Battle of Midway

Today marks the anniversary of the Battle of Midway - a battle sited by most historians as the turning point in the Pacific in World War II. Below is a good article on the history of the Battle of Midway and its significance.

The importance of the Battle of Midway.

Linky Links

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- Life Lessons from a Board Game. Learn something every day - the name of the person in Operation is Cavity Sam.

- The Lesson from Murder's Row, Two Layers Deeper. A lesson from WW II we need to relearn today.

- Jonathan Turley: Yale Medical school accused of racial discrimination in admissions. This is my shocked face.

- Massachusetts demonstrates the futility of gun control.  And yes Mass is run mostly by dumbasses.

Linky Links

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- Dan Wetzel: NCAA tournament expansion is bad, but it's happening.

- From the archives: The history of A1 sauce.

- Some interesting WW II history.

- Charlie Baker: Congress must secure the future of college sports. After watching the blatant money grab of playoffs expansion in basketball and football - I don't think the NCAA is in the position to ask for anything from the public.

Iwo Jima

Today is the anniversary of the iconic photo by Joe Rosenthal of the raising of the American flag on Mount Suribashi on Iwo Jima. The fighting on the island actually started four days earlier on February 19th. The story of this battle is something every high school student should have to learn before they are allowed to graduate.

The Bombing of Hiroshima

One of the things written on the first atomic bomb ever to be used in war was written, "Greetings to the Emperor from the men of the Indianapolis." That was the sort of feeling that was common in US forces in WW II.

Enola Gay navigator "Dutch" Van Kirk said shortly after the A-bomb exploded, "I thought, Thank God the war is over and I don't have to get shot at any more. I can go home."

The book notes, "It was a sentiment hundreds of thousands of American soldiers and sailors would soon express." And could you blame them?

Japan had been warned before the bombing to surrender or face destruction. The Japanese refused and instead issues sharpened sticks to civilians to fight invaders to the death if necessary. General Curtis LeMay had been firebombing the cities of Japan so much that LeMay lamented that he was denied cities targeted as possible sites for the atomic bomb. Despite the unprecedented firebombing damage - Japan didn't surrender. They didn't even surrender after the bombing of Hiroshima. They only surrendered after the destruction of Nagasaki.

Quotes from The Making of the Atomic Bomb by Richard Rhodes.

USS Indianapolis

Many only learned of the USS Indianapolis from Captain Quint's speech in the movie Jaws. Here's what really happened after the Indianapolis delivered the bomb at Tinian.

"...the Indianapolis, an older vessel, lacked sonar gear for submarine detection and was top heavy. Japanese submarine I-38 discovered the heavy cruiser in the Philippines Sea a little before Midnight on Sunday, July 29...

The torpedoes and following explosions of ammunition and aviation fuel ripped away the cruiser's bow and destroyed the power center. without power the radio officer was unable to send a distress signal - he went through the motions anyway - or the bridge to communicate with the engine room, The engines pushed the ship forward unchecked, scooping up water through the holes in the hull and leaving behind the sailors thrown overboard who had been sleeping on deck in the tropical heat. The order to abandon ship, when it came, had to be passed word of mouth."

About 850 sailors went into the sea facing 12 foot waves:

"Most had kapok lifejackets. Few could find their way to the life rafts. They floated instead in clusters, linked together, stronger men swimming the circumferences to catch sleepers before they drifted away, one group numbered between three and four hundred souls. They pushed the wounded to the center where the water was calmer and prayed the distress call had gone out.

The captain had found two empty life rafts and later that night encountered one more unoccupied. He ordered the rafts lashed together. They sheltered ten men and he thought them the only survivors. Through the night a current carried the swimmers southwest while winds blew the rafts northeast: by the light of morning rafts and swimmers had separated beyond discovery."

What happened next to those in the water was beyond terrorizing and I'll omit because words can't do it justice.

"Thursday morning, August 2, a Navy plane spotted the survivors. Because of negligence at Leyte the Indianapolis had not even been missed. A major rescue effort began, ships streaming to the area. PBY's and PBM's dropping food, water, and survival gear. The rescuers found 318 naked and emaciated men."

From The Making of the Atomic Bomb by Richard Rhodes

The League

"When major college powers such as Alabama, Auburn, Stanford, Harvard, Michigan State, and many others elected to not field squads during the war, the NFL became one of the few places fans could watch football. Even though many of the best players were overseas and its product was diluted, the NFL was thriving during the war. In fact, it was thriving because of the war." John Eisenberg The League: How Five Rivals Created the NFL and Launched a Sports Empire.

One of the founders of the league - George Halas even enlisted and received a Bronze Star from the Navy. This was in fact Halas' second war. The idea that baseball was pastural while football was martial was beginning to become very clear.

Bastogne

On this day in 1944 the 101st is surrounded at Bastogne in what would be known as the Battle of the Bulge.

Pearl Harbor

Linky Links

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- It's official South Park duo has TDS. As much as I love this show - it's true. And it stopped going for laughs a while ago.

- A world without hope. But there's always hope - time for the pendulum to swing the other way.

- Book Recommendations. Typed in some of the books I've re-read from the top shelf of the nearest bookcase and while many of the books recommended were by the same author - many others were one's I've read or liked or ones I'm guessing I should put on my reading list.

- Don't speak to me about your false heroes. Amen! Dietrich Bonhoeffer is a name everyone should be know.

