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Question: Who was a better, more visionary general: George Patton or Curtis LeMay!?
please discount lemay's political career!.Www@QuestionHome@Com


Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:
Patton was a great battle fighter, but he did not understand logistics!. This limitation meant that he was not able to run a war, he needed competent leadership!. LeMay had a vision, which was the use of mass terror attacks against civilians as a war fighting strategy!. While that had been used previously, the Europeans had rejected it as am inhumane war fighting strategy until Churchill did it out of desperation during the Battle of Britain!. It worked for Churchill, but indirectly, because the Luftwaffe responded in kind and failed to destroy the RAF!. The only real positive contribution of strategic bombing was as bait to lure Luftwaffe fighters into combat with long range escorts!.

In summary, Patton lacked vision, but was a great general as a battle fighter!. LeMay had vision, but it was wrong!. (LeMay admitted after the war that he deserved to hang every bit as much as Goering, who cheated the hangman by committing suicide!.) Www@QuestionHome@Com

I'd have to say they were cut from the same bolt of material!. Trouble was, Patton was much more abrasive (as if LeMay wasn't himself abrasive) and let's face it the higher you go in your military career, the more of a politician you become!. There's just no avoiding it!. Patton didn't know when to bite his tongue and just let things ride!. He was then, his own worst enemy!. His actions and words cost him his decades long friendship with Ike!. I think like Ike, Lemay was just better at playing the politics game!. Patton in that realm was short sighted!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

curtis lemay!. have studied them both!. Www@QuestionHome@Com