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Minus The Nemesis
A Collaboration of Some of the Finest Thought on Today's World

HISTORY LESSON II, THOUGHT PROVOCATION

Wednesday, December 07, 2005
Today is 7 December, 2005. It was 64 years ago today that the Japanese bombed the US Naval Fleet in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. It has been 63 years, 364 days since FDR made his "Day of Infamy" speech; read it if you have not.

As historical content sits the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor because they saw our moving there as a threat to the Japanese Empire's southward expansion. As a result of the surprise attack, America was thrust into WWII; now at war with Japan. Perhaps the reasoning behind the Japanese government seeing the American move to Pearl Harbor as a threat to expansion was solidified 18 months earlier when then President FDR moved the fleet to the harbor as a deterrent to Japanese aggression.

To define this attack we must look farther into the past; beyond that initial 18-month move to Pearl Harbor. Looking back to 1937 when Japan began its war with China, the Japanese forces were in need of supplies in the forms of oil, gas and other raw materials. Come 1941, western powers effectively halted trade with Japan. The Japanese saw an opportunity to take the oil and mineral-rich East Indies as well as Southeast Asia to meet their logistical shortcomings. Although contact with the Japanese government was still ongoing, it was clearly coming to an end. US officials were well informed of Japanese intents insofar that they would attack places such as Malaya, the Philippines as well as the Indies. They were also well informed to the extent that the US could read their codes. What was not suspected was what actually happened; an attack east on eastern grounds.

Just before 0800 hours, the Japanese struck the fleet and managed to either sink or badly damage 5 of 8 battleships stationed at the harbor. Apparently tossing diplomatic relations and governmental ties to the wind, the Japanese also destroyed nearly all of the US Air Force in the Philippines along with landing an army on the shores of Malaya. Due to the distance of Hawaii from Japan alone it is clear that despite any showing of negotiating officials, the attack was planned and inevitable.

Up to this point, I believe that most American's were divided on whether or not to engage in WWII. After the fact and 2,400 lives lost the American's weren't divided and some say shared more unity than ever before. I would like to point now to some of what FDR said on 8 December, 1941:
"With confidence in our armed forces--with the unbounding determination of our people--we will gain the inevitable triumph--so help us God."
That's right: "so help us God". This was a time when people weren't in such an uproar about proclaiming un-Godly acts just that. It truly was a time of unbounding determination of our people and unity in that fact. What is truly a shame is that with the events of 11 September 2001, people don't seem to share these same values, nor care about innocent lives lost. Such dissent and hatred is found in the anti-American rhetoric of persons like Ward Churchill, Michael Moore, nearly all of Hollywood, Noam Chomsky, Cindy Sheehan and even people whose opinions actually do hold some leverage with the previously unified and determined people: select politicians. People are more concerned with whether or not they will offend anyone than using common sense and doing what needs to be done. More and more I see politicians stumping for votes and erring on the side of appeasement rather than coming up with viable solutions to an obviously growing problem.

We are faced with a new enemy in today's world: the terrorist. Rather than become united once again against a common foe, the America from days past is again, divided. Something is fundamentally wrong with that! Terrorism is an obvious problem and some are just not willing to face it and support those that actually are. This division is creating a rift that is damaging to the very way of life we are so desperately trying to defend as of late. It is because of the unwilling that we have become divided; the anti-war crowd (this demoralizes troops; no one hates war more than those who are taken from the relative comfort of their American life and thrust into battle), the anti-recruiter crowd (recruiters, who are a mediary for some, to a better life than they have ever known), domestic terrorist "organizations" that are becoming a growing concern to our internal security, and internationally recognized terrorist groups that operate on our shores with relative autonomy due to "too much policy, not enough deterrent/curtailment".

It is time for the divided American's to become unified once again and put aside our paltry issues in dealing with all the finger-pointing and he said, she said tripe. It is time to eliminate these very realistic threats and give the willing the support they need. This is easier said than done, I realize. It is nevertheless an attainable goal if people just used some common sense. Both the left and the right need to wake up and realize this common goal. The right should return to its more core values while the left should come up with some values to return to. Without common sense in the upper echelons, nothing will be solved. Give it some thought.

Minus


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