Lower Than a Snake’s Belly

MoonHowler

Remember the WWI memorial the vets built in honor of their fallen buddies from WWI that was erected out the the middle of nowhere in the Mojave Desert?  Some rat bastard has stolen it.  The cross that was actually a memorial has been embroiled in a Supreme Court Case in one form or another for a decade. 

Antibvbl.net covered the story of the Desert Cross  back in October, 2009.  Since then the land on which the cross was erected has been donated as private lands.  Huffington Post reports:

By Adelle M. Banks
Religion News Service

WASHINGTON (RNS) The war memorial cross at the center of a recent Supreme Court ruling has been stolen, a spokeswoman for the Mojave National Preserve said Tuesday (May 11).

A wooden box had covered the controversial cross, which has been the subject of court cases for almost a decade. A preserve staffer noticed the box was missing on Saturday; by the time a maintenance crew showed up Monday to replace it, the cross also had disappeared, spokeswoman Linda Slater said.

On April 28, the U.S. Supreme Court allowed the cross to stay up and directed a district court to further consider a congressionally approved transfer of the cross to private land.

“This is an outrage, akin to desecrating people’s graves,” said Kelly Shackelford, president and CEO of Liberty Institute, which represents the caretakers of the World War I memorial and several veterans groups.

“It’s a disgraceful attack on the selfless sacrifice of our veterans. We will not rest until this memorial is reinstalled.”

According to CNN:

The 6-foot-tall metal structure was removed Sunday night from Sunrise Rock in a lonely stretch of the Mojave National Preserve, said government officials and veterans groups that have been fighting for years to keep the cross on national park land.

The National Park Service said it is investigating the incident; no arrests had been made as of Tuesday morning.

The high court on April 28 ruled the cross did not violate the constitutional separation of church and state. The American Civil Liberties Union, which had brought the original lawsuit to have the cross removed, promised to continue the court fight.

I consider myself a fairly strong establishment clause person. I very much believe in seperation of church and state…probably as much as some of the 2nd amendment people believe in their cause. However, at what point do people just go rabidly nuts on a subject?

This cross was erected back in the 1930’s by veterans of WWI to honor their buddies who didn’t make it home. Call it a grassroots memorial, if you will. It was out in the middle of no where in the middle of the Mojave Desert. It was honoring the dead. It wasn’t pushing religion even.

Whoever took the cross is a thief– a common thief. The individual(s) is lower than a snake’s belly. This person or persons doesn’t represent a cause. The memorial ought to be left alone. There is one remain WWI vet left in America. Those brave men who fought that horrible war now belong to time and the ages. Can’t people put aside their causes just this once? The cross that represents the memorial needs to be returned immediately.

The VFW has offered a reward for information that leads to the return of the memorial.

The Pacific: An Update

MoonHowler

Is anyone watching the HBO miniseries, The Pacific? If yes, I would like to know everyone’s opinion. I have the same old problem I have with every other HBO special involving young men in uniform. I can’t tell them apart. They all look alike. Other than that mild problem, what a terrific series it really is.

I am simply in awe of how this series has captured the fear of battle. To those of us who have been spared battle other than in books and movies, we really don’t know what its like. Girls are at a real serious disadvantage, especially us vintage girls. You just don’t know. The producters, directors and actors were somehow able to capture the essence of fear unlike any other war film I have seen.

I am very much against sanitized war movies. Those ones I saw growing up were too clean. Everyone was a hero and if they got killed in battle, it was generally all in one piece. War wasn’t dirty and filthy enough. This series sure is. One minute someone has legs and the next minute they don’t. Tonight I had to watch piecemeal. I couldn’t watch for long periods of time–too intense.

Which brings me to my point: How much we owe those 400,000 young men in the prime of their lives who gave the ultimate sacrifice. When I see a series like one, or Band of Brothers, or any of the shows that have come out in recent years I am just awe-struck by the bravery and the sacrifice of all of those who fought. They went to unknown lands because they were told to go. They didn’t sign up so they could further their education or get on-the-job training. They signed up because their country was invaded. They went because they were told to.

