The kind of indiscriminate destruction that LeMay used to win the war is absolutely a thing of the past, at least for American forces. Curtis LeMay (with pipe) discusses plans for bombing Tokyo. . And also yet, this publication is something that maintains you invested as it exists as a little bit more than an item of history. Ask the Author. [8] In that regard, this was at odds with Britain's Royal Air Force' doctrine of area bombing under the command of Marshal of the Royal Air Force Sir Arthur Harris. You can listen in your preferred podcast app (See below for a complete list of supported apps). A headwind increases airflow under the wings giving it greater lift. Chapter-by-chapter summaries and multiple sections of expert analysis, The ultimate resource for assignments, engaging lessons, and lively book discussions. [22] Writing for the Los Angeles Review of Books, professors David Fedman and Cary Karacas state "[a]s a piece of writing, The Bomber Mafia is engaging. The Bomber Mafia: A Dream, a Temptation, and the Longest Night of the Second World War is a nonfiction book by Malcolm Gladwell, published in 2021. A small number of apps may require users to copy their URL and paste it directly into the app. This book is so much extra; not just filling up a few spaces in my understanding but educating me, simply exactly how little I understood about the altering role of the airforce. LeMays solution was to saturate Tokyo with napalm bombs, killing as many as 100,000 people in about six hours, and then to go on and firebomb dozens of other Japanese cities, killing thousands upon thousands, sometimes when the target cities were of little or no military value. Unfortunately for its believers, the Norden bombsight was a brilliant idea that didnt quite work in practice, mostly because the technology did not yet exist to do the additional computations that real-world issues required to move beyond the theoretical ones that worked so well in the lab. Malcolm Gladwell on the Hard Decisions of War - New York Times As a key member of the Bomber Mafia, Hansells theories of precision bombing had been foiled by bad weather and human error. WATCH SEGMENT. The Bomber Mafia began as an audiobook, and later transitioned into a print book. Kurt Vonneguts seminal publication Slaughterhouse five took the allied battle (pointless) of Dresden with the POV of Prisioners of war. These Podcasts Aren't So Sure", "Presenting: The Bomber Mafia by Malcolm Gladwell", "The Bomber Mafia: A Dream, a Temptation, and the Longest Night of the Second World War", "The Bomber Mafia by Malcolm Gladwell review why 'precision bombing' is an utter delusion", "Wrestling with the strategy and morality of the firebombing of Japan", "The Bomber Mafia by Malcolm Gladwell, review the Outliers author on the morality of war", "Malcolm Gladwell on the Hard Decisions of War", "When Pop History Bombs: A Response to Malcolm Gladwell's Love Letter to American Air Power", "Malcolm Gladwell's The Bomber Mafia is misleading history-lite", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Bomber_Mafia&oldid=1134344848, This page was last edited on 18 January 2023, at 06:23. This is a case where the audiobook definitely defeats the print version. He advocated the close coordination of air and ground forces, with an emphasis on medium bombers and fighter bombers. Something is very wrong, Gladwell argues, with the tools and strategies we use to make sense of people we dont know. The straightforward location of how Japan was merely outside the range of bombers. Malcolm Gladwell is the author of five New York Times bestsellers The Tipping Point, Blink,Outliers, What the Dog Saw, and David and Goliath. Subscribe to the Military.com newsletter to have military news, updates and resources delivered straight to your inbox. The Bomber Mafia A Dream, a Temptation, and the Longest Night of the Second World War By: Malcolm Gladwell Narrated by: Malcolm Gladwell Length: 5 hrs and 14 mins 4.7 (8,338 ratings) Try for $0.00 Pick 1 title (2 titles for Prime members) from our collection of bestsellers and new releases. I enjoyed this short book thoroughly, and would have been happy if it had been twice as long. Kennedy stated there were "gaps in [Gladwell's] account", and cites the RAF Bomber Command's attempt at careful bombing as an example. Take capers these are certainly not peas. Gladwell opined that the moralistic, casualty-avoiding ideas of Haywood Hansell stayed relevant for many years while the heavy death toll of area bombing fell out of favor. The mushroom cloud of atomic bombs minimizes the function of air campaign which annihilated the cities with a view to damage the morale of the forces. Randall Jarrell captured LeMays blithely brutal approach in two of the most memorable lines of 20th-century American poetry: In bombers named for girls, we burned / The cities we had learned about in school.. Developed over the years 19261929 at Air Corps Tactical School (ACTS) at Langley Field in Virginia, a forward-looking doctrine of daylight precision bombing was promulgated by Brigadier General William "Billy" Mitchell who advocated a greatly expanded role for the bomber force. Malcolm Gladwell had a podcast on this topic last year. The brief Conclusion looks at the bigger