Clips from the Fog of War

Robert McNamara gives us the lessons he learned when he was Secretary of Defense.

• Category

  News & Politics

[Vinny H.]

Phillip Glass's best score!

[mistersmith6000]

Why are poor young people doing it too?

[Floodlezoot]

The USSR probably went along with US ideas of suffocating Japan through an oil shortage.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying there are any good guys or bad guys. It's just a bunch of fuckers fucking each other over and portraying themselves as the victims to justify their holy wars to their own gullible and downtrodden citizens. See: The History of Mankind

[Trend101Warrior]

The embargo is not an act of war, it just said we'll stop trading with you so go buy resources somewhere else. Do you not expect the consequences if your country invade countries for resources, committing atrocities and refuse to heed the world's concern regarding human rights? Do you think it's ok to let them get away with it or not?

We basically told Japan we will not sell you anything so go buy it somewhere else. The USSR had tons of oil, but for some reason Japan would not buy it from them.

[Trend101Warrior]

The US has right to sell or what not to sell, period.

The real reason why Japan bombed the US because their way of thinking was different. The Dutch East Indies had one of the largest oil and rubber resources in the southern Pacific region. Invade that island and the US would still not intervene. Also the US military was very weak at that time so Japan thought if they attacked Pearl Harbor, it would demoralize the US public and have FDR sued for peace. A poorly-thought out plan if you asked me.

[Floodlezoot]

Maybe you are talking about a legal definition of an act of war. But for Japan, in the 1930s, they were trying to conquer China, and they really had no oil sources at all, except what they could buy. If the USA was blocking the sail of oil to them, that was to destroy the Japanese capability to wage a modern war (against China). Especially because Japan was an island nation with a huge navy, and a need for planes, troop transport ships, carriers, etc. It was de facto an act of war.

[Trend101Warrior]

The U.S. only embargoed Japan, meaning we will not trade with you. A naval blockade means we prevent you from trading with anyone, that serves as an act of war.

The U.S. embargoed Cuba for 50 years, does that mean it's an act of war? Off course not.

[bethmariew]

Fog of war is a thought provoking film. Maybe the problem with nukes are the radiation and longterm issue of dealing with half-life of the nuclear stuff. Admittedly, I only know a little bit on this subject. Thanks, I try to understand stuff like this.

[purecorkboi]

He's talking about the fact that Japan's cities were near total ruin and that dropping the A-bombs did nothing that conventional weapons didn't already do. More akin to people talking nowadays talking about WMDs when the AK-47, glocks etc have killed more people than nuclear/bio weapons ever could

[bethmariew]

wHAT is he talking about? Was this the first nuclear bomb? Big man / little man that they called it?

[fremenchips]

that dichotomy is not quite right as more then 50 years of social and political change separate the two eras, i the 1880's American political cultural was much more isolationist then it was even in the 1930's and there was no effective way for an American protestation as we had neither an international forum or military to intervene. Also as to reason both I think hold true as Roosevelt said "You know I am a juggler, and I never let my right hand know what my left hand does".

[blackappy]

Pure brilliance. Everything. McNamara is just unbelievably compelling, and Morris captures it all. One of the great documentaries, indeed.