[UnderseaLcpl]

I had to think about this one for a while, but I have ultimately decided to support August and OLCs view of the situation. As a whole, the Pacific Theatre of Operations, while very large geographically, was primarily a low-intensity conflict punctuated by brief but bloody naval/amphibious clashes. I'm not saying that the fighting wasn't hard or important or anything like that, but when one looks at the resource gap between axis and allied forces, the result was pretty much a foregone conclusion.
The Chinese side of the conflict is different, but ultimately boils down to a slow-paced eight-year slugging match between Japan and the Chinese tar baby.

Where I would consider the PTO to be a real sideshow is in the arena of international politics. FDR tried very hard to force Japan into a war, and thus get the US into the larger conflict by refusing any diplomatic compromises the Japanese offered. What he really wanted was to get into the war in Europe, of course.

I'm also inclined to believe at least some revisionist history because the popular history is so heavily colored by the propaganda needed to rouse people to war for reasons other than the real ones most of the time. Much of it hangs on for generations after the war, though I believe that trend will change (and has been changing) as global communications become more and more accessible.