What if...

[katusha]

how would history have judged FDR if it was known(hypothetically) that in Nov. 1941 he received a memo titled "japan determined to attack pearl harbor" and instead of doing anything FDR went fishing?

[jeff30997]

1. Well there are people who think that FDR...

Knew about what was going to happen.The British,having broken the purple code, sure did.

[katusha]

2. well sure

they think they know that FDR was LIHOP but nothing like the intelligence report "osama determined to attack US" don't you think the case against FDR after all these years would be rock solid if he had received a similar memo about japanese plans?

[Yupster]

3. We certainly knew the Japanese were

going to attack somewhere and soon.

The debate is how specific out knowledge was as to who and where and when they'd attack.

It was pretty clear an attack was coming once we cut off the oil from the Dutch East Indies.

[Andy_Stephenson]

4. here

bad source

[katusha]

5. the only problem i have with this

is that if we had known they were going to attack pearl then they almost certainly would have posted those carriers in defensive pickets to counter-strike the jap carriers and make themselves look good while also achieving the objectives of simply letting it happen. it could have just been an oversight and it certainly does not disprove LIHOP, but that is how i would have done it to maximize the effect.