The Civil War brings out similar feelings in me. They went because they had to. I think Americans should have to watch films like The Pacific or Band of Brothers before we ever go to any war. I think we need to see if our cause is important enough. I think we need to see if we have the stomach for it. Regardless of whether its 1861 or 2010, its someone’s son (and now daughter), husband, father, sibling in harm’s way. Do we have the stomach for it? Those boys on that distant island in the Pacific tonight sure didn’t have the luxury of the pause button like I do when the action gets a little too intense. And we owe them such a debt of gratitude.

Tom Hanks Steps in a Racial Hornet’s Nest

MoonHowler

Tom Hanks has set off a firestorm over racism that is impacting the new HBO miniseries, “The Pacific.” Listen to both videos:

Not smart, Tom. not smart. Maybe in 30 years he could say that but there are far too many people from that era still alive to say WWII was  racist. I thought we were at war with Japan because they bombed Pearl Harbor. I think most Americans thought the same. Was there racism, if you want to call it that, because we were at war with Japan? Of course. Caricatures developed immediately of our enemies in both war theatres.  Terms were used like Kraut, Japs, zipperheads, etc.  I don’t know if you can actually call it racism when you are at war with someone. I think it might take on a different term.  War words? 

Much of WWII involved racism. Racism is easy. When one has difficulty verbalizing why they hate another human being, racism is far easier than rational thought. And let’s face it, it is pretty difficult to kill someone, a lot of someones without a little hate being brought into the mix. However, WWII did not start because Americans hate the Japanese for racial reasons. Racial stereotyping certainly developed. However, in a world where the Chinese and Koreans were being killed and tortured it is pretty difficult to evoke racism.

It is also very difficult to paint Americans as racist when 6 million Jews were being annihilated across the Atlantic for racist reasons, even though they were the same race as their executioner. Go figure. Perhaps racism is definitely the wrong word.

Tom Hanks needs to reword his remarks. The “Greatest Generation” doesn’t need to go out of this world being called racist. The was lots of racism back then. I have my father’s letters lamenting that an Indian soldier could not go into a bar and buy a drink in 1945. There was no mention that our troops were segregated. I questioned my mother who didn’t have an answer. We have races of people being herded into concentration camps and killed then incinerated because they were ethnically different in the eyes of their captors. We have political enemies facing the same fate. We have women of similar racial background being pressed into prostitution because of their national difference. The world was turned upside down. Some of that same hatred lives on. Getting into whether something is or is not racist really helps nothing. The best thing to do is simply move on. Hanks has put his foot in it. He also discusses terrorism. He doesn’t want to go there either.

Tom Hanks has been a wonderful spokes person for the ‘Greatest Generation.’  I hope they don’t fire him and that he alters his message just a little bit since he has so many people upset.

New Jersey WWII Hero Inspires Hollywood Epic

MoonHowler

Reminder:  “The Pacific” begins tonight @ 9:00 HBO.

A personal piece on people you will meet during the viewing of ‘The Pacific.’

What a wonderful tribute!

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

 

His brother  and the town must be very proud.  What a wonderful way to honor all those who have served from that town in New Jersey.

Next Sunday: “The Pacific” Arrives March 14

MoonHowler

No, not a tsunami, but the epic saga by Hugh Ambrose has been made into a mini series being shown on HBO.  “The Pacific”  starts Sunday March 14 and is getting quite a billing. 

The book has been published and is being billed as a companion book.  Hugh Ambrose will be in McLean the week the miniseries starts. 

 

 

According to the History Channel:

….executive produced by Tom Hanks, Steven Spielberg, and Gary Goetzman-Hugh Ambrose reveals the intertwined odysseys of four U.S. Marines and a U.S. Navy carrier pilot during World War II.

