Ronald Russell

No Right to Win: a Continuing Dialogue with Veterans of the Battle of Midway Ronald Russell

In 1942, one of the most powerful naval forces in history descended upon the tiny atoll of Midway, 1100 miles northwest of Hawaii. The Japanese intent was to lure America's badly depleted Pacific Fleet into the open where it would be overwhelmed, forcing the U. S. to end the Pacific War on Japanese terms. But it didn't happen that way. Through an amazing combination of skill, courage, and especially luck, U. S. not only prevailed at Midway but delivered to the enemy a crushing defeat that instantly changed the course of the war. No Right to Win is a fresh look at the great battle, focusing entirely on first-hand accounts by Midway veterans and the understandings that can be derived from them. Included are many of their anecdotes and revelations that compel a rethinking of some of the battle's most entrenched understandings. Could the defenders on the atoll have repulsed a Japanese invasion? Did an aircraft carrier captain falsify his after-action report? Were the Japanese about to invade Hawaii? Did the battle impact the D-Day landings in Normandy? No Right to Win explores those intriguing questions and much more in a wide-ranging examination of the twentieth century's most important naval battle.