To so say sounds like it overlooks the history that happend.
Maybe because it would produce a sort of questioning not desiable? What if Japan had won? What if the US did not but an oil embargo on Japan or what if the US decided to allow FDR to meet Konoye so as to negotiate about the oil embargo? What if Chiang Kai-shek had not been back stapped in the Xi'an incident meaning no "second united front" thus likely no Second Sino-Japanese War? These are the possible questions if encouraged to introspect.
Is the "introspection" you seek only satisfied if its an "apologize like the Germans" conclusion?
Still not seeing the answer to question posted.
Not seeing any effort to encourage introspection and reflection on Japanese Showa history in classes.
To give a short reply, the Empire's of Japan was in pole position back in 1936 to achieve the first ever world conquest in history.
The longer answer takes a 3 MB long article (unpublishable here) based on data obtained with a computer simulation, during a 2 years development of a Hearts of Iron IV video game MOD covering the WWII era.
Short exerpt here:
2.1.2. Ahistorical Factors Used In The Modelization
2.1.2.1. The 1946 Threshold
2.1.2.2. GDP Triggers
2.1.2.3. China's Strategic Focus
2.1.2.4. Collapse Of The Axis-GEACS Unholy Alliance
2.1.2.5. Occupation policy
2.1.2.6. The Fate Of The Ethnic Europeans
2.1.3. Doctrines
2.1.3.1. Neutrality
2.1.3.2. North
2.1.3.3. South
2.1.3.4. West
2.1.3.4.1. White Peace, Unilateral Withdrawal
2.1.3.4.2. Xi'an incident
2.1.3.4.2.1. Japanese victory in China
2.1.3.4.2.2. Japanese neutrality in China
2.1.3.4.3. Wang Jingwei
2.1.3.4.4. Japanese defeat in China
2.1.3.4.4.1. Fake surrender
2.1.3.4.4.1.1. Playing the Cold War card
2.1.3.4.4.1.2. Playing the SCAP card
2.1.3.5. Pax Americana vs Pax Nipponica
2.1. Capture of Japanese secret superweapons
Here we demonstrate how the Empire of Japan was in pole position to achieve the first ever world conquest in human history, back in 1936 on the eve of the Second Sino-Japanese War and subsequently the larger Pacific War (WWII).
We will study the various options available to the Nipponese leaders, along the fate of the ethnic Europeans, and how the less than 10% probability of not achieving a world conquest, but instead ending by the most unlikely major military defeat and occupation by a foreign power, has occurred.
Domei said:
But now the war has lasted for nearly four years. Despite the best that has been done by everyone--the gallant fighting of our military and naval forces, the diligence and assiduity of out servants of the State and the devoted service of our 100,000,000 people--the war situation has developed not necessarily to Japan's advantage, while the general trends of the world have all turned against her interest.
-Emperor Shōwa, Jewel Voice Broadcast, Transmitted by Domei on 15th August 1945
...
2.1.2. Ahistorical Factors Used In The Modelization
We used a computer simulation to verify the outcome resulting from each of the four possible strategic paths available to the Nipponese leaders in 1936:
• Neutrality
• Northern Expansion
• Southern Expansion
• Western Expansion
The simulation was run for several months on Paradox's WWII grand strategy game 'Hearts of Iron 4' (HOI4), but the base version was reworked with several custom made modifications. Extensive use of console commands were also necessary in order to change many unmoddable aspects during the simulations, such as ethnic and occupation policies, historic events, peace conferences, declarations of war, justifications of war, core and claimed territories, joining alliances, sending volunteers and expeditionary forces, etc.
What was first an educated guess, i.e. a Nipponese world conquest by 1947s, has therefore been confirmed as an ahistorical possibility.
Many decisive factors, ahistorical by nature due to the real course of the WWII, have contributed to the final outcome, and therefore have been taken into account in the modelization:
•The 1946 Threshold
•GDP Triggers
•China's Strategic Focus
•Collapse of the Axis-GEACS unholy alliance
•Occupation policy
2.1.3.5. Pax Americana vs Pax Nipponica
The above fully demonstrates that instead of living today in the Pax Americana, the second most likely other ahistorical probability is for us to live under a Japanese-lead world order, called the Pax Nipponica.
