Marcus A. Perkins comments

You will never get any of the remaining WWII generation in both countries to ever really forgive and forget. But for the boomer generation and the succeeding gen X, telling the truth in Japan's history school books would be a great start. Americans are tired of being the world's policeman, go to charity countries and dumping ground for other countries criminals and jobless. Trump has tapped into that feeling and riding the wave in the same way the Obama tapped into the black community's distrust of white America.

@AU_user_since_1998. Please! No one in modern history equaled the Nazi's and the IJA in atrocities, including every single atrocity committed by the US in the PI. The comparison lacks knowledge of history.

Meanwhile, not to defend the actions of Gen Chaffe and the US Army in Samar, but known as "The Balangiga Incident" of 1901, Filipino insurgents dressed as women pretending to go to Mass to get past the US Army sentry's, attacked US Soldiers in their tents sleeping with axes, bolos, and any other kind of large to medium sharp knife they could find. The Filipinos, hacked 48 US Soldiers to death. MEANING they butchered them in to pieces. Not a very honorable way for the noble Filipino to fight the war. EVEN Gen Aguinaldo hero of the Philippine War, called for the capture and trial of the Filipinos who did this horrible event. The people of the town buried the dead and literally left the town. They knew what was coming.

Yes the payback was equally horrific. But there was a lot of emotion and passion in the reaction. Nothing like that had happened to the US Army since the Indian Wars.

So let me ask you this if tomorrow, 25 US citizens slipped into the barracks of a local AFP base in Philippines and hacked all the soldiers to death with bolo knives and machetes. What do you think the response of the Filipino people in to today's world would be? Random attacks on Americans in the streets? Maybe attack all the Marines while on exercises with the PI Military in the "Shoulder to Shoulder" Exercise? Yes it was a bad thing the US Army did in Samar, but no one in the PI thinks what the Filipinos did to the US Army soldiers sleep in their tents was a brave and honorable thing. No, they think its embarrassing! For the rest of the conflict (war) with the exception of the Moros, no Filipino executed such a crime against the US Army like the one in The Balangiga Incident" of 1901

Previously posted link: http://www.commondreams.org/views06/0806-25.htm

Is typical of the non-cited, nor properly referred material that people in this debate read and think, well since its published, it must be true. So much non-factual info is put out there saying, well the Japanese were about surrender, but the US was too impatient and wanted to use their bomb. The Russians were about to declare war, it was all hopeless for the Japanese. Except, the Army controlled the JGOV, and women and children were being trained to meet the the US Forces at the beach. The IJA was going to force the whole country to go down in one national suicide. But wait the US could have embargoed the Jports, no food or fuel. Great idea, starve the Japanese and wait until winter when most would freeze to death. So many forget the alternatives to the Atomic bombs where in most cases far more bleak and daunting. It took the Emperor himself to end the war, and even then, they IJA tried to stop him. They dared to conspire to interfere with the wishes of the very Emperor they swore to defend and fight the war for.

Japan has one of the most technically advanced Navy's in the world. They also incorporate Arleigh-Burke class US built destroyers with their own highly advanced warfare capabilities. Also Japan has a LONG LONG history of successful Naval warfare. China does not. They built ships like they build most things. Mostly cheap crewed by unseasoned sailors. For China to succeed, they will need to actually get bloody with some one better than they.

Most of this list tells me that the guy who wrote it , allows women and probably people in general to run all over him. I've known Japanese men who call their wives "hey" instead of their real names. There was also a TV show that encouraged women to call in and tell their stories about how bad their husbands were to them. So I would not give too much credence to this list. In my own experience in dating Japanese women in the past I found some believed they were a real catch when they were not. Most girls want to wait until they are 35 to 40 before they start a family not taking into account the biology of that. So some do live in a dream world of Denial, but that doesn't mean the men should.

Cave entrances were blow up during the fighting to eliminate the threat of those inside to the US Marines outside. Over the years recently a team of Explosives experts who retired in Palau have been clearing the area where the battles took place in Peleliu. So if there is a person in the cave, this is because the cave was declared "clear" long before this article was published. And yes, you can tour some of these caves. They are open to the public.

Now you know the rest of the story

There is no substitute for Human Intel. (HUMINTEL).......just ask the CIA

A Formal apology and mere back door compensation are not the same. Many times corporations compensate (settle out of court) rather than admit guilt in open court. Sounds like the same situation here. Japan should own up to the things it did in the past. No shame on succeeding generations.

My favorite part about reading these comments about WWII, is how incredibly naive some Japanese are. How they unfortunately don't know the real story of their people's involvement in that war, because they have been taught a distorted version of that War. So naturally, they know all about the horror of the Atomic bombs dropped on their cities, but they know nothing about what led up to that decision to drop them. Ask any Japanese about WWII and if they are under 60 years old, they will tell you the Japanese Military won a glorious victory at Pearl Harbor because the US and the Brits wouldn't stay out of their business. Then as a payback, the US dropped 2 Atomic bombs out of revenge. Nothing about what happened in-between. Oh and apparently, there were thousands of professional prostitutes waiting at the docks to be shipped off to Brothels like Geisha's waiting to be picked as the #1 Lotus flower for the Daimyo!