81,000 Dead: Why America Let Stalin Take Berlin | Ask the Professor

YouTube Channel member  @joethelawyer367 asks: General George S. Patton famously wanted the United States to capture Berlin and Prague and fight the Soviet Union after the Germans were defeated. In light of the Cold War and current Russian provocation in Ukraine and elsewhere, was Patton right? Should the United States and allied forces have attacked the Soviet Union and tried to finish it off right after World War II?
I don’t think there is any way to make the case for it. Patton was a great tank commander, but he was out of his league on strategy. There are four reasons. First, the Red Army was a huge, battle-hardened force that played the key role in defeating Nazi Germany, and the U.S. military was no match for it. Second, the war against Japan was still going, and Washington needed Soviet help to end it. Third, taking Berlin cost the Soviets more than 81,000 killed in action. We were better off letting them do the heavy lifting, and Berlin was going to be divided anyway. Fourth, containment worked: the Soviet Union collapsed, and Russia today is not a superpower.