www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-boot10mar10,0,4419620.column?coll=la-util-op-ed

It is right and proper that there should be 60th-anniversary commemorations of these heroics. For, as Fleet Adm. Chester Nimitz famously said, " … on Iwo Island, uncommon valor was a common virtue." Yet it would be a mistake to bury this battle in a haze of "Greatest Generation" sentimentality. Our awe at the bravery of the Marines and their Japanese adversaries should not cause us to overlook the stupidity that forced them into this unnecessary meat grinder. Selective memories of World War II, which record only inspiring deeds and block out all waste and folly, create an impossible standard of perfection against which to judge contemporary conflicts.

Interesting article, and while I'm not sure I agree with the specifics, I agree with the point.

Originally Posted By DPeacher: Of course there were mistakes made prior to and during the battle for Iwo Jima. Every engagement known to man, in peace and in war, has had some kind of mistake, that in hind sight should have been prevented. At the time, the capture of Iwo Jima was of great importance. With the luxury of 60 years of hind sight, the reasons to take Iwo Jima may seem a bit less critical. Regardless of what anyone now believes of the reasons to take Iwo Jima, I will ALWAYS hold those Marines and Sailors who did the fighting and dying at Iwo Jima in the HIGHEST regard. Could've, Would've, and Should've. The 3 greatest foes ANY achievement ever faces.

Agreed. I pretty much hold the leadership blameless for any malfunctions of intelligence. The job needed to get done RFN, and the men did it well.
By several accounts I've read, nobody on the Allied side was sure that the Japanese and Germans could even be slowed down, much less stopped and pushed back. We can only imagine the sense of urgency that created on our side, and how much the leaders were doing their utmost to temper that with enough caution to avoid getting strung out and cut off, while still getting the job done fast enough to outfight the enemy.
Even as recently as Dec44, it was recognized by many that we CAN still lose this war. Most people have forgotten what it feels like to not be sure if your best multinational effort will be good enough to retain English as the common accepted language.