American GIs/Marines in Japan — Good Guys … or Mass Rapists?
January 2nd, 2009 From
>X-Authentication-Warning: ecom4.ecn.bgu.edu: mslrc owned process doing -bs
>Date: Sun, 14 Dec 1997 16:51:36 -0600 (CST)
>From: “Louis R. Coatney”
>X-Sender: mslrc@ecom4.ecn.bgu.edu
>To: mahan@microworks.net, mahan@microwrks.com
>Subject: American GIs/Marines in Japan — Good Guys … or Mass Rapists?
>Precendence: bulk
>Sender: mahan-owner@microworks.net
>Reply-To: mahan@microworks.net
>
>Eric,
>
>Is the U.S. historical community then taking substantive action
> to organize a refutation of Yuki Tanaka’s charges of mass rape by GIs?
> … a charge which … after the recent Okinawa incident … is of
> intense interest to the Japanese people.
>
>Since my purging from H-War (and WWII-L, which is less vital), I’m not
> up-to-date on developments.
>
>Thanks.
>
>Lou
> Coatney, mslrc@uxa.ecn.bgu.edu
>
>On Sun, 14 Dec 1997, Eric Bergerud wrote:
> > John is not the first person to wonder why relations between the US
> > occupation and the Japanese civilians were pretty good coming on the heels
> > of a savage war. It is essential to realize that the Japanese people had
>[SNIP!]
> > famine in the face, and fire-bombings do nothing to improve > morale.) But the
> > major factor was the strict discipline placed on the US occupation forces
> > which prevented large scale acts of revenge on the part of US soldiers
> > against a hated foe. Obviously this also says good things about American
> > soldiers too. We were the good guys in that war, no joke.