Pearl Harbor

December 7th 1941 Pearl Harbor
64 Years ago today

I was there almost 2years ago, and was on the USS Arizona,
USS Bowfin Submarine, USS Missouri.
One of the greatest trips of my life!!!

we had defeated the Empire of Japan, and had the architects of Japan's plans of aggression in custody, soon to be put on trial, some to be executed. 4 years after 9/11, what exactly have we done to bring al Qaeda to justice?

:eyes:

400,000 dead American soldiers in a country of perhaps 100 million people. And we had killed hundreds of thousands of Deutsch and Japanese civilians. Hiroshima, Nagasaki, Tokyo, Dresden, all cities that were bombed/destroyed killing 50,000+ in one raid.

:cry:

His dad was on the USS Minneapolis with the fleet to the south. His uncle was on the USS West Virginia and managed to survive. His funeral was this fall.

It's a sad day in our family, as we remember all seven of the brothers who served and the one who didn't make it home. We remember all the sacrifices given and the hard times, even three generations ago now.

He was a young Sergeant in the U.S. Army Air Corp stationed at Hickam Field. His story is that he was out all night with his CO and that they decided around sunup to go fishing on a canal. They were sitting there fishing when airplanes with the wrong insignia began flying over. By the time they got back to Hickam Field things were pretty much in a shambles and out of control.

My dad went on to fly as a tail gunner on missions in the Pacific Theater. That's about as much as I've ever been able to get out of him about his war experiences. The only other thing I know is what I learned from one of his sisters; his back was broken in a crash landing in the middle of the war and he was laid up for a while, but went back to flying before the war ended.

He served on the Enterprise and died in the battle of Midway. He was the youngest of the brothers, and it hit everyone in the family hard. Apparently, he was a really likeable guy. :(

All these memories and stories remind us just how awful war is and how terrible a decision it is.

If I remember right, and I am a history buff, especially
Pacific 1941-1945, the USS Minneapolis was with Vice Admiral
Halsey, along with the USS Enterprise CV-6, lucky the destroyers
had to be refueled along the way, and rough seas kept them from
entering Pearl Harbor until late Dec 7th.

It was said that when VADM Halsey entered Pearl Harbor that afternoon
he was heard to say " Before we are through with them, the Japanese language will be spoken only in Hell"

My dad's dad told him that they really were out looking for the Japanese fleet to the south (he was the highest ranking chief, so he knew a bit more, I'm guessing), but the offical story he was to tell his men was that they were out on a Sunday to re-do target practice.

The Minneapolis was the ship that got its bow blow off at the Battle of Tassafarango and had to be rebuilt on an island with palm trees and then limp the ship back to Pearl Harbor with the boilers running on salt water. They didn't tell my grandma what happened, so they waited for months to hear and expected the worst. It was a grand day when the ship made it back to port.

http://www.usswestvirginia.org/fulllist.htm

Memorials are meant to stir memories. As time passes memories change from the firsthand accounts of sons, brothers, sisters, parents, wives...the endless echoes have stopped that for decades haunted a man who guided a cutting torch hoping to find the hand pounding a wrench on a bulkhead...to recollections of movie scenes, book plots, and footnotes in modern history texts.

Slowly, drip by patient drip, the oil bunkers maintain a witness to the reality of a terrible morning long gone, but stir ever fewer memories of the day.

It gives an amazing account of what happen that day 64 years ago today.

I just finished, "the pacific alamo" about the defenders of Wake island also happened on the 7th but technically the 8th because of the time zones.

A lot happened on December 7th, a lot happened...

The Beeb sounded rather blase, seen one bombing ya seen em all. I guess being bombed every day will do that.

Incredible experience. Especially the USS Arizona. Incredibly moving experience to be there with the remains of the ship and sailors beneath.