"A Day That Will Live in Infamy"

Sadly, even days declared for Infamy are slowly forgotten. Americans, and people in general just seem to do that. I think, especially in light of the fact that "the sleeping giant" has been awakened again we are in the middle of a war. We should take this lesson to heart and realize that without rememberance- these days, their heroes and losses, and their lessons are forgotten, and in essence we are doomed to repeat them.



This date, December 7, 1941, is the anniversary of the bombing of Pearl Harbor by the Japanese.
This year will mark the 66th anniversary of this tragic event.
Please take a moment to reflect today.
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Air Raid on Pearl Harbor
On December 7, 1941, Japanese planes attacked the United States Naval Base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii Territory killing more than 2,300 Americans. The U.S.S. Arizona was completely destroyed and the U.S.S. Oklahoma capsized. The attack sank three other ships and damaged many additional vessels. More than 180 aircraft were destroyed.

A hurried dispatch from the ranking United States naval officer in Pearl Harbor, Commander in Chief Pacific, to all major navy commands and fleet units provided the first official word of the attack at the ill-prepared Pearl Harbor base. It said simply: AIR RAID ON PEARL HARBOR X THIS IS NOT DRILL.

The following day President Franklin Roosevelt, addressing a joint session of Congress, called December 7 "a date which will live in infamy." Declaring war against Japan, Congress ushered the United States into World War II and forced a nation, already close to war, to abandon isolationism. Within days, Japan's allies, Germany and Italy, declared war on the United States, and the country began a rapid transition to a war-time economy in building up armaments in support of military campaigns in the Pacific, North Africa, and Europe.
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The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise attack that shocked the US. On the morning of December 7, 1941, planes and midget submarines of the Imperial Japanese Navy began a surprise attack on the U.S. under the command of Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto. Despite long-standing assertions that this attack could have been predicted and prevented by the United States Military, the US forces at Pearl Harbor appeared to be utterly unprepared, and the attack effectively drew the United States into World War II. At 6:09 a.m. on December 7, 1941, the six Japanese carriers launched a first wave of 181 planes composed mainly of torpedo bombers, dive bombers, horizontal bombers and fighters. The Japanese hit American ships and military installations at 7:55 a.m. They attacked military airfields and at the same time they hit the fleet anchored in Pearl Harbor. The battleship "USS Arizona" was hit with an armor piercing bomb which penetrated the forward ammunition compartment, blowing the ship apart. Overall, twenty-one ships of the U.S. Pacific fleet were damaged and the death toll reached 2,350, along with 68 civilians and 1,178 injured. Of the military personnel lost at Pearl Harbor, 1,177 were from the Arizona. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt declared Dec. 7, 1941, "a date which will live in infamy."
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There is now a memorial in Hawaii:
http://www.nps.gov/usar/

http://www.thisweek.com/oahu/tour/tour-pearlharbor.html

It seems however, the USS Arizona Memorial will have to be abandoned in about two years for safety reasons. Check out the new plans:
http://www.pearlharbormemorial.com/site/pp.asp?c=fqLQJ2NNG&b=238984

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To see personal accounts of what those who were there remember of the moments they heard of the bombings click here:
("Americans Remember Pearl Harbor") http://www.stg.brown.edu/projects/WWII_Women/RA/NCraig/PHMemories.html



Have a wonderful day, and celebrate your freedom. - Kate