Between America’s retreat from China in late November 1941 and the moment General MacArthur’s airplane touched down on the Japanese mainland in August of 1945, five men connected by happenstance fought the key battles of the war against Japan. From the debacle in Bataan, to the miracle at Midway and the relentless vortex of Guadalcanal, their solemn oaths to their country later led one to the Great Marianas Turkey Shoot and the others to the coral strongholds of Peleliu, the black terraces of Iwo Jima and the killing fields of Okinawa, until at last the survivors enjoyed a triumphant, yet uneasy, return home.

In The Pacific, Hugh Ambrose focuses on the real-life stories of the five men who put their lives on the line for our country. To deepen the story revealed in the miniseries and go beyond it, the book dares to chart a great ocean of enmity known as The Pacific and the brave men who fought. Some considered war a profession, others enlisted as citizen soldiers. Each man served in a different part of the war, but their respective duties required every ounce of their courage and their strength to defeat an enemy who preferred suicide to surrender. The medals for valor which were pinned on three of them came at a shocking price-a price paid in full by all.

Just a glimpse:

 

 

 

Author Hugh Ambrose will be at Tyson’s Barnes and Noble on Wednesday, March 17 for an author event.

Hugh Ambrose

The Pacific

Author Event
Wednesday March 17, 2010 7:00 PM

Tysons Corner Mall
Tysons Corner Center, 7851 L. Tysons Corner Center, McLean, VA 22102,
 703-506-2937

Water-board Attorney to Visit UVA

MoonHowler
John Yoo
John Yoo

John Yoo, attorney with the Bush Administration will speak at UVA on March 19 at the Miller Center for Public Affairs.  Yoo was an author of the ‘torture memos’ which advised the Bush Administration that water boarding and other harsh techniques of interrogation were legal.

John Yoo was deputy assistant attorney general in the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel.  He currently has returned to teaching at the University of California at Berkeley’s law school and is promoting his book, “Crisis and Command: A History of Executive Power from George Washington to George W. Bush.”

Last week after a long series of DOJ investitgations, it was determined that Yoo and other attorneys “exercised poor judgment” in formulating their legal advice to the Bush Administration.  The ruling was very controversial and polarized political factions.

Expect to see heated debate at UVA.  Various liberal groups have called Yoo a war criminal.  Thomas Jefferson’s academic village will be rocking on March 19 with this latest visitor.  I don’t expect the students to go quietly with this guest speaker.

Yoo called a war criminal in rotests in Philadelphia
Yoo called a war criminal in rotests in Philadelphia

Democrats Seek to Curtail Use of Military Contractors

MoonHowler

According to the Huffington Post:

Today, the Pentagon employs more than 217,000 contractors in Iraq and Afghanistan, doing the kind of work that enlisted military personnel would have performed in the past, according to a Congressional Research Service report.

Now, there’s a move in Congress to change that. On Tuesday, Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.) introduced the Stop Outsourcing Security Act, which would make it the military’s responsibility to use its own personnel to train troops and police, guard convoys, repair weapons, run military prisons and do military intelligence activity.

There are strategic reasons to move away from a reliance on contractors, says Schakowsky, a senior member of the intelligence committee. They damage the U.S. reputation with reckless behavior, are overly costly and hurt the morale of troops, who see private guards earning much more money than they do.

Many people tend to look at the military contractors has a big USA investment. They have gotten their training from our military. After the troops serve their time, they retire and sign up with a military contractor such as Blackwater, and make 4 to 5 times more money than if they were with our military.

Other critics fault the lack of discipline and the fact that the military and the contractors have 2 different set of rules of engagement.

How do our contributors feel about the United States scaling back its use of military contractors in Afghanistan and Iraq? Is this a good thing? Will it help troop moral to not have those making the big bucks doing the same jobs?  Should this scaling back be done during a war?  Why did Blackwater change its name?

Note: Blackwater has changed its name to XE.

