The Pearl Harbor Myth: Rethinking the Unthinkable (Potomac's Military Controversies) (Paperback)

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Key Phrases: fleet moving south, winds execute, distant reconnaissance, United States, Pearl Harbor, Soviet Union (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Victor's book is long on evidence and data and will give even experts in the history of the Pearl Harbor disaster much to think about - and to rethink." - America in WWII "A very informative addition to recent literature.... Highly recommended." - Vice Adm. David C. Richardson, USN (Ret.), former commander of the Sixth Fleet "Victor's book is long on evidence and data and will give even experts in the history of the Pearl Harbor disaster much to think about - and to rethink." - America in WWII "A very informative addition to recent literature that reveals the consequences from mismanagement of intelligence information in Washington that permitted the attackers to achieve surprise. Dr. Victor provides unique information on President Roosevelt's policy formulations and implementing actions against Japan that paralleled his many initiatives to enter the war against Hitler. Highly recommended." - Vice Adm. David C. Richardson, USN (Ret.), former commander of the Sixth Fleet "I came to this reading belonging to the skeptical school of thought regarding Washington's alleged prior knowledge of the attack on Pearl Harbor. Yet after reading this book, I am moved, at the very least, to strongly reconsider my previous reflexive rejection of this thesis. The Pearl Harbor Myth succeeds in putting in an accessible form the more tangible aspects of the various conspiracy theories. Instead of dwelling on extremes of speculation, it contents itself with arranging and pointing out the more undisputable evidence in a global context. In this sense, it may set the framework for future Pearl Harbor debates." - Anthony Tully, coauthor of Shattered Sword: The Untold Story of the Battle of Midway"

Product Description

Did U.S. intelligence know of Japan's coming attack on Pearl Harbor? Did President Roosevelt know? If so, why did he withhold warnings from the commanders in Hawaii? The answers are embedded in the cogent analysis of The Pearl Harbor Myth. Based on voluminous data that does not appear in other books on the topic, it discusses in detail Roosevelt's developing strategy-both military and diplomatic-and his secret alliances to save the world from Hitler. It contains a wealth of fresh material on secret diplomacy; on secret military strategy, planning, and intelligence; and on disguised combat operations that began six months before the Pearl Harbor attack.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 376 pages
• Publisher: Potomac Books Inc. (March 31, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1597971618
• ISBN-13: 978-1597971614
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #265,902 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

35 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Inference not conspiracy theory, March 14, 2007

By	Wayne Lusvardi "Wayne Lusvardi" (Pasadena, CA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Pearl Harbor Myth: Rethinking the Unthinkable (Military Controversies) (Hardcover)

I'm not sure the above reviewers read the same book I have. Victor's The Pearl Harbor Myth does not really fall into the genre of conspiracy theory literature. Nor is it historical fiction. Victor finds anomalies and inconsistencies in what Roosevelt and other said and what they did and draws inferences from this. When the direction and number of inferences drawn add up, he makes a reasoned conclusion that the notion that Roosevelt did not know about the Pearl Harbor raid far enough in advance to warn the Navy is a myth. Even if we were to chock it up to incompetence or miscommunication or lack of today's detection technologies, there are too many such blunders but also intentional acts. Why Roosevelt failed to warn the Philippines after Pearl Harbor was attacked is compelling. Even circumstantial evidence can hold up in court so why not in Victor's book? I may be entirely wrong, but time may prove this book to be a classic.

19 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Add another Pearl Harbor book to your "Must Read" list!, May 22, 2007

By	Vade Mecum - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Pearl Harbor Myth: Rethinking the Unthinkable (Military Controversies) (Hardcover)

A text published for the sixty-fifith anniversary of the Pearl Harbor attack, Victor gives us a solid and balanced portrayal of the tensions in the world around that time, depicts the major geo-political actors, and provides excellent background information on their respective goals and constraints, particularly the dynamics of the Japanese governmental system.

This book is a very ambitious undertaking which approaches this period with a reasoned viewpoint. It has a clear structure, a logical flow for the reader, and brings to bear a broad set of citations as supportive references.

While stressing that his position is not to pass "moral" judgments, particularly on FDR and his War Cabinet, Victor does overtly rationalize their purpose in using the Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor as bait, and hence the over-arching need to keep Kimmel and Short "in the dark" regarding the known pending attack on Pearl Harbor. That this is so is clearly demonstrated by the very well-known comment in the Knox Report (delivered December 15, 1941), the so-called "Knox December 6, 1941 midnight" Washington message, intended ONLY for Kimmel in Hawaii. That the message was never sent is the "smoking gun" and a stain on America's history and the credibility of those "court" historians who ignore its significance, if they are aware of it at all. And, wonder of wonders, that Knox message has never been found - imagine that!

