The Life and heroic services of General Curtis LeMay
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The life and Heroic Services of General Curtis LeMay
The firebombing of Tokyo Strangelove, George Wallace, John Kennedy, and Strategic Air share a common man named General Curtis LeMay. His life was an unpredictable and complicated man. His life inspired Warren Kozak to write and publish the book “LeMay: The Life and Wars of General Curtis LeMay.” Warren Kozak attempts to show General Curtis LeMay’s path from his difficult background to all the heroic services he offered. They included US guardianship, nuclear arsenal in the Cold war, how he frustrated the government and his political run, and how he was the founding father of airpower with a very great influence. In my opinion, Warren Kozak supports this thesis throughout the book by using clear examples.
In the first chapter, the book begins by describing the physical appearance of General Curtis Le May. He never fit the description of an American Fly Boy who was known to be very handsome, but for him, he was a dark and brooding man who rarely smiled and was perceived by many to be brutal, inhumane, and very frightening. .His description was the first instance that demonstrated his uniqueness. In this chapter, his background is also discussed, where he rose from an ambiguous lineage that never had any social grace. Despite this, he managed to become one of the most contestable yet innovative army commanders. These descriptions give a flow of how his life began.
Additionally, in chapter eight, “The Burning Empire “when World War II began in the United States, Le May had the intelligence that the war would begin although the army could not locate the Japanese factories. He also wrote letters to Japan after the plane never dropped a bomb, but its flight was crucial during the war. The letters sounded more composed and calmer, but they were directed to the flight. In the letters, he stated that good planning is essential, and it can quickly get destroyed by bad fortunes and cause a very different experience. Although the US had the intelligence, it had no idea where the planes arriving on Saipan could drop their bombs since they never sent any spies to sneak to Japan and give them information. Despite this, he developed the methods and techniques that changed the bombing, and it saved lives.
Throughout the chapters, he is portrayed as a great strategist and tactician. For instance, they are reasons why he developed the plan to firebomb Tokyo. And statements about the bombing of Vietnam “back to the stone Age.” This incident was very controversial. Although LeMay was a strategist, he agreed to run as the vice president of George Wallace in chapter fourteen, which tarnished his legacy. This move made many people forget him and only remembered how his shortcomings were portrayed in Stanley Kubrick’s Dr. Strangelove.
The book has succeeded in bringing LeMay’s vague and reserved personality to life, from his family members to the private letters and papers he owned. Warren Kozak has also proven his thesis by including LeMay’s diminishing colleagues, who survived World War II. The inclusion has helped describe his portrait. For example, Ralph Hunter’s voice was a very keen observer, and he served with the general, and it makes him one of the best firsthand accounts of the air war.
Finally, the book LeMay: The Life of and the Wars of General Curtis LeMay is engaging, thrilling, and skillfully written. I believe that the author includes every detail about the life of General LeMay. I learned a lot about the people he was involved with and all the war and bombing he initiated, and how he saved many people during world war II. Every incidence and people mentioned in the book support Warren Kozak’s thesis. The book educates people on the role of strategic generals in wars.