Dick Cheney Nixes Palin’s Suggestion of War Against Iran

MoonHowler

Who says leopards can’t change their spots. Dick Cheney stepped up to the plate and rebuked Sarah Palin’s idea of Obama declaring war against Iran to show the world and others that he is tough. To Cheney’s credit, he told ‘This Week’ on ABC News that Palin’s logic was faulty:

“I don’t think a president can make a judgment like that on the basis of politics,” Cheney said. “The stakes are too high, the consequences too significant to be treating those as simple political calculations.”

For perhaps the first time ever, I agree with Dick Cheney. He obviously has some concerns over the direction our country is going also.

Is going to war with any country a show of strength? What would be the impact of declaring war on Iran? Is it dangerous for a figure such as Palin to go around making war noises at foreign countries? How would someone even describe Palin? A future presidential candidate? An ex- VP candidate? An ex-governor? i would like her to declare her intentions before she makes such wreckless remarks publically.

Dresden Riots Mark 65th Anniversary of Bombing

MoonHowler

Neo-Nazis and leftist demonstrators have squared off in Dresden, German.  Police efforts to quell the disturbance have been challenging as rioters break up property, automobiles, and battle each other to mark the 65th anniversary of the bombing of Dresden by the UK and United States.

Dresden was the target of massive firebombing.  Approximately 1300 UK and USA bombers dropped nearly 4,000 tons of incendiary bombs and other explosives on the city between February 13 and 15, 1945.  The city was decimated and historians estimate that between 24,000 and 40,000 people lost their lives.  Previous estimates went as high as 200,000. 

The bombing of Dresden has always been controversial because of the incendiary devices used and because of the city supposedly was of little military importance.  Critics have described the bombing of Dresden as war on a civilian population.  The war ended in Europe May 8, 1945.  Today, Neo-Nazis charge that the bombing of Dresden was akin to the Holocaust. 

According to Al Jazeera News:

Clashes broke out on Saturday in the centre of the city where about 5,000 neo-Nazi protesters faced off with an estimated 10,000 leftist demonstrators.

The leftist supporters had gathered across the Elbe river, joining hands to create a human chain to try and prevent the neo-Nazis from staging a march.

More than 4,000 German police officers were deployed to prevent clashes between the two groups, but Natalie Steger, a correspondent for Germany’s ZDF Channel, told Al Jazeera that security officials had difficulty keeping the order. 

“The police really have a hard time because they’re trying to separate these two groups – the neo-Nazis, which want to march and the left-wing people.”

Scuffles also broke out between police and protesters from both sides, with several barricades set on fire and some minor injuries reported.

‘Bombing Holocaust’

The February 13 anniversary of the bombing of Dresden has become a focus for neo-Nazi groups in the past few years. Some far-right politicians have also sparked controversy by describing the raids as a “bombing Holocaust”.

But Helma Orosz, the mayor of Dresden, said the city does not want the neo-Nazis there, the Associated Press news agency reported.  This gang doesn’t belong here,” she said, following a legal attempt to stop the neo-Nazi march failed.

 The human chain helped “make Dresden a fortress against intolerance and stupidity, and the anniversary provided a reminder of who started the war”, Orosz said.

The Dresden air raids are considered one of the most controversial attacks by Allied forces during World War II.

More than 30sq km of the historic city was destroyed in heavy bombing by US and British forces.

 

 

It is difficult to assess  Dresden, some 65 years later. Bombing a civilian population seems uncivilized. However, most of WWII seems uncivilized. Does it take a firebombing of Dresden and Tokyo to end the insanity? Regardless, in light of the real Holocaust, the Neo-Nazis really need to stop whining and behave. Some jail time for the rioters might be just the attitude adjustment they need.  Most of us rarely have sympathy with rioters.

Then

Now

 

The irony of the two videos is striking.    Gathering material for this post became very problematic.  I had difficulty finding any current video of the situation that could be embedded.  That is unusual.  Secondly, the number of people killed in Dresden in 1945 varied a tremendous about–from approximately 20,000 to 250,000.  That variance seems extreme.  Additionally, many articles were peppered with opinion as news.  Many news stations seemed as critical of the United States and Great Britain as they were of the Germans.  The most neutral account I found was, oddly enough, Al Jazeera News.  Go figure.  The United States News sources had very little written on this story. 

