DECEPTION 101: Just how far can man lie and betray to invent world wars?

REMEMBERING PEARL HARBOR

mugshot of Pearl Harbor bombing

My high school textbooks couldn't really say that much.


One cannot really blame the writers and publishers, taking into account that our history lessons years ago should only focus on local exploits and adversities. I must admit I'm not a huge fan of History, but I believe I did my homework better now.

Staring at the young Ben Affleck in the 2001 film Pearl Harbor, I learned finer details on the historical bombing of the "Gibraltar of the Pacific", specifically the bogus peace talks between US and Japan. A sent message in a bottle once marked newspaper headlines with "Peace talks hopeful", but then after conned "strict radio silence" issues from Japan preventing US to be war-updated, both fascist nations ended up being too surprised at the aftermath of the bombing.


However, the seven-hour ambush then provoking Uncle Sam to actively participate in World War II is not the spotlight given this modern era. At that time the media coudn't boil any more "hotter angles and stories" days after Oahu, Hawaii was literally charred into ashes. Not until the unwritten speculations of then President Franklin Roosevelt's "foreknowledge" about the imminent Japanese blitzkrieg.

Franklin D. Roosevelt: Did FDR deliberately allow such attack to enter into war?
www.claremontmckenna.edu

THE US DECEPTION


What if FDR had designed better plans? From an article by Robert Stinnett (Dec. 8, 1941), FDR called on an informal meeting with two people on cold beer and midnight sandwiches: CBS radioman Edward Murrow and Coordinator of Information William "Wild Bill" Donovan. The conversation became clouded with FDR's indirect claim on his foreknowledge of a looming Japanese attack, and with no serious actions ordered whatsoever.


What was FDR's plans? Belying with his anger and quick manifesto of a war against Japan all seemed convincing enough. Deceptions piled up as previous accounts claiming the US still hadn't cracked the Japanese military codes for early warning was proven theory; so did the "strict radio silence" of the enemy fleet the US government had blamed. One thing was clear though: the President knew beforehand.

Mapping the bombing: The premeditated attack at Oahu, Hawaii

JAPAN'S DECEPTION


The tax payers of the Land of the Rising Sun were as equally smart. In early September 1941 while the would-be-comfort-women still chatted by the river washing clothes, the militaristic Japanese had completely conceived its plan to conquer the Malaya, the Philippines and the Netherlands of East Indies, wisely coordinated with a Big Bang exhibition at Pearl Harbor.


Japan thought better to cripple the heroic Uncle Sam firsthand to smoothly take over the Pacific without interference. It did make sure America would be severely amputated.


Its dirty game specially included fake peace talks towards America weeks before the historical Pacific war. This was why President Roosevelt called it the "Day of Infamy"--the word was exactly "ambush" and "deception". Now I believe I must've slept over our World History lessons a year ago, but I can say I hadn't read such detail on the rented textbooks. 

HISTORY IS ALL ABOUT NUMBERS


To some extent, maybe it was all "for the record". If deception was so sweet and psychologically fulfilling, the statistics on and the unbearable sight of the wounded, the dying and the dead weren't: with 2 896 Navy and Marine casualties plus 57 innocent lives, and the sight of trapped crewmen with oil-smudged hands poking at the small holes of the sinking ships and then dying like wilted flowers. Families will forever ask why.


On the contrary, I believe wars brought by deception, nationalism, etc. are actually the eye-catching black-and-white photos of the history books. If not for wars, historical names wouldn't have been written, memorized, remembered. Places across the globe wouldn't have become tourist spots (w/c boost economical status), heritage sites, museums, field trip itineraries. The new generation wouldn't have been inspired, motivated, challenged, curious and aware.

HITLER OF GERMANY
http://massthink.wordpress.com 

MUSSOLINI OF ITALY
http://faculty-web.at.northwestern.edu

Much as we pretend to loathe and curse Hitler and Marcos and Mussolini for their insanity and overreacted fascism (where in fact we simply don't care), we never knew their nature. I was taught by Ms. Josephine Bonsol to understand such people's nature, and told us to stop being jologs for cursing the villains of world history. 


Why was Hitler so obsessed with Germany and its purity in race? Why was Japan addicted to collecting colonies and war gears? Why was Marcos deeply in love with dictatorship? I was taught in was simply not about the glorious crown and the intoxicating wealth and position: it must be on their childhood principles on pure leadership, the people influencing them and their history lineage.

World wars were and will always be carved not by people, but by deception, aggression, competition, and more likely out of one's itching goal to end a boorish dull day in the world.