Mobilizing for Defense

1. How did the American response to the Japanese raid on Pearl Harbor differ from Japanese expectations?      
  The American response to the Japanese raid on Pearl Harbor differed from Japanese expectations in that Japan expected Americans to be intimidated by the attack on Pearl Harbor and shrink from further contact. Instead of shrinking back enraged Americans rose up against Japan. 5 million Americans volunteered to fight,  thousands of woman joined the WAAC, a program that included nearly every war duty except for direct combat.


2. What difficulties did women and minorities face in the wartime work force?     
  In the wartime work force woman and minorities faced prejudice and discrimination. Traditionally there were mostly white men working, but in the absence of white men, factories were forced to hire woman and minorities, and because woman and minorities were not traditionally hired, at first they faced prejudice and discrimination from their employers. 


3. Why did President Roosevelt create the OSRD, and what did it do?           
President Roosevelt created the OSRD to bring scientists into the war effort. The OSRD made new or improved technology and developed new medicines. The OSRD made improvements on radar and sonar, and created a new weapon, the atomic bomb. The OSRD also encouraged the use of DDT which allowed Soldiers to be free of lice. Also, the OSRD developed new medicine such as penicillin which saved many lives.


4. What basic problems were the OPA and WPB created to solve?           
The OPA and WPB were created to solve basic problems such as controlling inflation and providing sufficient supplies for the armed forces and war industries. The OPA controlled inflation by freezing prices on goods. The WPB decided which companies should change from peacetime to wartime production, allotted raw materials to certain industries, and collected and recycled materials such as paper, rags, and cooking oil for the war effort.


5. What type of items were rationed and why were they limited?       
Goods such as meat, shoes, sugar, coffee, and gasoline were rationed during World War II. These goods were rationed because American soldiers needed these goods and so because American soldiers were using a large quantity of them, it made the goods scarce. Thus there was a limited supply of the goods available to Americans not fighting, and so the U.S government rationed the goods.  


6. What is the message of the World War II poster on this assignment's blog posting? Why was this message important?  
The message of the World War II poster is that by lavishly using rationed goods you are not doing your duty in helping  defeat Hitler. I know that this is the message because of the words on the poster that say " when you ride alone you ride with Hitler" , meaning that when you do not carpool you hurt your country by wasting the important good,gas;  ( your country that is fighting against Hitler) and by hurting your country you help Hitler. This message is important because the message shows to the far extent the American people were willing to go in order to defeat the Axis powers.