The lack of information almost becomes the story here.  Was America wrong to firebomb Dresden and Tokyo?  Can we fairly evalate the war strategy from that long ago?  Do the Neo Nazis have any right to call the bombing of Dresden a Holocaust?

Comfort for Mourning Families at Dover AFB

MoonHowler

 

 A dignified transfer is conducted for every U.S. military member who dies in the theater of operation while in the service of their country.  This transfer takes place at Dover Air Force Base. 

 

 

Today the New York Times told of a new facility at Dover Air Force Base, where our troops killed in service of their country are flown in from Afghanistan and Iraq.  Much will change, for the better,  for our military families who have to greet the unthinkable–their son, daughter, husband, wife, father’s casket. 

Since April 2009, the first month of a Pentagon policy that allowed media coverage of the transfers, the remains of 366 service members from Iraq and Afghanistan have passed through Dover, the main point of entry for the nation’s war dead to return home. They have been met by more than 1,000 family members, whose travel and lodging expenses to Dover are paid for by the military.

Families coming to witness the dignified transfer of their loved ones killed in Afghanistan and Iraq had no space to grieve or talk.  They often were in a crowded space with other families.  Sometimes the cramped quarters led to unpleasant circumstances.   Suzie Schwartz, the wife of Gen. Norton A. Schwartz, the Air Force chief of staff, witnessed some of the tension and stress that was exchanged between families awaiting the arrival of the deceased and told her husband that something had to be done. 

Read More

Amazing Talent Captures National Tragedy

MoonHowler

Today a friend sent me an amazing email with a video link.   I felt it related to many of our topics we have been discussing here on Anti.  I am going to cut and paste Nancy’s (or whoever she copied them from) words and then post the link.  The woman shown in the video  is a sand artist.  The rest tells the story:

Please read the following paragraphs all the way through and then view the video…

This video shows the winner of “Ukraine’s Got Talent,” Kseniya Simonova, 24, drawing a series of pictures on an illuminated sand table showing how ordinary people were affected by the German invasion during World War II.  Her talent, which admittedly is a strange one, is mesmeric to watch.

The images, projected onto a large screen, moved many in the audience to tears, and she won the top prize of about £75,000. 

She begins by creating a scene showing a couple, sitting holding hands on a bench under a starry  sky, but then warplanes appear, and the happy  scene is obliterated. 

It is replaced by a woman’s face crying, but then a baby arrives, and the woman smiles again. Once again, war returns, and Miss Simonova throws the sand into chaos from which a young woman’s face appears. 

She quickly becomes an old widow, her face wrinkled and sad, before the image turns into a monument to an Unknown Soldier. 

This outdoor scene becomes framed by a window as if the viewer is looking out on the monument from within a house. 

In the final scene, a mother and child appear inside, and a man standing outside, with his hands pressed against the glass, saying  goodbye. 

The Great Patriotic War, as it is called in Ukraine, resulted in one in four of the population’s being killed, with eight to 11 million deaths out of a population of 42 million. 

Kseniya  Simonova says:  “I find  it difficult enough to create art using paper  and pencils or paintbrushes, but using sand and fingers is beyond me. The art, especially when the war is used as the subject matter, even brings some audience members to tears. And, there’s surely no bigger compliment.”

View the video


 

Our country has been blessed.  We have never known our cities to be destroyed and one fourth of our population killed.  Even our own Civil War didn’t destroy the entire country, although many Virginians, Georgians and South Carolinians might beg to differ.   

Sometimes it helps to put things in perspective, when viewing one’s country through the eyes of this very talented young artist.  How does one so young capture the horror of the world in the 40’s?  Those living in the Ukraine must have long national memories to be able to produce such talent.  It would be hard to tell where Stalin stopped and Hitler started.  Judging from the reaction from those in the audience, the feelings are still strong and very much a part of the Ukrainians’s national being.

