that FDR knew that this murderous event was going to take place. Everyday in history there is a potential attack on the US, we will never know who, what, where, when, or why. This was truly one of the saddest days in America and this conspiracy is quite frankly, stupid.
DeleteGoodnight children,
TheProfessor
You're right Casey and i appreciate the comment. Im not trying to say that FDR knew the attack on pearl harbor would be so great and awful in our histroy, but im fine with saying he knew somehting was going to happen and he did not take the right pre cautions in protecting his peoplpe. No one ever wants something so awful to happen im sure it could have been one plane bombing a tiny shack in the U.S. and FDR would have found his way in the war, but FDR wanted Japan to attack us jsut not to this Magnitude. I apologize if i have come off as completly supporting this theory cause i do not. I just find some points interesting and a little truth in them.
DeleteLike Tyler stated, being at the end has also forced me to take a more unorthodox approach towards this post.
ReplyDeleteIt is true that the attack on Pearl Harbor was devastating, unpredictable, alarming, and "a day that will live in infamy." It is also true that this single event was the turning point for American involvement in World War II. Of course, as everyone has previously mentioned, America was provoked multiple times. But overall, those incidents were brushed off and this particularly appalling event is what really sent Americans over the edge. Therefore, I decided to analyze what really disturbed Americans about the attack, as well as Japanese warfare all together. Many believed the Japanese were insane, many believed they were suicidal and crazy - all valid arguments. But why? Why did this disgust Americans enough to boost morale and push us into war (aside from JUST the Pearl Harbor attack)? And what sort of reactions did we respond with?
A main factor that led Americans to despise the Japanese so much was their war techniques. It is known that Japan sought to gain total control in their Pacific region, including American land. America was their only remaining threat by 1941, and therefore, they decided they needed to attack. Although Japan originally intended on a limited war, involving a large power (unofficially siding with the Allied powers already) ruined all chances, making it a total war. Military techniques used by the Japanese in WWII are atrocious. First, tactics present during the attack on Pearl Harbor include a "no shame" type of offensive attack. They didn't care that it was a Sunday morning; in fact, that was great for them! They didn't care that so many innocent lives were killed with their destruction; in fact, they received a pat on the back for that upon their return to Japan! It was, and still is, appalling that the consideration on ANY level was not present. The Japanese would attack by any means necessary. And this infuriated Americans because the conditions of Pearl Harbor were unbelievable, unexpected, and destructive. More frightening tactics were shown by the end of WWII on the Japanese's part. Kamikazes were Japanese suicide bombings. The pilots of planes or torpedoes would crash into American vessels and essentially cause mass destruction. It was well known that Kamikazes felt no fear. Death was a mission for them, with belief of a sort of reward awaiting in the afterlife for their destructive deed. By the end of the war, almost seventy-five hundred Kamikazes flew to their death, and the damage they produced was unimaginable. These Japanese tactics proved effective, but insane. And so, Americans were horrified and fearful of these crazy military strategies.
In addition, because Pearl Harbor set America into motion, American citizens became resentful of Japanese people. Propaganda played a huge role. There would be pictures of Japanese soldiers represented by gorillas. These posters would depict them as untamable and inhumane beasts, confirming and encouraging many beliefs America's citizens already had because of Pearl Harbor. It is also clear that the previously "inward-focusing" country never turned completely external. They did not ignore problems at home; in fact, many issues were enhanced. For example, take the Korematsu v. U.S. Supreme Court Case. Korematsu, an American-born citizen of Japanese heritage, was infuriated when he was forced to move into an internment camp like many other American-Japanese. He was arrested for resisting, and went to the court. The Supreme Court ended up ruling that it was constitutional for America to enact such rules in order to protect from espionage. Propaganda, continuously horrifying Japanese war tactics, and the attack on Pearl Harbor all contributed greatly to making America a country of war. Americans may not have known that "the Japs were sore" at them on December 7th, 1941. But, Americans in turn were beyond sore from this attack and all the ones to follow - and they lashed out internally and externally right away.
ReplyDeletehttp://3.bp.blogspot.com/_QFBV7bl6Zeg/S-Rp9lNGO2I/AAAAAAAAAgg/gG4NGur0a_4/s1600/1942x~This_is_the_Enemy_US_%5B2%5D.jpg
DeleteThis is the picture that represented Japanese soldiers as gorillas.
http://pwencycl.kgbudge.com/images/P/Propaganda12.jpg
This is another link to another piece of propaganda that the Americans used after the attack of Pearl Harbor. Propaganda was an effective way to spread one's mind of thinking. I liked how Sam had mentioned this factor in the results of the attack because propaganda has a lot of influence on people when they include slogans and images that sink into peoples' minds. Even though majority of Americans were already infuriated with the attack and were already on their toes ready to plan revenge and attack the Japanese, the propaganda was further pushing the American body as a whole and motivated them, not allowing anyone to back down. It is up to one to make their own judgement about whether the effects of this propaganda were ultimately positive or negative. America turned out to be the sore ones, and "lashed out internally and externally" as Sam had said, but they were finally deciding to fight back after being repeatedly stepped on especially by the Japanese. I believe that the Japanese were definitely instigating and luring the Americans into the war. What did they expect? To sink Panay, apologize, then attack Pearl Harbor thinking they could get away with another "sorry"?
