Unfortunate but true. Most Americans have a very slight knowledge of WW2 beyond "Saving Private Ryan" and "Band of Brothers". Both are good flicks, but hardley representative of the last major world conflict. I believe there are several reasons for it, some are cultural, some are happenstance, some of geographic.
For starters, Americans are not really tuned into their history the rest of the world is. As a people, Americans tend to knock old things down rather than save them. In Europe, it is common for a house to be habitable for several hundred years. The US is more of a disposable society. As a consequence, what happened yesterday is considered old news and rarely worth bothering with. Today and tomorrow are more important.
Secondly, the US was not materially affected by WW2. There were no effective bombing raids (the odd seaplane attack or balloon bombs were isolated incidents). Whereas Europe and the Far East lost entire cities almost routinely, US casualties on home ground due to bombing amounted to 6 dead from a balloon bomb in Oregon (not counting Pearl Harbor or Pacific Island fights). The affects of devestated cities becomes a major factor in the culture of a country. It is something you tell your kids about. For the US, the war happened "over there". It was beyond the horizon.
The US fought a war of material. While the US did fight all over the globe, it supplied more than it fought. It really was the Arsenal for Democracy (Soviet Union notwithstanding). American equipment was used by every major (and every minor) military contingent in the war. In some cases, exclusively. American casualties were not as significant as our allies. But our supplies (in all realms) generally dwarfed that of other countries.
Lastly, the US was the last player in a war (or more likely, a series of wars) that started in 1931 and finished in 1945. By the time the US showed up, all the major players BUT the US were already heavily engaged. With the exception of Japan, the US was a peripheral opponent to the Axis powers.
Most of the real killing and dying in Europe was done by countries that had been at war with each other (off and on) for the previous 1000 years, and before that as tribes or smaller principalities. Old enemies, old grievences, new flags. Germany and Russia had been going at it, hammer and tongs, since 1200AD. The same could be said for China and Japan. Between those four players is where the majority of the dying took place. The US really didn't fit in those catagories. It's a country that was less than 200 years old at the time of the war. The same could be said for many of the Commonwealth countries. They weren't fighting a fight they had fought many times in the past. For the US, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, ect, this was a relatively new fight.
For starters, Americans are not really tuned into their history the rest of the world is. As a people, Americans tend to knock old things down rather than save them. In Europe, it is common for a house to be habitable for several hundred years. The US is more of a disposable society. As a consequence, what happened yesterday is considered old news and rarely worth bothering with. Today and tomorrow are more important.
Secondly, the US was not materially affected by WW2. There were no effective bombing raids (the odd seaplane attack or balloon bombs were isolated incidents). Whereas Europe and the Far East lost entire cities almost routinely, US casualties on home ground due to bombing amounted to 6 dead from a balloon bomb in Oregon (not counting Pearl Harbor or Pacific Island fights). The affects of devestated cities becomes a major factor in the culture of a country. It is something you tell your kids about. For the US, the war happened "over there". It was beyond the horizon.
The US fought a war of material. While the US did fight all over the globe, it supplied more than it fought. It really was the Arsenal for Democracy (Soviet Union notwithstanding). American equipment was used by every major (and every minor) military contingent in the war. In some cases, exclusively. American casualties were not as significant as our allies. But our supplies (in all realms) generally dwarfed that of other countries.
Lastly, the US was the last player in a war (or more likely, a series of wars) that started in 1931 and finished in 1945. By the time the US showed up, all the major players BUT the US were already heavily engaged. With the exception of Japan, the US was a peripheral opponent to the Axis powers.
Most of the real killing and dying in Europe was done by countries that had been at war with each other (off and on) for the previous 1000 years, and before that as tribes or smaller principalities. Old enemies, old grievences, new flags. Germany and Russia had been going at it, hammer and tongs, since 1200AD. The same could be said for China and Japan. Between those four players is where the majority of the dying took place. The US really didn't fit in those catagories. It's a country that was less than 200 years old at the time of the war. The same could be said for many of the Commonwealth countries. They weren't fighting a fight they had fought many times in the past. For the US, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, ect, this was a relatively new fight.
