@jedimaster:
6 germany doesnt declare war on the u.s.
I know this is an old thread, but rather interesting.
The above sub-point of a variant in WWII history is probably the single biggest change that could be made. Without a declaration of war by Germany against the US, the US would likely have TRIED to stay out of Europe. There were incredibly strong pressures in the US in 1941 to sit out WWII (which is why we stayed clear from '39 to '41). Hell Roosevelt BARELY got approval for Lend-Lease. Those pressures to stay out of a war in Europe were NOT breached by Pearl, but only by Germany declaring war on US first.
Now, if Germany had not declared war, the US would have faced 1 opponent in WWII: Japan. We would have fortified the west coast, and started to build Navy and Air Force in massive quantities. In particular, all of those B-24 Mitchels and other US bombers used in the early years of the CBO in Europe would have instead been flying missions out of Midway, Hawaii, the Aleutians… Without the assistance of the night-time bombing by the US, the daylight raids by the UK would have quickly ended their ability to maintain an air campaign in Europe. Also, the demands of a US build up in the Pacific would have reduced the materials available to UK under Lend-Lease. Without US forces being added to the mix in Africa, Germany could have reinforced Rommel, taken Malta, and secured North Africa and the oil supplies in the middle east. A steady supply of oil for Germany, combined with a near elimination of industrial loses due to a defeated UK air campaign over Europe, and well I would say that Germany would have won in Europe.
Of course there is one glitch to that variant… unrestricted submarine warfare by Germany.
Even if Germany had not declared war on the US shortly after Pearl, it would only have been a matter of time before another “Lusitania” style incident dragged the US in the European war, especially since Roosevelt WANTED the US in that war.