picture this story tells about the use of technology. Another example: Gladwell calls the firebombing of Tokyo on March 9 and 10, 1945, the longest night of the war. This unfortunate phrase, this unproven superlative, is repeated in the books unwieldy subtitle. Malcolm Gladwells The Bomber Mafia: A Dream, a Temptation, and the Longest Night of the Second World War is a kind of love song to the United States Air Force, which is surprising, because it is the least romantic of our armed services, with leaders who focus on technology, not tradition. The Listeners Guide features additional commentary from, Suggestions, Fan Mail, Bones to Pick, and All Other Queries, For Speaking Engagements With Malcolm Gladwell, Hasta la Vista, America: Trumps Farewell Address, Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking. Please simply click here to enter your email address (no additional purchase required) and you will receive the Listeners Guide. Contact Us | By subscribing to Pushkin+ or purchasing an audiobook, you are agreeing to be bound by Pushkins Terms of Service and Privacy Policies and to be added to Pushkins mailing list. Gladwell has been included in the TIME 100 Most Influential People list and touted as one of Foreign Policys Top Global Thinkers. The derogatory term "Bomber Mafia" was used before and after World War II by those in the military who did not share their belief, and who were frustrated by the insistence of the men that the heavy bomber should take a primary position in planning and funding. There is even a score and plenty of effective sound effects. Content Warning: The source text contains historical quotations that use offensive terms for Japanese people. The notion that we were ever going to tolerate a land invasion of Japan is simply not true, we could have cut them off and let their cities crumble. A second shell hit the radio compartment, cutting the legs of the radio operator off at the knees. Malcolm Gladwells exploration of how technology and best intentions collide in the heat of war. As long as youre comfortable with the numbers of people who were killed during the air attacks described throughout the book. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. The bomber mafia succeeded in their goal to have extensive bomber fleets in the US military, but they failed in their wish to achieve pinpoint targeting precision during World War II. tags:Second world war, World War. The State of Journalism on World Press Freedom Day. Did the podcast effect the way you approached the book, or understood it? [17] Hansell wrote: It was recognized that fighter escort was inherently desirable, but no one could quite conceive how a small fighter could have the range of the bomber yet retain its combat maneuverability. Sen. Amy Klobuchar Talks the G7 Summit. Once you are in a way, are some forms of bombing more humane than others? Later, Saville successfully implemented his ideas in the Mediterranean Theater. As a work of history, it borders on reckless". This book once more casts an extra critical eye on this situation and outcome. There is nothing 'inappropriate' in the book, it is simply not about battles and actions. 4.9 . Bomber Mafia Questions Teaching Resources | Teachers Pay Teachers On the eve of the Second World War, a band of visionaries at Maxwell Air Force Base tried to reimagine modern warfare. Bombing of Tokyo on March 10, 1945 with Operation Meetinghouse, "You Know Your History? InRevisionist History, Gladwell re-examines moments from the past and asks whether we got it right the first time. The new discount program will be accessed through the exchange stores or websites, not Home Depot locations. When he and Curtis LeMay squared off for a leadership handover in the jungles of Guam, LeMay emerged victorious, leading to the darkest night of World War II. I immediately thought, Oh yeah? [10] The doctrine also ran counter to the theories of Billy Mitchell himself, who espoused that pursuit support was essential for daylight bombing operations.[11]. We now live in a world where its not too much of an exaggeration to say that a bomber flying at 50,000 feet can tickle a targets nose hairs with the advanced systems we now have in place. Members of the "Bomber Mafia" produced the two airpower war plans (AWPD-1 and AWPD-42) that guided the wartime expansion and deployment of the Army Air Forces. Whether it was the atom bombs or LeMays bombing tactic that hastened the Japanese to surrender will always be a debatable topic. A third option is rarely discussed. Malcom Gladwells book Talking to Strangers is a very good book that ties together Welcome back. Do Not Steal My Personal Information. You can pose questions to the Goodreads community with His thinking was that it would be better to force the enemy to surrender early, as a prolonged war would cause more suffering. Please check back soon for future events. The villain, or at least loser in this account, is another Air Force general, Haywood Hansell, who had tried to win the war in the Pacific through the precision-bombing of Japan. Gladwell raises two fascinating points. [5][6], The book follows the story of the Bomber Mafia, a group of American military officers, especially Major General Haywood S. Hansell, as they developed