On this day in history seventy-six years ago, America was attacked by the empire of Japan. It is a day that President Franklin Delano Roosevelt declared would live in infamy. In remembrance of my late father, Nathaniel Jim Goings, who served in the Army in the Pacific theater, as well as all the World War II veterans (the vast majority of which are deceased), I want to briefly retrace the apathy, nationalism, and even the rumor that some conspiracy theorists speculated about President Roosevelt’s deliberate scheme to bring America into World War II. Whatever the facts might be, it is set in stone that on November 7, 1941, our enemies caught us sleeping. Before we consider some of the reasons why we were caught completely off guard, by the aerial attack of the Japanese Navy at Pearl Harbor, let me introduce you to the man who was the mastermind and strategist of this attack that has been called the greatest aggressive and adversarial attack on American soil.
Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, who devised the plan to attack our Pacific fleet at Pearl Harbor, was no stranger to America and her economic and military might. Having studied in America, he was well abreast on our culture, as well as our strengths and weaknesses. He had assured his emperor that if they could wipe out our Pacific fleet at Pearl Harbor through a surprise attack and prevail over us for six months in the Pacific, Americans who had become indifferent to the conflict in both Europe and the Pacific Rim, as well as engrossed in pleasure and entertainment would tire of war and be willing to accept a peace treaty. However, what the man who spoke these ominous words, “I fear all we have done is awaken a sleeping giant and fill him with a terrible resolve,” immediately after the attack, had not calculated in his strategy was that the two aircraft carriers assigned to the fleet would be out to sea during the attack. This along with the Japanese Prime Minister Hideki Tojo and his political and military leaders’ miscalculation of the American people’s retributive resolve to strike back would ultimately spell disaster for Japan. Ironically, Admiral Yamamoto was killed by a squadron of American fighter planes in 1943, over the Pacific on his way to inspect Japanese Naval bases.
At this point, we are going to consider some of the probable causes why the Japanese caught us sleeping on this day seventy-six years ago. Was President Roosevelt’s desire to get America involved in the war the cause as to why we were laxed in our vigilance and were caught with “our pants down” the real culprit, as some conspiracy theorists speculate? Though that sounds intriguing and makes for good drama and gossip, logic and the absence of facts have no other recourse but to dismiss this as unfounded and speculative. One of the primary reasons why I personally reject this is the fact that at the time of the bombing of Pearl Harbor, President Roosevelt’s interest and focus on the war was directed toward the European theater. This was confirmed by his “lend and lease” program that supplied millions of dollars worth of military munitions to Great Britain and the Allies. In my fascination and study of World War II and what ultimately led us into this global conflict, which claimed the lives of multiple millions of people, I have identified the primary reason that caused America to be caught off guard by the Japanese prior to the bombing of Pearl Harbor. It was due to the belief of nationalism by the American population. Nationalism, as I am using it in this column, is the belief that we should be devoted to the interest of our own nation and not involve ourselves in the affairs of other nations. This was especially the pervasive opinion held by most Americans prior to our involvement in World War II. Due to the fact of our involvement in the First World War, most Americans felt that we should not interfere with the conflict that was taking place in Europe. The belief in nationalism, especially in remaining indifferent and uninvolved in the conflicts and disputes that existed between the nations of Europe, was an American belief that dated back to our earliest days as a nation. Many of our Founding Fathers and statesmen throughout the history of this nation embraced a belief in nationalism and that under no circumstances should America get involved in the disputes and conflicts that were common occurrences between the European nations. This hands-off policy developed an indifferent attitude in America in regard to the rise of Hitler and Nazism. Winston Churchill’s book While England Slept and John F. Kennedy’s book Why England Slept (written in 1940 prior to the attack on Pearl Harbor), both exposed and criticized the apathy of England in regard to Germany’s aggression embodied by the likes of Neville Chamberlain, who as a pacifist was indicative of many Americans who wanted nothing to do with what was going on in Europe. It was this belief in nationalism that cause America for the most part to become indifferent to the plight of her cousin across the Atlantic and ultimately to lose her vigilance of Japanese’s deception and aggression in the Pacific Rim.
As we observe the anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, let us do it with reverence and gratitude for the people who gave their lives, as well as the millions of others who gave their lives in the greatest war in human history. And by all means, let us not forget the lessons that our indifference, laxity, and lack of vigilance taught us as it did with both Pearl Harbor and 9/11. “Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” —George Santayana