Japanese Supersub???!!!

[tater]

I agree, nothing more than hyperbole. Bomb the locks? LOL, it would have been fixed quickly. The IJN could have sunk all 3 CVs at Midway, AND taken the island, would have delayed the war by a few months at best. Japan had zero chance of winning the war, even if they themselves thought they had a 10% chance of winning right before they started it—and this required a negotiated peace. Negotiation was required before the new naval construction in the US started coming off the slipways in 1943. PH made any such negotiation moot, it would not happen. Japan loses.

[Jimbuna]

Originally Posted by tater

I agree, nothing more than hyperbole. Bomb the locks? LOL, it would have been fixed quickly. The IJN could have sunk all 3 CVs at Midway, AND taken the island, would have delayed the war by a few months at best. Japan had zero chance of winning the war, even if they themselves thought they had a 10% chance of winning right before they started it—and this required a negotiated peace. Negotiation was required before the new naval construction in the US started coming off the slipways in 1943. PH made any such negotiation moot, it would not happen. Japan loses.

Yeah, I can buy that.....they were hoping to hang on to some of the raw material rich territory they had conquered through a negotiated peace from a position of strength (as they saw/envisaged it).

[AVGWarhawk]

Yes sir. I was all about raw materials plus the fact everyone else was doing the land grab! The I-400 would not have turned the outcome of the war.

[Jimbuna]

Originally Posted by AVGWarhawk

Yes sir. I was all about raw materials plus the fact everyone else was doing the land grab! The I-400 would not have turned the outcome of the war.

I doubt it would have even scratched the surface.

Might just as well say Surcouf would have done similar for the French.

[TheSatyr]

I dunno...a bombing raid with biological weapons on a West Coast city would have shocked the US nearly as much as Pearl Harbor did. Even if only 3 planes were involved.

Never underestimate the psychological and political effects of WMDs. Would it have won the war? Of course not. But,it might have caused problems politically for Truman.

[Raptor1]

Small scale WMD usage (As I pointed out in the numerous discussions about Germany winning the war) does not have the same effect on a victorious population as it does on a defeated population; if anything, it would've made the American public even more willing to defeat Japan.

[Jimbuna]

Originally Posted by Raptor1

Small scale WMD usage (As I pointed out in the numerous discussions about Germany winning the war) does not have the same effect on a victorious population as it does on a defeated population; if anything, it would've made the American public even more willing to defeat Japan.

Which is precisely what happened with the British populace when Hitler started the London Blitz.....not only did it fail to demoralise them but in fact it simply strengthened they're resolve.

[AVGWarhawk]

Originally Posted by TheSatyr

I dunno...a bombing raid with biological weapons on a West Coast city would have shocked the US nearly as much as Pearl Harbor did. Even if only 3 planes were involved.

Never underestimate the psychological and political effects of WMDs. Would it have won the war? Of course not. But,it might have caused problems politically for Truman.

The Japanese tried the bombings but using balloons. I believe some of these balloons did make landfall on the west coast of the US.

[Weiss Pinguin]

Originally Posted by AVGWarhawk

The Japanese tried the bombings but using balloons. I believe some of these balloons did make landfall on the west coast of the US.

Japanese Fire balloons (as told by wikipedia)

Japan released the first of these bomb-bearing balloons on November 3, 1944. They were found in Alaska, Washington, Oregon, California, Arizona, Idaho, Montana, Utah, Wyoming, Colorado, Texas, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, North Dakota, Michigan and Iowa, as well as Mexico and Canada.

General Kusaba's men launched over 9,000 balloons throughout the course of the project. The Japanese expected 10% (around 900) of them to reach America, which is also what is currently believed by researchers. About 300 balloon bombs were found or observed in America. It remains likely that more balloon bombs lie unexploded in the forests, deserts, lakes and mountains of North America.

And the only known casualties caused by the fire balloons:

On May 5, 1945, a pregnant woman and five children were killed when they discovered a balloon bomb that had landed in the forest of Gearhart Mountain in southern Oregon. Pastor Archie Mitchell and his pregnant wife Elsye drove up to Gearhart Mountain with five of their Sunday school students (aged 11-14)to have a picnic, and Elsye and the children got out of the car while Archie drove on to find a parking spot. As Elsye and the children looked for a good picnic spot, they saw a strange balloon lying on the ground. As the group approached the balloon, a bomb attached to it exploded and Elsye and all five children were killed. Archie witnessed the explosion and immediately ran to the scene and used his hands to extinguish the fire on his wife's and the children's clothing, but he could not save them. [7] They are the only known deaths on the continental U.S. as the result of enemy action during WWII. They are also the only known deaths caused by the balloon bombs.

[krashkart]

Originally Posted by AVGWarhawk

The Japanese tried the bombings but using balloons. I believe some of these balloons did make landfall on the west coast of the US.

Yes, but most landed in sparsely populated areas. There was one that made headlines when it killed someone in Washington state or Oregon(?). I remember reading about the story back in grade school but the details are fuzzy. Looking for it right now.


EDIT:

Here, a website dedicated to the subject:

http://www.japaneseballoonbombs.com/


EDIT 2:

It was in Oregon. I was close. http://www.japaneseballoonbombs.com/...ombdeaths.html

[tater]

Originally Posted by TheSatyr

I dunno...a bombing raid with biological weapons on a West Coast city would have shocked the US nearly as much as Pearl Harbor did. Even if only 3 planes were involved.

Never underestimate the psychological and political effects of WMDs. Would it have won the war? Of course not. But,it might have caused problems politically for Truman.

It would have driven home the requirement that he destroy the japanese more than we were already doing. Nothing more. It's like smearing meat all over your body, then climbing into a tiger cage and poking him, lol.

There is nothing the japs could have done to win the war. Nothing at all.