ABLE:  What is your response to the steadfastness of MacArthur’s insistence on the Inchon landing? How does it change, had the mission gone otherwise?

MacArthur was always bombastic and a larger than life personality. Nevertheless he remains a highly competent leader. He understood the inherit strengths of US forces and the weaknesses of the Empire of Japan in WWII. Island hopping, naval interdiction, and operational tempo left them isolated and exhausted. This gave MacArthur immense political capital in Korea. No one had the ground to stand on to tell him no. To be frank, his judgment was correct. The North Koreans had attacked in a blitzkrieg style attack and envelopment in order to achieve quick and easy victory before the US and ROK could properly mobilize. Pusan had to be taken with all due speed. If they had withdrawn forces from the assault on Pusan to defend Inchon, the industrial might of the US would have gained sufficient strength in Pusan that the North Koreans would have never been able to recover from. Even with a defeat at Inchon, the delay would have been sufficient to rob the DPRK of all its momentum. I think MacArthur knew his own strengths and he knew the disposition of his enemy. He acted boldly and intelligently, time was on his side and he knew it. History judged him correct.