The risk of alerting the Kido Butai was too great, the Japanese had to unambiguously "fire the first shot" ... and that deliberately thousands of lives were lost, that deliberately the Pacific Fleet was crippled, ... Well, the US just had to get into the war against Germany. If this sounds familar, kinda' like the "back door" theory - it should, as it was voiced well over a half-century ago. And, that thesis is correct.

For readers who do not know how the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor is linked to Germany's declaration of war against the US - a bit more noddling might help. The signal, via a 11.29.41 PURPLE message, of the German action was known to FDR, Churchill, and others days prior to Pearl Harbor - and had nothing to do with the terms of the Axis Tri-Partite Pact.

What Victor presents is old news for some. For those many others some revelations might include: (a) many offiicers are named who openly pointed to Pearl Harbor as the Japanese target, (b) the true reason Admiral "JO" Richardson was replaced, (c) that British DIP traffic was being read by the Japanese, (d) more than adequate resources, on a world-wide basis, to handle Japanese traffic (DIP and IJN), adding to what SRH-149 and SRH-255 already shows (d) highly competent deliberations and high-level decision-making to mask pending attack from Kimmel and Short, (e) the woes that were visited upon DugOut Doug and why, (f) FDR's personal quest to save Stalin and USSR, (g) whereabouts of FDR and his War Cabinet the night of December 6, 1941, ..., etc.

Today, as recent books such as Stinnett and Wilford have found their mark, the indefensible positions of "maintained absolute radio silence" and "could not read any of the IJN operational traffic" are clearly apparent. The current "fall back" position being pandered is akin to "noise" or a bureaucratic maze that interferred with actionable intelligence reaching the Washington decision-makers. Victor's text is the "Closing of the Door" on those excuses. That Kimmel and Short were "blinded" by Washington was INTENTIONAL!

Victor's (page 302) "Whether intentionally or not, Roosevelt exposed the fleet to a Japanese attack by stationing it in Hawaii. Then he intentionally used naval units as lures by ordering them on various expeditions in the Pacific. Withholding key information from Kimmel and Short increased the fleet's exposure greatly and it was most glaringly increased by not sending a warning on December 6, 1941.

Despite the history of war, the idea that Roosevelt withheld warnings from Kimmel and Short for the purpose of getting the United States openly into a European war is still unthinkable to many people, but to fewer and fewer as the years past. As has happened over time with other unthinkable acts, the repugnance aroused by the idea of using the Pacific Fleet as a lure will probably continue to fade."

Kimmel and Short need to be set free from the injustice of their bondage and of the tyranny against them. To do otherwise bespeaks the lack of integrity within the US government and the command structure of its military.

Has "Truth, Justice, and the Ameican Way" gone the way of the dodo?

17 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Conspiracy View of Pearl Harbor, February 12, 2007

By	John Matlock "Gunny" (Winnemucca, NV) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Pearl Harbor Myth: Rethinking the Unthinkable (Military Controversies) (Hardcover)

The author asks a series of questions about Pearl Harbor:

Did U.S. intelligence know of Japan's coming attack on Pearl Harbor? His answer is, Yes. There were a lot of warnings. This question, however, really needs to be expanded. Yes, there were a lot of warnings, or maybe you'd call them hints of warnings. These were received by lots of people, mostly at a lower level. After the war they reported that they had passed these warnings along to upper management. (What else could you expect them to say?) Upper management said they never got them. (What else could you expect them to say?) So my answer is: Some people had warnings. U.S. Intelligence did not at a senior level have a solid consensus.

He asks: Did President Roosevelt know? If he did, he took it to the grave with him. I think he expected an attack by Japan somewhere in the pacific but he didn't expect it to hurt as much as it did. Did he know Pearl Harbor, I think he expected elsewhere.

Was there a coverup? Absolutely. Would you admit knowing in advance and not doing anything? Only if you had some desire to spend some time in Leavenworth.

Did the US have disguised combat operations that began six months before the Pearl Harbor attack? I don't know about them being disguised, but we were escorting merchant ships part way across the Atlantic.

Conclusion. Mr. Victor believes a conspiracy was responsible for Pearl Harbor. I tend to not believe in a conspiracy when simple incompetence can account for what happened. Especially in this case where the Americans believed that the Japanese were so inferior. Mr. Victor does though present some very strong arguments that make his book interesting reading.