Pearl Harbor Day

My father lost a first cousin at Pearl Harbor. My father went on to serve in the European theater in the Corps of Engineers. His unit was instrumental in liberating the Dachau concentration camp. They were truly the “Greatest Generation!“

I was born 10 days after the bombing of Pearl Harbor.

My uncle survived Pearl Harbor and went on to survive the Battle of Midway. He never wanted to talk about any of it.

I was born 2 months after the attack on Pearl Harbor.

From a former colleague who grew up near Cornelia Fort Airpark in Nashville. The Airpark wasn’t named after a fort, but rather a Nashville aviation pioneer. She was the first person that spotted the invading Japanese planes at Pearl Harbor.

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/pearl-harbor-disappea...

Unless they are familiar with history, most people will not be aware of the huge effect of that single event.

Throughout the 1920s and 30s, the US was extremely isolationist and opposed to the possession of a strong army. At the time of Pearl Harbor, Portugal and Sweden each had larger armies than the US. During training maneuvers it was necessary to use trucks as substitutes for non-existent tanks that were "too expensive".

Pearl Harbor changed that viewpoint and the military has been the largest single item in the US budget for over 81 years.

There is a quotation (which may or may not be true) attributed to the Japanese Admiral Yamamoto immediately after Pearl Harbor, "I fear that all we have done is to awaken a sleeping giant and fill him with a terrible resolve."

- Tom -

Unfortunately, it seems more people know less these days about December 7, 1941, a day that will? live in infamy.