Christine Tran
ReplyDeleteAs a different take on this, I would say that the statement of America instantly changing from isolationism to avenger is not valid. If we want to get very technical about the idea of America climbing out of isolationism, we can go way back to before Pearl Harbor.
America started as a country of solely isolation. The colonists came to America to isolate themselves from Europe and the horrors that its intolerance brought to their people. As time progressed, more settlers came to the New World, eventually America was birthed.
After America developed as a country in the 1800’s, it rarely steered away from the traditional isolationist views. We fought wars without alliances with Europe, and held the Monroe Doctrine so that we may keep European powers away from the Western Hemisphere. Isolationism began to wither away when we were occupying the Philippines during the Spanish-American War. With interests in the Pacific War, America began to grow with ease into the world of foreign trade and shipping. In World War I, America was pulled into further European issues. As we were eventually forced to join by the Germans’ submarine warfare and the British propaganda, America continued to develop this sort of, though very hesitant, active behavior with foreign affairs.
Jumping the gun at World War I, America tried to revert back to its isolation by rejecting the League of Nations. So desperate to return to their original state of isolationism, America was so cut off from the rest of the world outside of the Americas that it played a large contribution to the Great Depression. Among other issues, there was an overabundance of production after the advanced machinery World War I helped provide that with our isolation, now there is no place to trade and circulate wealth.
When World War II came, we were, yet again, very reluctant to join the war. But with involvement like the Lend-Lease Act we had with Britain, we knew that we were continuing to dip our toes into foreign affairs. The attack on Pearl Harbor was nothing more than a large catalyst for America’s leading position in leaving isolationism.
So, to be very technical, America was already beginning to convert from isolationism before Pearl Harbor. So whatever state we were in, a hesitant World Power, we went from gradually leaving our isolation to instantly an aggressive avenger. Pearl Harbor was the main reason America turned into an avenger rather than an interventionist. As I said, technicalities argued, if we would like.
I agree with Christine. People have referred to Pearl Harbor as the metaphorical "Straw that broke the camel's back." We look at this saying and think that it is based on our entrance into World War Two. But, I think that really you could apply that saying to America's entire history of isolationism. Since the Revolutionary War, the camel bearing our ideas of isolationism has been collecting baggage, starting off with our original branch off from England. We started trading with other nations. Baggage. We opened up the door to immigration. Baggage. We got into wars with other nations- the French-Indian War, for example, and the War of 1812. More baggage. We started imperialising outside of our nation. Even more baggage. Then came the First World War, which added a really, really heavy water jug to our metaphorical camel. The camel was struggling, but still walking forward, still moving on. We lifted our hands from the camel, and decided that we needed to stop adding baggage before we killed it. The trek lasted about 10-20 years before the lend-lease act added yet another bag to the camel's huge pile. Finally, a giant, 200 pound weight came flying out of nowhere and landed on the camel's back. All of the baggage came tumbling off, sprawling everywhere. The traveler leading the camel turned around to see who had thrown the weight, and saw that it was Japan. Suddenly, with our camel dead, we no longer wanted to continue the trek into our own country. We decided to pick up our guns and take the fight to them. Enough sitting at home trying to balance the weight of foreign ideas upon the camel of isolationism! Let's let the baggage dissolve into the Earth and create a new America, one not scared to get involved in the affairs of Europe. So yes, it was not an instant change, I believe. It was a long process in which our camel began to struggle under the weight of foreign influences and finally died when the 2,388 Americans died in Pearl Harbor. I think that the death of the camel of isolationism also led to the America we know it today, America the protector of the weak. Which is why we were involved in Iraq so long, because they were riddled with issues that we wanted to smooth out for them by giving them a democracy, changing their government so that they may one day reap the benefits that democracy has to offer. It didn't exactly turn out the way we had planned, but we tried. But the final straw to break the back of isolationism was inevitably going to come, there was nothing we could do to stop it. Eventually, Pearl Harbor or no Pearl Harbor, America would have gotten involved in the affairs of other nations.
DeleteHere's a video for anyone wants to watch. It's just a brief summary of the attack as well as some real footage. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GpaotOiDhxg
ReplyDelete