a military doctrine of daylight strategic bombing as a means to defeat an enemy with precision high-altitude aerial bombardment. Malcolm Gladwell's new book and audiobook "The Bomber Mafia: A Dream, a Temptation and the Longest Night of the Second World War" digs deep into one of the lesser-known rivalries of the war,. Because even though his bombing caused more than 500,000 Japanese citizens to lose their lives, it prevented a land invasion which undoubtedly would have cost many more deaths than that. I knew the Americans went down two atomic weapons to shorten the battle as well as bring Japan to its knees as well as accept surrender to conserve countless lives needed to get into those islands. Wondering if someone out there has both listened to the podcast and read this book? Purchase The Bomber Mafia and receive the exclusive Bomber Mafia Listeners Guide a visual document of the making of The Bomber Mafia. Those fools can really do some damages if you capture one in the kisser. This was a ripoff and should have just been a podcast. Moreover, the men realized that the United States government would have to reduce funding to naval and ground forces in order to establish a great air fleet. [7], To effect this doctrine, the United States Army Air Corps would need to expend the majority of its resources in amassing a fleet of self-defending heavy bombers, and in the training and maintenance of a great many airmen to fill aircrew and ground crew positions. Just that, with bombing plane B29s the issue is definitely a lot more intricate with visibility, weather and anti-aircraft weapons to battle with. Show Description. I am a big fan of Malcolm Gladwell. You will be emailed a confirmation with the link to the audiobook or you can login with your email addresshere. The podcast is called Revisionist History, and is excellent by the way. Why did Neville Chamberlain think he could trust Adolf Hitler? Andrews staffed the command with like-minded officers such as Henry H. "Hap" Arnold. Sort: Relevance. First, the U.S. command didnt really seem to understand what LeMays campaign was doing to Japan. [10] This especially applied with the aerial bombardment of Japan where previously unaccounted atmospheric conditions such as the jet stream seriously interfered with operations under Hansell's command. The Bomber Mafia isn't an honest or earnest look at what experts have written and thought about America's air campaigns during WWII. If you have actually ever attempted to toss a can from a moving automobile into a whip can you would understand the math/physics behind it. 'The Bomber Mafia' review: Malcolm Gladwell tries a deep - The Star By continuing to use this site, you agree to the terms of our updated Privacy Policy. [2] In November 1932 when British Lord President of the Council Stanley Baldwin said "the bomber will always get through", he was talking about the terror bombing of cities. In his 2021 popular history book The Bomber Mafia, Malcolm Gladwell wrote that the idea of precision bombing stayed alive in the US military, with greater accuracy obtained in the 1990s through to the present with guided bombs, such that a modern laser-guided bomb or missile might be expected to destroy not just a single building but a single room in the building, minimizing collateral damage. Before they started invading China and Southeast Asia, Japan got most of its oil from the United States, which they knew was going to end when we realized what was going on. This notion that killing someones family and friends will lead them to surrender is bunk, all it does is motivate people to hate you forever And the Japanese Government of the post war era was a puppet of our military, the notion that a proud people would hail a man who rained fiery death indiscriminately from the sky because they figured maybe less died this way is specious drivel in my opinion. Required fields are marked *. There are a lot of moral dilemmas to chew on here. For those of us who had family waiting to invade, whatever the reason(s), it was very welcome. T H E B O M B E R M A FI A. l i ste n er's g u i de ma lc o l m g l a d w e l l Thank you for purchasing Malcolm Gladwell's The Bomber Mafia.. It is also the story of the ascent of Air force. or ask your favorite author a question with [9], When the United States entered World War II, the Bomber Mafia's doctrine proved of little military use and costly in implementation with the realities of current technology under real-world combat conditions. This was a team of obsessive however significant men who wanted to prevent the British approach in any way prices as their aircrews were trained with computer system like bombsights, and also needed to plunder in clear skies from high mindset. Japan was largely self-sufficient as far as food is concerned, they would have become uncomfortable but they would not have starved to death. From what Ive read, dropping the atomic bombs was more a signal to Russia of our strength than a strategy to defeat Japan, which was pretty much defeated already. Once Japan became secluded on their mainland why not just create a complete blockade of the whole nation? Many historians posit that the primary reason for Japanese surrender was not the use of the atom bomb. LeMay believed