Should we have attacked China head on in the Korean War?

[Charai]

I don't think the soviets would have responded if we nuked China. Stalin isn't stupid and the last thing he wants is another 50 million soviets dying. Although, the same could be said for America, which is ultimatley why we didn't attack.

But there is no way Stalin goes to war with the US over the nuking of China. In fact, he almost certainly would have invaded china himself to grab as much buffer room as he could before bumping up against UN forces.

China on the other hand would be pissed as all hell. A devestating nuclear attack against china would not have been the end of the chinese communist party, especially because the russians would fiercly and overtly back them against nationislt forces.

Ultimatley, instead of having a war against china over north korea, we would have a huge proxy war with the soviets over china. In the long run, that's not good for global stabilioty and makes it significantly more likely a hot war touches off eventually.

[stripe66506]

[The Comrade]

[stripe66506]

[The Comrade]

yes the single worst leader of the soviet union was great because of opinion polls.

no. stalin was a fool. an ideological fool.

[Charai]

To be fair, When Stalin took power Russia was an agrarian backwater, and by the time he died it was a superpower. A sick sick man no doubt, but he was not stupid.

[The Comrade]

it was a superpower because years of failed agricultural ideas spurred on by ideology killed millions and a war for the literal survival of the state forced rapid industrialization.


let's not pretend that stalin took power and through his genius he vastly improved the state. you're aware his ideological bullshit almost cost him the war, right? disappearing officers in the middle of losing the invasion because he disliked their ideas or how ideologically pure they were. constantly attempting to tell zhukov was the correct course of action on the battlefield.

the guy was a blundering idiot with a lot of tanks.

[stripe66506]

[The Comrade]

and america was a floundering first world power that only dragged itself out of the gutter because of world war 2. we were on the express lane to becoming another argentina.

the same is true of the USSR. stalin only pulled russia out of the 19th century because of the necessity of hitler's invasion, and the inertia of that military buildup and industrialization carried the USSR along until his death, where more capable leaders took over. the war was the best thing that happened to the USSR.

[stripe66506]