Ever since I read his first book, “Flags of Our Fathers,” I have been a loyal follower of the author James Bradley. His father, John Bradley, was one of the flag raisers on Iwo Jima. His second book, “Flyboys,” was another bestseller concerning World War II.
As you can surmise, Bradley writes books on history, which is my favorite subject. I just finished reading his 2016 book, “The China Mirage, The Hidden History of American Disaster in Asia.” This riveting book covers US-China relations from the 19th century until the Vietnam War.
Like any good book on history, Bradley reveals parts of our past that were never taught in school, including two questions: Why did Japan attack Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1942, and how did China become a Communist country?
The China Mirage focuses on two US Presidents with the last name Roosevelt — Theodore and Franklin Delano — and how their foreign policies screwed up US relations with Japan, China, and Asia and led to World War II in the Pacific theatre.
According to Bradley, both Presidents believed they knew best, “personally taking the reins to deal directly and secretly with Asian affairs, often circumventing their own State Departments.”
After secret back door negotiations, Teddy “agreed to stand aside and allow Japan to subjugate Korea as a colony.” From there, Japan invaded China.
FDR’s family fortune came from his grandfather, Warren Delano, who became wealthy from the illegal opium trade in China. Today, he would be known as a drug lord.
FDR made many mistakes when dealing with China. One area Roosevelt was spot on was his intuition concerning Japan.
At the same time, Germany was invading European countries, and Japan’s army was taking over the Chinese province of Manchuria. American oil was Japan’s lifeblood for its economy and war machine.
Chiang Kai-shek, the leader of the Republic of China from 1928 until 1949, employed lobbyists and public relations firms to deceive many in America into believing that shutting off the oil supply to Japan would force the Land of the Rising Sun to withdraw its army back in humiliation and surrender its territorial gains.
FDR was not fooled. He continually went against the public outcry, which called for America to stop selling oil to Japan.
On Aug. 9 and 10, 1941, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Roosevelt rendezvoused for a secret meeting in Placentia Bay, Newfoundland.
While at this meeting, members of FDR’s Treasury Department went against his orders and refused to authorize the subsequent sale of oil to Japan. They thought they knew better.
Roosevelt did not discover this betrayal for almost a month. By then, it was too late — the damage was done.
On Nov. 26, 1941, taking the oil embargo as an insult and feeling that they had been attacked economically, Japan sent six aircraft carriers for a surprise attack against the United States at Pearl Harbor, and America entered World War II.
It should not have been a surprise; Roosevelt predicted it.
Washington’s failure to understand Asian societies led to many other mistakes in our relations with China, Korea and Vietnam.
Close to 200,000 American lives were sacrificed in Asian wars due to the ignorance of our leaders.
Suppose American Presidents would follow the Prime Directive from Gene Roddenberry’s science fiction series Star Trek, which prohibits members from interfering with the natural development of other civilizations. In that case, the world might be completely different.
Ironically the Prime Directive, credited to Gene L. Coon — a producer on the Original Series — is believed to have been influenced by the Vietnam War. It shows a developed civilization that has moved beyond the need to colonize other worlds.
I’m sure we are making similar foreign policy blunders today, including believing we can control the leaders in Iran and make them like us with money.
Of course, it’s always easier to see our mistakes through the lens of history. The purpose is to learn from our errors, something we frequently fail to do.
If you want to better understand the many missteps in America’s policy towards Asia during the last century, pick up this book by Bradley.
