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I would say yes. Although Pearl Harbor was a tragedy and many lives were lost, ultimately it accomplished purposes for both sides. For the Japanese, it destroyed much of the US naval fleet, initially crippling war efforts in the Pacific. (And would have been worse, except that several ships were out of the Harbor on maneuvers.) For the US, although they would have entered WWII at some point, it accelerated that entry by up to a year. Many people who were indifferent to what they saw as a "European" war became passionate after Pearl. (It had about the same effect on public sympathies as the Sept. 11 attack on the World Trade Center.) You could even argue that the US would have been more reluctant to use the Atomic bombs on Japan, if they didn't still remember the 'unprovoked' attack on Pearl Harbor.

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19y ago

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