that the campaign was so effective that the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945 werent even necessary, because his campaign already had made clear the price if Japan declined to surrender. Curtis LeMays approach brought everyone Americans and Japanese back to peace and prosperity as quickly as possible, he writes. Instead, the bomber fleets were a major factor in the general American war effort, helping to reduce the enemy fighting power, especially in Japan where they destroyed the largest cities by shifting to area incendiary bombing tactics. Following numerous casualties from ground warfare in World war, a group people army males focused on producing a bombing system that would certainly be so exact that it could get really specific targets that would cripple enemies while decreasing human loss. We could have surrounded their ports, mined their harbors, Japan has no energy natural resources, that is why they invaded Maylaysia and the Borneo oil fields. the moral challenges of modern american history. In Gladwells account, Hansells relatively more humane approach didnt work. Failure to see this issue through proved one of the Air Corps Tactical School's major shortcomings.[18]. Margaritaville at Sea is a 1,680-passenger cruise ship that first started sailing early this year. The next chapter details the pilots at the Air Corps Tactical School in Alabama who were known as the Bomber Mafia. I did know that the British bombed during the night while the Americans seemed to have the much more hazardous daytime raids over Germany. Gladwell begins the story in the Introduction in January 1945, on the Mariana Islands. This was not a standalone event. The Bomber Mafia: A Dream, a Temptation, and the Longest Night of the Second World War is a 2021 book by Malcolm Gladwell that examines the US Bomber Mafia of World War II, which advocated precision aerial bombing as a means to win a war. It's true: The audiobook breaks conventional audiobook standards, as this is a well-produced audio experience. [21] The book debuted and peaked at number two on The New York Times Best Seller list for hardcover nonfiction on May 16, 2021.[28]. In Chapters 4 and 5, Gladwell provides background about Hansell and LeMay, and outlines the Americans bombing mission on Germanys ball-bearing factories, led by Hansell with LeMay a participant. Do you prefer this format. In The Bomber Mafia, Malcolm Gladwell weaves together the stories of a Dutch genius and his homemade computer, a band of brothers in central Alabama, a British psychopath, and pyromaniacal chemists at Harvard to examine one of the greatest moral challenges in modern American history. Of course today he would be ignored and demoted. Malcolm Gladwell has in his hands a very good story in The Bomber Mafia. Group of soldiers arguing that long-range bombers could win wars, Braxton, Leon E.; Wagner, Arthur H. (2012), Brigadier General William "Billy" Mitchell, "Warden and the Air Corps Tactical School: What Goes Around Comes Around. And because we dont know how to talk to strangers, we are inviting conflict and misunderstanding in ways that have a profound effect on our lives and our world. Restricted in scope, short in play time, I located this believed prompting. Those are exactly the same, but there's a lot more to the book. Here is Gladwells stunning description of a United States Air Force B-17 bomber being cut up on a run over Germany: One 20-millimeter cannon shell penetrated the right side of the airplane and exploded beneath the pilot, cutting one of the gunners in the leg. The words Bomber Mafia refer to a group of American pilots in the 1930s stationed at what was then called Maxwell Field in Montgomery, Alabama. [19] Publishers Weekly stated "this history feels more tossed off than fully fledged", though Gladwell "provide[d] plenty of colorful details and pose[d] intriguing questions about the morality of warfare". Bomber Mafia Questions 2,700,000+ results. The nascent, emerging and the ambitious force that . Most military thinkers in the . They also complete an image analysis section and create two propaganda posters from different . Your seamless listening experience is powered by Supporting Cast. 'The Bomber Mafia' Book Review - HistoryNet [17] In The Wall Street Journal, Yale professor Paul Kennedy praised the audiobook version of The Bomber Mafia as "remarkable" and a "work of art"; similarly, in The Times, reviewer Gerard DeGroot said "The Bomber Mafia remind[ed] [him] of a really good podcast a fascinating story is appealingly delivered", and historian Diana Preston of The Washington Post called the audiobook "innovative" for its inclusion of archival clips, music, and sound effects. by . You can pay with any major credit cards, as well as Apple Pay on iOS and Google Pay on Android. While we are at it, I really feel that nobody sane would actually mind if a barrel of olive loaf, or environment-friendly bean casserole catches a bomb or 2. Bomber Mafia Listeners Guide Final | PDF | Boeing B 29 - Scribd Actually, Gladwell mentions that the audio style is the initial text, as well as the hardback is the secondary item. New Review from Brian Castner: Malcolm Gladwell's "The Bomber Mafia

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