Happy Atheist Forum

General => History => Topic started by: SisterAgatha on January 19, 2018, 05:47:00 AM

Title: Why isn't the Pacific Theater Commemorated?
Post by: SisterAgatha on January 19, 2018, 05:47:00 AM
I think it goes without saying that in popular culture,media, and history, the European theater of WWII gets far more attention than the Pacific Theater.

It makes sense at first, given the horrendous nature of Adolf Hitler, and the cruel, bizarre uniqueness of the Final Solution.

Yet at some level the attention given to the European theater is a bit outsized. Our commitment before D-Day (In North Africa and Italy) was fairly minor and inconsequential as compared to the Soviets. From what I understand Italy was mostly a British Commonwealth operation.

D-Day, the Battle of the Bulge among others were very interesting and significant but all happened in the course of a year and half.

The Pacific war seems intriguing, and almost the closest thing we Americans had the Soviet experience on the Eastern front.

It was a war where both sides regarded eachother as sub-human. Like the Soviets fighting the Germans, it was more than their lives worth for the Americans to be captured by the Japanese.

There seems almost nothing romantic about the war in the Pacific, and almost a more advanced titanic version of the Vietnam war.

Its further odd that Japan suffers almost no opprobrium from the west for it's crimes and they are barely remembered. They seem every bit the equal of the Nazis (all WW2 buffs know their crimes well), but America isn't regarded as the savior of the Pacific, since it seems unlike in Europe, we did single handedly save Asia from an apocalyptic, fascistic empire.

Any thoughts?
Title: Re: Why isn't the Pacific Theater Commemorated?
Post by: Magdalena on January 19, 2018, 06:56:39 AM
This is so weird.

Agatha, why did you change the question?
The original question you wrote: Why does it seem the European Theater gets more attention than the Pacific one?
If you google it, it takes you to another forum with the exact same question, very similar vocabulary.

:eyebrow:

Title: Re: Why isn't the Pacific Theater Commemorated?
Post by: SisterAgatha on January 19, 2018, 08:15:12 PM
I also wonder why aren't the Japanese atrocities commemorated or particularly known about?

There are few western movies about the rape of Nanking, Unit 731, or the starvation of American POWs.
Title: Re: Why isn't the Pacific Theater Commemorated?
Post by: Magdalena on January 19, 2018, 08:26:54 PM
Is this where you get your info?
http://www.m4carbine.net/showthread.php?153495-Why-does-it-seem-the-European-Theater-gets-more-attention-than-the-Pacific-one (http://www.m4carbine.net/showthread.php?153495-Why-does-it-seem-the-European-Theater-gets-more-attention-than-the-Pacific-one)
Title: Re: Why isn't the Pacific Theater Commemorated?
Post by: Bluenose on January 20, 2018, 10:53:41 AM
Quote from: SisterAgatha on January 19, 2018, 08:15:12 PM
I also wonder why aren't the Japanese atrocities commemorated or particularly known about?

Well, I think you will find most Australians know about the Thai-Burma railroad, Changi prison, the Sandakan death marches, the bombing of Darwin, the Kakoda Trail, the mini submarine attack on Sydney Harbour to name but a few and of course not forgetting the attack on Pearl Harbour.  Then of course there were the Battles of Midway and the Coral Sea, not to mention Guadalcanal and a host of other islands like Truk, Iwo Jima and of course Okinawa.