Originally Posted by
ATSA1
I am still amazed at the vitriol poured on Harris..we were at war, and he had a particularly nasty job to do...
Anyone on the receiving end of the Luftwaffe in numerous British cities in 1940/41 would not have minded one jot that Bomber Command was giving Germans a taste of their own medicine!
Its easy for us sitting in our armchairs 75 years after to denigrate military leaders for their actions..but stopping Hitler was the priority, by whatever means available.
It would be wrong to "pour vitriol" on Harris for pursuing, vigorously, a policy that was made by his superiors: and we should remember that one of his motivations was avoiding the huge loss of life caused by the trench warfare he saw in the Great War. Questioning whether sticking to that policy in an unmodified form, in defiance of direct orders, was calculated to finish the war as quickly as possible, with as little loss as life as possible (including, though not primarily, German civilians) is surely important. War is, unfortunately, unavoidable, and we still see great powers using the weapons they have, or are committed to having, without considering whether they are the best way of achieving war aims. Trying to defeat al Qaeda by bombing caves is an example.