Pregnancy Becomes Punishable Offense in Iraq

MoonHowler

 Maj. Gen. Anthony Cucolo III, a commander in northern Iraq,has made pregnancy among troops serving in Iraq a punishable offense and one that could lead to court martial.  The order applies not only to females but to the male who impregnated them. 

The reason for such a drastic measure is to ensure that someone else doesn’t have to cover for the pregnant woman.  Military experts have said that Major General Cucolo is perfectly within his rights to make such a order.  The order also applies to civilians reporting to the general.  Heretofore, pregnant soldiers were sent home, often leaving a duty uncovered.  The slack had to be taken up by others. 

According to AKnews

Army spokesman George Wright said the service typically sends home from the battlefield soldiers who become pregnant. But it is not an Army-wide policy to punish them under the military’s legal code, he said.  However, division commanders like Cucolo have the authority to impose these type of restrictions to personnel operating under their command, Wright said.

Cucolo oversees forces in northern Iraq, an area that includes the cities of Kirkuk, Tikrit and Mosul. His Nov. 4 order was first reported by the military newspaper Stars and Stripes.  Cucolo’s order outlines some 20 barred activities. Most of them are aimed at keeping order and preventing criminal activity, such as selling a weapon or taking drugs.

But other restrictions seemed aimed at preventing soldiers from leaving their unit short-handed, including becoming pregnant or undergoing elective surgery that would prevent their deployment.
Under Cucolo’s order, troops also are prohibited from “sexual contact of any kind” with Iraqi nationals. And, they cannot spend the night with a member of the opposite sex, unless married or expressly permitted to do so.

Stars and Stripes reports that thus far, 7 soldiers have been punished under the 6 week pregnancy ban.  None to date have been court-martialed, however.  According to ABC sources, Major General Cucolo states:

“I see absolutely no circumstance where I would punish a female soldier by court martial for a violation … none,” Maj. Gen. Anthony Cucolo III wrote to ABC News in an exclusive statement. ” I fully intend to handle these cases through lesser disciplinary action.”

 

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Stephen King Donates $12,999 to Bring Maine National Guard Home for Christmas

MoonHowler
Stephen King

Best selling prolific author Stephen King and his wife Tabitha have donated $12,999 to bring 150 members of the Maine National Guard home for Christmas.   King is superstitious about numbers and would not donate the $13,000 he was originally approached about.  The Maine troops will eventually deploy to Afghanistan in January of next year.   They are currently stationed at Camp Atterbury in Indiana. 

According to DC Examiner:

The couple donated $12,999 toward the expenses of the trip.  King’s assistant, said that King thought 13 was an unlucky number.  “Steve is such a numbers person,” said Julie Eugley in an interview with the Bangor Daily News. “When we were approached for $13,000, he thought that number was a little unlucky. He didn’t want any bad whammies associated with these troops.”  Eugley dropped the extra dollar to make the donation an even $13,000.

According to The Digital Journal, the money was solicited by Operation Community Support, a not-for-profit Bangor-based military assistance agency. The Kings’ donation is the largest ever received by the agency, and was given from their personal finances – not their foundation, according to Eugley.

The donation from King, a Maine native, will fund two bus trips for the 150 soldiers.

 

Long known for his horror novels, novellas and short stories, King was seriously injured himself several years ago when he was run over by a van while out for a walk.

“A Just and Lasting Peace” : Obama Accepts Nobel Peace Prize

MoonHowler

This morning, just before 6 am our time, President Barack Obama received and accepted the Nobel Peace Prize. Many people, probably including the president himself, were caught off-guard over when this award was announced last summer. President Obama had not been in office all that long.

How can this award be anything but good for the United States? A sitting president awarded the Nobel Peace Prize can only signal that the United States is a world leader whether in war or peace. It gives us stature. It de-fangs some of our aggression that we have had to exhibit because we are a world leader. We are obviously still at war and in 2 regions. Our resolve has been strengthened in Afghanistan.