Veterans Day

On the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month an Armistice was signed to end the carnage of World War I. November 11th became Armistice Day cross much of the world but Wold War II caused the day to morph into Veteran's Day instead because what's the point in honoring an Armistice agreement that wasn't adhered to?

There is a point in honoring the Veterans who fought in both these wars and others or who have worn the uniform. Recently saw this description of what makes a "veteran":

"A 'Veteran' - whether active duty, discharged, retired or reserve - is someone who, at one point at his or her life, wrote a blank check made payable to 'the United States of America', for an amount up to and including his or her life."

The men and women who risk or who have given this "last full measure of devotion" are more than worthy of a Day in their honor.

By the way, that railway car used to sign the Armistice in 1918 was later used by Hitler as the venue chosen for the French to sign their surrender to the Nazi in World War II.

The Making of the Atomic Bomb

"The Japanese assessment was essentially technological.  Like Bohr's assessment in 1939, it overestimated the difficulty of isotope separation and underestimated the U.S. industrial capacity. It also, as the Japanese government had before Pearl Harbor, underestimated American dedication. Collective dedication was a pattern of Japanese culture more than of American. But Americans could summon it when challenged, and couple it with resources of talent and capital unmatched anywhere else in the world." - Richard Rhodes The Making of the Atomic Bomb

Tough to read that paragraph and not think that maybe China may be making that same mistake today.

The Liberation of Paris and the Ritz Bar

 I'm a big fan of Ernest Hemingway and if you were to mention to me the liberation of Paris in WWII (August 25, 1944) - the first thing I would think of is Hemingway "liberating" the bar at the Ritz Hotel that very same day.

On the anniversary a thought about that event.

Linky Links

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- Rob Henderson on Orwell in the Gutter. 

- Jonathan Turley on the Judicial Calvinball of Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson.

- RIP Flight Lt. John Cruickshank. (HT Borepatch)

- Workplace cast of characters. Think we recognize most of these from personal experience. I would add the misplaced genius - the one who should have to job but is doing something else instead.

Linky Links

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- Trump suggests plan to fully  privative Fanny Mae and Freddie Mac. Don't know enough about the situation to have an opinion.

- RFK Jr. claims food stamps are fueling diabetes in America. He said 18% of food stamps are spent on soda and candy and that has to stop.

- VDH: Disinformation and the dropping of the atomic bombs. If you know the facts - there's only one conclusion.

- Gravity, Momentum, and the Potential Energy Field. Won't lie - it will take some work for me to come close to grasping this concept. But like many things it could be perception altering.

Damn Lucky

"Never forget that we are all first and foremost Americans. We should look at common goals and seek compromise, rather than conquering the other side, which serves only to divide us. As private citizens, we can do something to alter our perspective. United, we've done amazing things: We defeated fascism, put a man on the moon, and created a cultural and economic empire that is the envy of the world.

Somehow, we've forgotten that. America will never be perfect. It will always have problems. But the only solution is to stay together and find common ground. Stay united. We proved that in World War II, and we can prove it again." - John "Lucky" Luckadoo

This was the true story of one B-17 pilot's journey over the sky's of Europe in WW II. I enjoyed it but Lucky's epilogue really made the book hit home.

The Battle of Midway

Today marks the 81st anniversary of the Battle of Midway - a battle sited by most historians as the turning point in the Pacific in World War II. Below is a good article on the history of the Battle of Midway and its significance.

The importance of the Battle of Midway.

Veteran's Day Remembrances.

 Some Veteran's Day posts worth sharing.

- Lest we forget.

- CDR Salamander on the 11th day of the 11 month.

- Can't imagine how emotional this silence was

- Never forget those who fought on D-Day

The Liberation of Paris and the Ritz Bar

[From the Archives] I'm a big fan of Ernest Hemingway and if you were to mention to me the liberation of Paris in WWII (August 25, 1944) - the first thing I would think of is Hemingway "liberating" the bar at the Ritz Hotel that very same day.

Today is the anniversary of that day. I was curious - so I Googled "Hemingway liberate Ritz bar" and I came across an article from the San Francisco Chronicle.

The article is an interesting read - chock full of anecdotes about Hemingway and his "liberation" of the Ritz bar. However, the paragraph that really caught my attention was this:

The renowned author annoyed his colleagues in the working press. They were both awed by his fame and furious that he was playing soldier, in violation of all the standing rules about correspondents staying out of the war, even though the reporters were very much a part of the war effort.

I have no trouble picturing Hemingway having a bit of a mid-life crisis (he was 45 at the time) and playing soldier would have been his equivalent of buying a new Corvette. What struck me as odd was the description of the "working press" who in their own way "were very much a part of the war effort."

Can you imagine the press being described that way today? The American press could not be described as part of the war effort today. The press today serves their own self interests and not the public good. Stories are slanted to match a certain bias and agendas are almost completely transparent (even though the press likes to crow about being a neutral purveyor of the simple truth - (yeah as long as "the truth" matches the agenda). I wonder how the Hemingway of 1944 would view the press of today.

I'm pretty sure I know the answer. 

Linky Links

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- The tale of Bill Reynolds. Good on ya mate!

- The Democrats crossed the Rubicon. Great analogy!

- Google's AI wasn't a mistake. We know. We were there. Google ditched the saying, "don't be evil" long ago. (HT Execupundit)

- Taming the Mammoth by Tim Urban. Couple of years old but new to me.