No need to apologize.  My editorial comments are sometimes more curt or critical than they should be, and this quite naturally elicits a strong reaction.  

The problem of ground pressure was well-understood by the US Army Ordnance Dept. during WWII. I find it difficult to identify any direct relationship between the T-34's lower ground pressure, and efforts by the US Army Ordnance Dept. to achieve similar results.  In fact, designers of both tanks were simply reacting to the conditions imposed by the European battlefield, and the Russian's worked out the solution while the American's were still getting the M4 ready for battle in the sands of N. Africa. 

Keep in mind that the relatively few engagements involving T-34s and M4s were fought mostly at relatively close ranges.  This helped mask the penetration problems of the 76mm HVAP (It was only marginally better than the AP shot round.), and led to a generalized misunderstanding of the tank's effectiveness against its Russian counterpart. I have not heard of a 90mm Sherman seeing combat in Korea.  In answer to your question about who was responsible for sending us out in undergunned death traps, it was Lt. Gen. Leslie J. McNair.  A long time staffer, McNair was a genius at organization, but demonstrated very little understanding of, or for that matter, any willingness to learn about the actual effectiveness of our tanks and tank destroyers on the battlefield.  Had he died a year earlier, we would have gone ashore in Europe equipped with 250 T26 tanks and possibly even some 90mm Shermans.  It would have made a difference.