What if the U.S., in response to Pearl Harbor, had only gone to war with Japan? (WW2, 1930s)

[texdav]

In the end I really doubt that not goig even if Hitler contray to his agreement witht eh Japnaese ;that war could have been averted. FDR was a strong advocate of goig to war aginst germany and once we had started with Japan I doubt it could have been any other way really.Just as Hitler miscaluated what would start the war with britain ;he also wasn't able to avoid going to war with US;at that point.But in the end it was clear that FDR was not going to let britain go down or western europe for that matter.Its almost like askig what if Hitler had not inavde poland;. IMO evetually there would have been war anyway down the line. Rememeber that he told his admirals to be prepared for war four years later than it started.

[nightbird47]

Originally Posted by KoobleKar

The USA didn't prod Germany into declaring war on them.

In fact, the USA allowed Germany to get away with a lot of things that many other nations would have considered an act of war without going to war with them.

Bottom line......Germany declared war on the USA first.

Exactly. We were in reality already in an undeclared submarine wiar with the German U Boats. It was not a skirmish but a full out war, just one that was not widely publicised. Other nations might have taken having their sub fleet fired upon in open waters as a justificable provication for officially being at war.

[KoobleKar]

Originally Posted by TKramar

When the U.S. declared war on Japan, Germany declaring war on the U.S. was inevitable.

Not really....Germany could have stayed out of it with the USA just the same as declaring war. They may have had pretty gpood reason to since they were already fighting on three fronts (Russia, Eruope, Africa).

And it's a historical fact that the U.S. froze Japan's assets, prodding Japan into attacking.

One could just as easily say Japan was provoking everyone by walking out of the League of Nations, invading China, and invading nations all around the Pacific.

What it speaks to is that THAT guy happened to get caught. How many fakes are out there that DIDN'T get caught? How many so-called historians are out there remaking history in their image? Remember, the victors write the history books.

He was caught changing a date to make it out like he DISCOVERED something. That's one piece of evidence!

That hardly compares to all the conspiracies you talk about ignoring thousands of pieces of evidence pointing to the same conclusion.

[biljan]

We declared war on Japan after 12/7/41.
Germany declared war on us. Since the war in Europe threatned our
closest allies we put most of our early efforts there.

[TKramar]

Originally Posted by biljan

We declared war on Japan after 12/7/41.
Germany declared war on us. Since the war in Europe threatned our
closest allies we put most of our early efforts there.

Of course they did. We declared war on their ally.

[chociful]

I believe, hypothetically if the us had only waged war with Japan, the war in the pacific would have been won by late 1943 or mid 1944 at the latest. Futhermore, as Hitler's forces were being depleted by the RED ARMY and the Russian winter,Hitler would have had to transfer more of his occupational forces to the eastern front, by which time the Soviet army would be on the offensive. I believe the Soviets, with American and British aid , would have over run Germany and the rest of western Europe except for France, the UK, Iberia and the low countries thus creating a larger Soviet Empire.

[68vette]

After the war began in Europe in 1939, people in the US were divided on whether the US should take part or stay out. Most Americans hoped the Allies would win, but they also hoped to keep the United States out of war. The isolationists, wanted the country to stay out of the war at almost any cost.The interventionists, wanted the United States to do anything in its power to aid the Allies. Canada declared war on Germany shortly after the war started and the US shifted its policy from neutrality to preparedness. The US began to expand its armed forces, build defense plants, and give the Allies everything it needed just short of war itself. 1940 signaled a final turning point for isolationism. Then US saw what was happening in europe and did not want to become a garrison state. Most people in the US believed the axis needed to be defeated, even if this meant hostilities. There were still isolationists, but they did not have any influence in stopping aid or the war.
The isolationist point of view did not completely disappear from the US, but it was never prominent in US policies and affairs after WWII. The formation of the UN and Stalin killed isolationism.

[68vette]

To say the US was isolationist as a whole is false. There were isolationists, but the majority were people wanted to see the axis powers defeated, but they did not want the US to take military action. President Roosevelt said that the Unites States "must be the great arsenal of democracy" in 1940. With that speach and German agression that same day, American isolationists had a change of heart.
We are very fortunate that we became involved in the war when we did. Japan's focus was initially on the Soviet Union. A united Axis almost certainly would have defeated the Soviet Union. After a Soviet defeat the English would have easily been defeated and we would be that garrison state that would have been next.

[TKramar]

I think they would have had trouble invading us, since everything would have to come in by ship.

There has never been a successful naval insertion on our own shores. When the British came and burned D.C., they invaded using an overland route from Canada.

[TKramar]

Really?

You dispute that the British marched into D.C. from Canada during the War of 1812?