75 years ago December 7th, 1941

75 years ago on December 7^th, 1941 the Japanese attacked military bases on the Island of Oahu.  We here mostly about Pearl Harbor but there was and still is a Marine base in Kaneohe that was hit also.  The next day they hit the Philippines and strafed Midway Island.  I had a friend now gone who was in the Marines on Midway that day and for a 19 year old kid it was quite an awakening to the world of war.  As the word spread across this nation, men filled the recruiting stations volunteering for all branches of the military.  We fortunately have had over the years many Hawaiian friends who were thrust into the conflict that day.  Their tales of the event are personal to them, they knew their lives would never be the same as they watched the onslaught and dodged friendly fire as our men fired on the attacking planes.  I wonder today as I watch the news of universities that are putting safe areas for students who are aghast at the election results if we could actually mount a counter attack should a similar event happen.  911 was a precursor to much grander plans the Islamic Radicals have in mind.  The fact that most of our leaders in this country have come from these same universities is rather frightening.  They called my father and my older brother’s generation the Greatest Generation with good cause.  These people lived through the Great Depression, WWI and the Great Dust Bowl only to find themselves locked in a war that threatened our very existence.  They did what the world thought was unimaginable they defeated not only the most well equipped and trained army in existence in Europe but the Japanese in the Pacific. 

Our prayers this day are for our country that we may find in this generation a spirit not yet evident that will lead the world with the strength and fortitude of our fathers.  As I witness the anarchy of the last few weeks and hear their claim that our country is a pariah in the world as they smash businesses and disrupt traffic I wonder what our fathers would say and do confronted with these cowardly malcontents with their hidden faces.  I wonder if any one of them would have the courage to storm the beach at Normandy or climb Mount Surabachi in the face of a dug in enemy.  I wouldn’t want to bet my life on it.  People have said that they’re just kids and they will grow out of it but it’s not kids teaching this Anti American rhetoric, it is adult professors and a very disgusting media that is promoting this diatribe.  We have grandchildren and great grandchildren who soon will be attending these universities and colleges and we pray we have given them the bases for an understanding that they will see through this façade that calls itself higher learning and use their time to actually learn our history and not be brain washed by the 60’s hippies who are now in charge of the Universities.