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Pretty good article reconsiders the WW2 invasion of Iwo Jima. Worth The Cost?I found this to be pretty thought provoking, and thought maybe some others would as well. 7mm
"Preserving the Constitution, fighting off the nibblers and chippers, even nibblers and chippers with good intentions, was once regarded by conservatives as the first duty of the citizen. It still is." � Wesley Pruden
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Campfire Kahuna
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With the beauty of hindsight, no. Hindsight is always 20-20.
These premises insured by a Sheltie in Training ,--- and Cooey.o
"May the Good Lord take a likin' to you"
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Wow..
That is a big question!
I don't know enough about the big picture Pacific strategy to even start on that one.
Not to mention supply lines and a hundred other things...
Did it cost a lot in men?
Yes.
Did it change the course?
No idea.
-OMotS
"If memory serves fails me..."
Quote: ( unnamed) "been prtty deep in the cooler todaay "
Television and radio are most effective when people question little and think even less.
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It was important because it had a long enough runway for crippled B29s to land on and it was much closer to japan than any previous Island airfield
For liberals and anarchists, power and control is opium, selling envy is the fastest and easiest way to get it. TRR. American conservative. Never trust a white liberal. Malcom X Current NRA member.
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Was the taking back of the Philippines worth it or was it mainly to satisfy MacArthur's ego?...these kinda questions will always exist but we don't live in the times and will never truly know.
"an armed society is a polite society"
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Campfire 'Bwana
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One photo got us what? Fifth war loan? So quite possibly.
Founder
Ancient Order of the 1895 Winchester
"Come, shall we go and kill us venison?
And yet it irks me the poor dappled fools,
Being native burghers of this desert city,
Should in their own confines with forked heads
Have their round haunches gored."
WS
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Pretty easy to criticize someone 75 years after the fact. They made the best decision they could at the time with the invformation they had.
Was Pickett's charge at Gettysburg a big mistake by Robert E. Lee? Hell yes.
Was Cornwallis's decision to hole up in Yorktown, which got him surrounded by the French Navy and Washington's troops, a mistake? Hell yes.
What about the whole Vietnam War? The purpose was to prevent the North from taking over the South because that would lead to the "domino theory," whereby "monolithic communism" would take over all the other Southeast Asian countries one at a time. That whole theory was totally flawed. At least at Iwo Jima we didn't end up with 58,000 dead Americans, didn't lose the battle, and didn't end up a few years later with big American corporations falling all over themselves to build plants in the enemy's territory.
Don't blame me. I voted for Trump.
Democrats would burn this country to the ground, if they could rule over the ashes.
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Campfire Kahuna
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It was important because it had a long enough runway for crippled B29s to land on and it was much closer to japan than any previous Island airfield That. It's a long way to swim out there.
I am..........disturbed.
Concerning the difference between man and the jackass: some observers hold that there isn't any. But this wrongs the jackass. -Twain
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It was essential for the air war. The air war beat Japan, even though the air war didn't beat Germany.
NRA Endowment Life Member, G.O.A supporter
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It was essential for the air war. The air war beat Japan, even though the air war didn't beat Germany. It is true the air war didn't beat Germany but both strategic and tac air played a very large role. I think the war in Europe would have looked very much different post D-Day without the cumulative drubbing the Germans took from the air before and after the landing. While the outcome would probably have been the same, I believe the cost would have been very much higher. The Germans lost tremendous amounts of material and heavy equipment not to mention men whenever they moved. Logistics was simply a nightmare. Monty might still be trying to take Caen without the 2000 bombers that supported the British operation Goodwood. 
$$$ TRUMP AT THE PUMP 2024 $$$
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Having explored rural Okinawa quite a bit in 1964, examined some of the bunkers and caves, even finding some unexploded ordnance...if we needed the island strategically, I'd say the butcher's bill could have been a lot less had the areas suitable for ports and airfields been secured...and left the Japs to slowly starve or surrender. The Japs at that point had no supply options. But, I'm just another armchair E-4.
Well this is a fine pickle we're in, should'a listened to Joe McCarthy and George Orwell I guess.
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What if scenario lil man bomb dropped on Iwo Jima no US casualties Japan sees and surrenders ?
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Pretty easy to criticize someone 75 years after the fact. They made the best decision they could at the time with the invformation they had.
Was Pickett's charge at Gettysburg a big mistake by Robert E. Lee? Hell yes.
Was Cornwallis's decision to hole up in Yorktown, which got him surrounded by the French Navy and Washington's troops, a mistake? Hell yes.
What about the whole Vietnam War? The purpose was to prevent the North from taking over the South because that would lead to the "domino theory," whereby "monolithic communism" would take over all the other Southeast Asian countries one at a time. That whole theory was totally flawed. At least at Iwo Jima we didn't end up with 58,000 dead Americans, didn't lose the battle, and didn't end up a few years later with big American corporations falling all over themselves to build plants in the enemy's territory. Gettysburg would have been different if Jackson had been there instead of Ewell
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Interesting article. I didn’t realize that there was that level of debate over Iwo Jima. I thought Peleliu was supposed to have been the mistake.
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Gettysburg would have been different if Jackson had been there instead of Ewell
Oh Dear God, not this stuff again.  I’ve heard this line all my life, mostly from Southerners, but occasionally someone else. I’ve read as much about Gettysburg, and spent as much time on the battlefield as anybody who isn’t a paid historian. The line about Jackson winning Gettysburg displays a great lack of knowledge about the tactical situation the Confederate Army faced during the invasion of Pennsylvania. Especially given the lack of effective Rebel intelligence at Gettysburg. Not trying to sound like an azzhole, just stating a simple fact. 7mm
"Preserving the Constitution, fighting off the nibblers and chippers, even nibblers and chippers with good intentions, was once regarded by conservatives as the first duty of the citizen. It still is." � Wesley Pruden
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It was essential for the air war. The air war beat Japan, even though the air war didn't beat Germany. I think the submariners would argue that. The shipping they sunk (almost all of Japan's merchant ships) stopped the flow of oil, foodstuffs, coal, ore, everything the Japanese needed to continue the war. They also put a whupping on Japan's lesser warships. That was all after they got all the torpedo issues fixed, of course, but once that happened, the submarines went nuts and sunk everything they saw with a Japanese flag on it. While LeMay did lay waste to the cities, the subs starved them out.
You can roll a turd in peanuts, dip it in chocolate, and it still ain't no damn Baby Ruth.
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Interesting article. I didn’t realize that there was that level of debate over Iwo Jima. I thought Peleliu was supposed to have been the mistake. I can see that point of view as a look back 20/20 view that we have the luxury of. Bypass it and cut off the supply chain to them. Let em rot!
Originally Posted By: slumlord
people that text all day get on my nerves
just knowing that people are out there with that ability,....just makes me wanna punch myself in the balls
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Campfire Ranger
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Speaking of the Pacific theater in WWII, my wife's deceased GP was in many of the well known battles as a Marine. Aside from Tarawa, which he talked to me about, I have no idea which other battles he was involved in. Does anyone have a link to a resource that I could plug his name into and discover which division, etc., he was in so that I can get a better idea and understanding what he was involved in?
FWIW, he was one of my favorite people for the short time I knew him. Taxidermist, hunter, fisherman, and general outdoorsman with tons of knowledge. For a short time, he was a real grandpa to me, as mine all passed when I was very young.
Thanks, Skot.
4 out of 5 Great Lakes prefer Michigan. 
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Was it worth the cost?
I would answer with the long view. If we don't stop what the left is doing to our country right now, the answer will be no.
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