The Brits were itching for a fight and the Bismark made that even worse. So a devastating war was started that Wilson disastrously got the USA involved with.
The Hood sinking( blown to pieces ) was stunning even to the Krauts. 3 survivors....
“The Brits were itching for a fight and the Bismark made that even worse. So a devastating war was started that Wilson disastrously got the USA involved with.” [Sam Gamgee, post 112]
Sounds like you have your world wars mixed up.
The British weren’t enthusiastic for any involvement, neither in 1914 nor 1939.
In 1914, British involvement was not even a factor in German planning nor leadership decisions: the Imperial Germans thought exclusively in terms of ground forces and land engagements; the entire BEF meant nothing compared to the initial size of the forces on the Continent. British involvement hinged on violation of Belgian neutrality, which wasn’t PR-fluffy window dressing, but a substantive question of treaty obligations. The UK, Imperial Germany, and the French Republic were co-signatories to the treaty guaranteeing Belgian neutrality. It’s arguable whether such treaties made strategic sense, but that is a different question.
President Wilson was not eager to go to war. He formulated numerous peace overtures, but the Allies and the Central Powers rebuffed American efforts or ignored them.
The entire question of US entry into the war hinged on unrestricted submarine warfare, which the Imperial Germans flirted with on and off, until formally declaring their intent to prosecute it at the end of January 1917. Wilson was not “sneaky:” he laid out the case, after which both the the House and the Senate voted to declare war - by substantial margins.
Whether the United States was being realistic in standing firm on the rights of neutrals is likewise a different question. It loomed large in the minds of leaders and diplomats in 1914-1917, and that is what counted then. Arguing today that “things should have been different” is ex post facto reasoning, thus less than honest. Submarines torpedoing merchant vessels with no warning was against international law and custom then and that is what mattered.
In 1939, Germans commenced unrestricted submarine warfare almost from Day One. If objections were raised, they did not amount to much in the total picture.