Could the outcome of WW2 been different?

[1911crazy]

I recieved the "World at War" video set for last christmas and i've been watching it.  To me the outcome of WW2 could of been different if Hitler was smarter and made some moves in different areas.  I wonder why the Germans developed the very first assualt rifle the STG44 but failed to arm every soldier with them.  This is where the Russians were smart they developed the stamped sheetmetal machine gun and they had squads armed with them.  If you watch the history of the invasion of Russia there were just constantly pulling back.  Some of there machine shops had no roofs while they continued to manufacture arms for war.  Of course the weather and the supply line took it toll on the Germans too.  They didn't think it would take so long to conquer Russia. Once the Russians actually kicked in manufacturing better arms and tanks the direction of the war changed.  I think the war could of been different if Hitler gave more of his men the STG44.  When we started fighting Japan with just 1903 Springfield's when the war started and the M1 Garand, Browning BAR, M1 Carbine and the Thompson sure changed the battle field for us. The 1903's sure earned its keep in the sniper version too.  I guess you might say its the ones who had the best firepower on the ground won.  What do you think?
                                                                              BigBill



 I can remember watching this story(world at war) on TV over and over as a kid many years ago it was on everyday on Channel 9.  I wonder how many of our surplups were used back then??   My youngest son turned to me as said these old military rifles were used in wars and are part of history and there's a story behind everyone.  He kind of shocked me.

I can remember one American Commander saying he had soldiers from 13 different countries and some ate different foods and some can't fight on certain days and the Germans being all from one country have it easy.

[New Hampshire]

I guess both sides could have done things smarter or dumber.  BUT, even if Hitler had been a bit more smarter than he was I dont think it still would have mattered.  It probably would have cost more in lives, but I believe Hitler would still have lost the war.  If there was one lesson learned throughout history, DONT ATTACK THE RUSSIANS.  Fighting them man on man is the dumbest thing you can do.  Under communisim they may still have been the less motivated people, but the minute you step on her toes there are enough people, with the tencity to fight on even if they are dead (cuz no one told THEM yet  :-D ).  Of course Hitler brought the Russia problem on himself.  As for America?  Well, as I said, it may ahve cost more in lives, but FDR was ready to take back Britain from the Germans had they succeeded in that respect.  
Bottom line, its good things didnt get too out of hand or Berlin would be glowing gree in the dark along with those two cities in Japan......
Brian M.

[1911crazy]

The Russians sure did catch hell before they turned the war around.  Of course they were adapted to the weather which sure worked in their favor.  I think it was when the Finn's fought the Russian's and the Russians did so poorly this is when Hitler seen this and he thought that his army would just push right thru Russia with ease.  We have to realize too if England fell it was just a matter of time when the Germans would cross the big pond and arrive here on our shores too.  We had to get into the war while England was still intact. Hitler never expected us to do a land assualt from the sea too, he expected us to use a seaport to invade and land all the equipment.  This is where Mr Hillard came to meet the demand of manufacturing the landing crafts which he invented too. This small boat builder designed the hillard boat(landing craft) and manufactured everything in Louisana.  He manufactured many different wooded boats for the war too one of then is the PT Boat.  Hitler called him a modern day "Noa".   If it wasn't for Hillard the war would surely have a different outcome.  We have to remember too back then we were a manufacturing might too.  We could mass produce anything at a moments notice.  We were supplying England and Russia at the sametime besides our troops too in Europe and Japan too. This also makes me wonder how much stuff is sitting on the bottom of the ocean that was sunk in cargo ships too.  I wonder how much in dollars is lying on the bottom of the ocean?  Do you think all those new garands wrapped in cosmoline in crates would last.  I can't imagine how much stuff is on the bottom of the ocean that the U boats sunk.  Ever wonder that?  I'm sure there is more untold stories like the Band of Brothers still waiting to be told before all these guys pass on too.  I hope all these stories get documented before there lost for ever.                                                     BigBill
                                                                               
Toward the end of the war with japan we were sending 2,000 Bombers a night to bomb Japan before we dropped the big one.

[New Hampshire]

I hear ya!  I think the last stat I saw had us loosing 1000 WWII vets A DAY!  Glad they got their memorial before the last of them passed.....
Brian M.

[kevin.303]

finish one front before you start up on another one. and leave the North Americans alone. if oyu can't bomb their industry, you can't beat em!

[Oldtimer]

Because of a misplaced decimal place, the Germans worked on developing heavy water as a moderator for atomic reactions, rather than the readily available graphite.  Had they used graphite, they could have had an atomic bomb by 1943.  Delivering it to England would have not been a challenge to even the V-2 rocket, and the V-6 could have hit North America.  The exact location of the hit would have been academic.   In addition, the Polish worker involved in building the Enigma machine might not have had an interest in cryptography and not recognized the device for what it was and not gotten it to intelligence officers.  Just gives you something to think about.

[Flash]

Hitler was responsible for coming close to conquering half of the globe however, there isn't a bone in my body that will compliment him for this. His alzheimers disease was like a gift from God for without this degenerating illness, he could very well have completed his mission. Hitler lost manufacturing resources faster than the Allied forces gained them which also helped in his defeat.  Thank God for the Red, White and Blue! To offer some more stats that BigBill had touched on, the Liberty ships were built in a week from the keel up and were considered to be one way trips since they weren't expected to make it through the U boats twice. That is thousands of tons of cargo a week and many of them wound up on the bottom of the Atlantic.

[Jack Crevalle]

I think arming his men with more assault rifles would not have helped Hitler very much in Russia.

He should have copied the T34 instead of making his own tanks that, although they were better armed, were more difficult to manufacture and were not as maneuverable on soft ground.

He should not have attacked Russia of course, while he still had England to contend with.

He should not have declared war on the US. He was not treaty-bound to do so unless the US attacked Japan. Even when he had he should have objected to Japan's armistice with the Russian's that freed divisions from the east to attack him.

He should have let his Generals fight the war. The insistence that Army group south's troops not be used to help in the north doomed efforts there.

He should have developed a heavy bomber so that he could have attacked the factories when Stalin moved them east of the Ural mountains.

He should not have treated the Russians as sub-humans. These policies, besides being inhuman, made the Russians fight with the tenacity of a people with their backs against the wall. Other eastern countries welcomed the Germans as liberators because of their hatred for Stalin.

[New Hampshire]

And let us not forget, what if the assasination attempt on Hitler had been accomplished and then his Generals took control of the war (and my memory is failing me right now, but I believe it occured BEFORE D-day and thus the results could have been much worse.)
Brian M.

[rockbilly]

You have to remember, during WW II we were engaged in war on both sides of the world, therefore it took a little longer to accomplish the mission.  If we had been only battling the herms, or the japs, I think we could have made short work of the war.  Problem was, we were spread out on both fronts, we had a shortage of equipment in both areas, and a hell of a logistics problem. Overcoming these problems was the major factor in the length of the war.  Once American production caught up to needs, it was down hill for the herms and their jap friends.