How Did Pearl Harbor Preventable

Was Pearl Harbor Preventable?
Bobby Owens

Robert Owens
Mr. Bush
APUSH
26 May 2017
Was Pearl Harbor Preventable?
On the morning of December 7th, 1941 on the sunny island of Oahu in Hawaii, sailors aboard ships in Pearl Harbor woke up to the deafening sound of planes, bullets, and bombs above them. Little did they know, those sailors would witness one of the most horrific days in human history. Those sailors also didn’t know that their government was betraying them, allowing them to die by the hands of the Japanese. The catastrophic bombing of Pearl Harbor saw thirteen ships damaged and two destroyed, as well as 159 planes damaged and 169 destroyed. Also, the surprise massacre by the Empire of Japan forced over 2,000 men to
sacrifice their life. This horrid day was absolutely preventable by many means, but the government and military did not act quick enough.
Pearl Harbor is a lagoon harbor in Southwest Oahu which was used as a whaling port for many years until 1887, when the United States began using it as a Naval Base to protect American citizens who held jobs in the whaling business. The Navy was not sure if the harbor was a suitable place for a base, considering how shallow the water is. Eventually, the military presence grew until today, where Pearl Harbor is one of the two main Naval bases of the Pacific Fleet. The weather there is usually warm and sunny with common afternoon showers, which makes it a popular vacation destination. Even though Pearl Harbor and the surrounding Honolulu may be a getaway, the history sitting just below the water is harrowing and somber. The prevention of Pearl Harbor abroad should have began months before the initial attack. With the growing monster of Japan raging on, the United States should have been wary of attack since the war’s infancy. In 1937, Japan embarks on
an invasion of North China, beginning the campaign in Manchuria. In July of 1940, the Japanese called up one million Army conscripts, and also occupied French Indochina. Also, the United States began trade sanctions with Japan, aimed at terminating the military aggression in China. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt decided upon this action because Japan had allied themselves with the Axis Powers, and they were fighting allies of the United States. About 80% of the oil Japan used at the time came from the United States, and by placing an embargo on oil, it squeezed Japan into a crisis. Japan needed oil, and it was a truly critical for them to receive it. Without oil, the Japanese Pacific campaign would be finished before it would have started. This embargo not only infuriated Japan, but it began the clock counting down to Pearl Harbor. Barely six months later in January of 1941, the first news of an attack specifically on Pearl Harbor reaches the United States. The US Ambassador to Japan hears a rumor that the Empire of Japan was planning a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, but no official in the military government would take the threat seriously. The senior Military Leaders in unison believed that the Japanese would rather attack Manila in the Philippines rather than US soil. This belief is unwise because they would leave Pearl Harbor vulnerable instead of defended, and Pearl Harbor held the keys to winning the war in the Pacific. The Japanese were obviously ready to attack, and with Hawaii a little over 4,000 miles away from mainland Japan, Pearl Harbor should have already been on alert.
Decisions on the homefront should have also prevented Pearl Harbor.
Mistakes and horrid actions by the government lead to the death of thousands of young boys. Not only was there an accidental communication failure, but there was a conscious withholding of vital information. The communication during the war is not sufficient for time constraints, and that is what occurred. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt gets his first report about the battle at 2:28 PM which would be 8:28 AM in Hawaii, about half an hour after the attack began. The chain of information began from an Admiral in Hawaii and then to the Secretary of the Navy. From there in Washington, the information went to the President. Not only did the communication take time, but the Admiral in Hawaii withheld information for fear that the Japanese were listening. It took 6 hours for the President to fully learn about this attack. This created a major discord between the battlefront and the Military Leaders in Washington D.C. This was a horrendous communication problem that could have been easily solved. If resolved on time, this surely would have prevented the many casualties and all of the destruction in the harbor. In the previous weeks and days to this attack, President Roosevelt was having bad sinus issues, and as a result, visited his physician very frequently. As any other physician would have done at the time, he gave FDR the common medicine of his day, which was cocaine. This treatment would not only relieve
the President of his pain, but it would make him “high”, as well as give him a sense of euphoria and a boost of energy. Cocaine is a very addictive drug that makes users think erratically and force them to make bizarre decisions. This sinus problem had plagued the President for a very long time, and it didn’t go away. This treatment by his physician influenced the decisions made, which would have greatly affected the outcome of Pearl Harbor. In fact, President Roosevelt spent a little over an hour with his physician on December 7th. Not only did the President’s prescription influence the outcome of the attack, but so did General Marshall and Secretary of the Navy Henry Knox. While discussions about the possible attack continued in Washington, these men told Admiral Husband E. Kimmel nothing other than an attack was possible. Kimmel would later say in an interview, “My belief is that General Short and I were not given the information available in Washington and were not informed of the impending attack…” This would have taken a part in the prevention of Pearl Harbor. If the Admiral would have used air reconnaissance to attempt to locate a possible attack, and the Japanese surprise would have been greatly fought off.
Finally, there were a multitude of possibilities that the attack could have been avoided on the battlefield. Firstly, the Admirals in charge should have listened to the alerts by the leaders in Washington, even though they were not extensive or detailed. If they would have listened, the Navy would have fought back the attack. On the morning of the attack, two men were on the radar when large objects appeared. One of the sailors on the radar reported it to his superior, but they dismissed the threat thinking that they were 12 B-17’s flying to in from California. With this in mind, 12 B-17’s would look miniature in comparison to 353 Japanese Fighter planes. One of the largest events that should have alerted the Admirals was that a Japanese submarine was destroyed by the USS Ward. This occurrence should have been enough to call the harbor to General Quarters. It is common sense in the military that if you see an enemy submarine in your harbor, you prepare for the possibility of an attack immediately. If all else had failed, this event should have been a sign to prepare for a battle. Instead, the leaders in the harbor decided not to act upon the submarine trying to enter their vicinity. This mistake would be the final opportunity to save Pearl Harbor, but it was not acted upon. Above all, Pearl Harbor was one of the worst attacks on American soil to ever occur. The United States Navy lost more men in this one battle than in all of World War I, and it is the largest loss of life in Naval history. The ultimate sacrifice that these sailors gave was preventable, but their government didn’t take action with the information they had. This monstrosity was something that should never have to be experienced again, and hopefully military leaders in the future will learn from their predecessor’s mistakes, as well as the population of the United States not forget their sacrifice to preserve our freedom. This horrid day was absolutely preventable by many means, but the government and military did not act quick enough.