Japan had more than 96.875% chance (31/32) of achieving the first ever world conquest back in 1936.
But Tojo et al. intoxicated by the heavy and most nefarious influences of the Italo-German fascist ideologies and the imperialist culture, have broken the world's worse ever record in term of military defeat.
Surpassing even Churchill's abysmal failure.
While the British's most clumsy trick to subdue the Comintern by instrumentalizing the Axis, under his patronage and connivance, has ultimately backfired in the most devastating way, and thus putting an abrupt end to a century-long British world hegemony known as the Pax Britannica, Tojo's military adventurism has ended the Nipponese civilization's 2605 years of uninterrupted independence, a unique world record in itself.
Worse, as the Nipponese would not only be militarily defeated by what was regarded as the barbarian Europeans (U.S.), forcing it to surrender all its directed energy weapons and near-space airship platforms to the U.S. victor, thus allowing the U.S. military ▄▄ to achieve the first world conquest by the ▄▄s, but also endure a full colonization and brainwashing with the same DEW WMD weapons the Nipponese had initially intended to use to defeat the Europeans!
In short, to achieve the first ever world conquest, the probability were of 1/4 chance by remaining peaceful, 1/4 by striking North i.e. the Soviet Union, 1/4 by striking South i.e. the Allies, 1/32 by faking a surrender. The worse possible path was to pick a fight with the Chinese indomitable colossus, that ultimately brought the Empire of Japan to its knees in September 1945 (1/32 probability)!
Probability breakup by strategic doctrines:
1. Neutrality (1/4 probability)
2. North (1/4 probability)
3. South (1/4 probability)
4. West (1/4 probability)
4.1. White Peace, Unilateral Withdrawal (1/16 probability)
4.2. Xi'an incident (1/16 probability)
4.3. Wang Jingwei (1/16 probability)
4.4. Fake surrender Cold War card (1/64 probability)
4.5. Fake surrender SCAP card (1/64 probability)
4.6. Unconditional surrender (1/32 probability)
This painful truth has caused such sleepless nights and uneasiness that the Emperor Showa has confessed in his anguishing final years:
japantimes.co.jp said:
"There is no point in living a longer life by reducing my workload. It would only increase my chances of seeing or hearing things that are agonizing. 7th April 1987"
![[Capture-Of-Tengchong_Japanese-Casualties-{10_4_1944}].jpg](https://www.sinodefenceforum.com/data/attachments/85/85047-939243bd703a9d97a678b19805974bf3.jpg "[Capture-Of-Tengchong_Japanese-Casualties-{10_4_1944}].jpg")
![[Capture-Of-Tengchong_Chinese Soldiers Scale City Wall{10_4_1944}].jpg](https://www.sinodefenceforum.com/data/attachments/85/85049-070e0f2308a8b069646004a7c92078ad.jpg "[Capture-Of-Tengchong_Chinese Soldiers Scale City Wall{10_4_1944}].jpg")
![[Third-Battle-Of-Changsha, 3_17_1942]_Jap-Casualties (2).jpg](https://www.sinodefenceforum.com/data/attachments/90/90618-4dba5110cc23f9fc571c69f183fcdf60.jpg "[Third-Battle-Of-Changsha, 3_17_1942]_Jap-Casualties (2).jpg")
![[Third-Battle-Of-Changsha, 3_17_1942]_Jap-Casualties (1).jpg](https://www.sinodefenceforum.com/data/attachments/90/90619-614e52a83f5102594ebd56cfd698e299.jpg "[Third-Battle-Of-Changsha, 3_17_1942]_Jap-Casualties (1).jpg")
![[Third-Battle-Of-Changsha, 3_17_1942]_Jap-Casualties.jpg](https://www.sinodefenceforum.com/data/attachments/90/90620-5ca18b86871d9988e111277545a050f5.jpg "[Third-Battle-Of-Changsha, 3_17_1942]_Jap-Casualties.jpg")
