# WWII: Battle of Midway...why couldn't the Japanese have pressed on and captured the island?

**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wwii-battle-of-midway-why-couldnt-the-japanese-have-pressed-on-and-captured-the-island/917029
**Category:** Great Debates
**Created:** [August 1, 2020, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wwii-battle-of-midway-why-couldnt-the-japanese-have-pressed-on-and-captured-the-island/917029 "2020-08-01T22:36:56Z")
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### Author: ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)
#### Post date: [August 5, 2020, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wwii-battle-of-midway-why-couldnt-the-japanese-have-pressed-on-and-captured-the-island/917029/72 "2020-08-05T19:21:43Z")

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My Dad, who served directly with MacArthur, and has the Phillipines Defense, Liberation and Independence medals, swore that Mac had been _ordered_ to be ‘surprised by the Japs’ so that their attack on him would seem more perfidious and thus more of a reason for going to war. It does explain Doug’s total lack of preparation, even given almost a days warning.

The Philippines werent really part of the USA, so would the US Public get into a war mood if they were attacked? However, the Japaneses did the worst thing they could do- attack part of the USA by surprise- that galvanized the US public into 100% support for the war.

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