The President was spoke well for the nation in his acceptances of this prestigious award:

Full text of President Obama’s Speech

This award is seen by some as somewhat duplicitous since President Obama has recently announced that 30,000 new troops will immediately be deployed to Afghanistan. Keeping the peace isn’t always free or without strife. World opinion as well as US opinion on this issue is dominating the news and blogs. Is it possible to deploy troops and be considered a man of peace? How can we reconcile these 2 opposite concepts?

The Greatest Generation 12/7/1941

MoonHowler

They spent their childhood in the roaring 20’s.  As teenagers they weathered the Great Depression of the 30’s.  Reaching adulthood in the 40’s looked bright until that fateful Sunday afternoon in early December.  Every one from the Greatest Generation remembers where they were and what they were doing when they heard the news, much like those who followed now can tell you where they were and what they were doing when they heard of the Kennedy assassination or 9/11. 

Many people had no idea where Pearl Harbor was or that our Naval Fleet was berthed there.  Yet upon hearing of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, most Americans were filled with rage and a sense of betrayal because of the sneak attack.  The Greatest Generation would have their lives unalterably changed forever. 

On December 8, 1941 they listened to their president, Franklin Roosevelt, make the following address to Congress: 

To the Congress of the United States of America

Yesterday, Dec. 7, 1941 – a date which will live in infamy – the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan.

The United States was at peace with that nation and, at the solicitation of Japan, was still in conversation with the government and its emperor looking toward the maintenance of peace in the Pacific.

Click for full text.

Video of some of FDR’s Pearl Harbor Address to Congress:

 

Over  3,000 lives, both civilian and non-civilian  were lost in the attack on Pearl Harbor.   America had a decimated navy.  The politics of war had kept FDR’s hand off the trigger and had kept us out of the war raging in Europe.  All but one member of Congress voted to declare war on Japan and within a week war had been declared on Germany and Italy.  The United States was fully at war, from the youngest child to the oldest citizen.

Every American went to war in some capacity.  Children helped tend victory gardens, saved their pennies for Vicotry stamps and gathered scrap metal.  Old ladies wrapped bandages for the Red Cross.  Community volunteers, usually pretty young women,  met trains carrying troops with coffee. cigarettes and snacks.  Civilians watched planes. Women went into the work force by the millions, taking up jobs formerly held by men who had gone to war.  Civilians were deprived of basic foods and staples like butter, sugar, beef, and were issued ration books.  Gasoline was rationed.   Silk used for stockings  soon went to the troops, for parachutes.  People were asked to donate their iron fences to the war effort.  Most people bought war bonds to help finance the cause.  Americans had air drill drills and practiced black outs at night. 

There has been no war since WWII where Americans have been totally immersed in the war effort.  We have not been asked to sacrifice in our every day lives like those of the WWII generation, unless  one is a military family of course.  In fact, we could go along quite easily and really never be bothered with our wars.  We have had very little personal inconvenience.  We have suffered no shortages,our  gasoline flows, and often our school children don’t even know we are at war.  Our wars are financed and paid for by the subsequent generations.  There are no great drives for war bonds or to finance our causes. 

Perhaps that is why the Greatest Generation, the term penned by Tom Brokow, was indeed the greatest.  They gave their all with every ounce of their being.  They were throw into a horrific war on December 7.  Over 13 million Americans served.  Approximately 500,000 lost their lives.  Many suffered life-altering wounds.   Many children grew up without a father. Many lie buried on foreign soil.  Some came home with emotional battle scars that have crippled them.  Others came home, went to college on the G.I. Bill and threw themselves back into normalcy.  So many of the Greatest Generation would deny they were.  Most felt they were just doing what was expected of them as Americans.

What made the Greatest Generation the GREATEST?  Or was it the greatest?  What sets that generation apart from others and especially those who followed?

Photographs of the Pearl Harbor Attack

Link to other WWII Memorial Pictures

 

World War II Memorial in Washington DC