A sleeping giant is awakened

[Devil Doc]

It was on this day in 1941 that Japanese bombers attacked Pearl Harbor. That morning soldiers at Pearl Harbor were learning how to use their new radar technology, and they detected a large number of planes heading toward them. They telephoned an officer to ask him what to do. The officer said they must be American B-17s on their way to the base, and he told the soldiers not to worry about it.

The Japanese bombers began their attack at 7:48 a.m., with two waves of 360 planes, beginning with slow torpedo bombers and then dive-bombers. Many of the soldiers, sailors and Marines there that day woke up to the sound of alarms and explosions. Most of the damage occurred in the first 30 minutes. The U.S.S. Oklahoma capsized, and the California, Nevada, and West Virginia sank in shallow water. The U.S.S. Arizona was completely destroyed, killing more than 1,500 sailors and Marines aboard. When nurses and corpsmen arrived for morning duty they found hundreds of injured men all over the base. The docs ran around, administering morphine, and to prevent overdoses, they wrote the letter M in blood on each treated man's forehead.

There were ultimately 2,390 Americans killed at Pearl Harbor and 1,178 wounded. FDR used the event as the grounds for entering World War II.

Doc.

 

[cigarsarge]

That era was America at it's strongest. We fought a war on two fronts...We won both. I wish the country was as unified today.

 

[sack]

Pearl Harbor, they attacked us, we responded. It was so easy back then.

 

[Rob_k]

USS Virginia during the attack on Pearl Harbor

Photo from Japanese plane during the attack

The USS Arizona on fire after forward magazine explosion sinking

 

[Devil Doc]

This is the Arizona today. Some of you may not know, but if you were a surviving member of ship's company the Navy will inter you aboard her so you can be with your shipmates. Brings tears to my eyes every time I think of it.

Doc.

 

[npedersen]

A true test of the response the U.S. is capable of when the patriots are stronger than the weak! If we had the unified America of then, I think the young men and woman protecting our freedom would be on there way home instead of chasing down an enemy that is being protected by the laws meant to protect us!

I remember my grandfather and I used to sit and he would tell stories from his time in WWII, by the way he enlisted and married my grandmother the next day to defend men and woman he didn't even know other than one thing. . . fellow Americans lost there lives for us to have a future!

I always say thank you to a member of our military when even I get the chance, and I work and train them everyday!

So Thank you to all at CP who is or has volunteered for protecting my children's grandchildren's future!

 

[hoshnasi]

This reminds me to call my grandfather a member of the greatest generation and a proud marine who served on the pacific front.

To all service men I say, thank you.