69 years ago
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snickerd3
Taking suggestions
One of my Mom's Uncles was on one of the ships that got hit. He absolutely refuses to talk about it so I don't know which one, but he ended up in the water whether he jumped or was thrown from the blast we don't know, but he managed to swim to shore. He did say many of his fellow shipmates did NOT know how to swim, which he said always bugged him. You are assigned to a ship that is surrounded by water and knowing how to swim wasn't a required skill at the time.
I guess I can understand why he wants to rerase the memory, but I think it's sad to let a first hand account of that go untold to younger generations.
Wolverine
Uncanny Pompadour
My grandmother was a nurse on Oahu at the time. She said she jumped in the cargo truck that served as an ambulance and drove all around the island to pick up the pregnant miltary women (I assume wives & such) and get them to safety.
I have this fantastic image in my mind of my scrappy 5-1" grandmother behind the wheel of a platoon truck, with only two knuckles and a tuft of hair showing, ala Kilroy, squealing the tires around the island to rescue the preggos in between fiery explosions.
She told me the reality was close, but that there was no tire squealing and she only heard the occasional rumble from the other side of the island where the attack occurred. They were sheltered so it was days before they realized the enormity of the attack.
I have this fantastic image in my mind of my scrappy 5-1" grandmother behind the wheel of a platoon truck, with only two knuckles and a tuft of hair showing, ala Kilroy, squealing the tires around the island to rescue the preggos in between fiery explosions.
She told me the reality was close, but that there was no tire squealing and she only heard the occasional rumble from the other side of the island where the attack occurred. They were sheltered so it was days before they realized the enormity of the attack.
My aunt served in the Marines in the early 1980s and many of the girls in her class could not swim. The day came for basic water training and they were hiding from the instructor. They had to be literally dragged and thrown into the pool. But better that than serving and not being able to swim.
My grandpa died at age 83 without ever talking about his WWII service with us grandkids. He had never seen a building over two stories high until he joined the Navy, straight off the farm.
He served primarily on the USS Hope - a hospital ship. I can only imagine the things he witnessed with guys all torn up and dying. Not that anybody could be prepared for that but he obviously was not. Age eighteen for a farm boy back then was probably equivalent to about age twelve now.
I visit the USS Arizona Memorial in 2006. It's an experience that I would highly recommend as one of those "bucket list" items. The drops of fuel oil still come up from the ship. Also be forwarned that the memorial has super long lines and lots of Japanese Tourists. I struggled with that when I first saw them, but then I couldn't help but wonder how they feel when we visit the Hiroshima Peace Memorial.
I have been there and I am actually pleased to see the Japanese tourists there, because in all honesty, that's probably the first time, for many of them, to learn the truth about the attack and who really started the war. Even so, I bet many of them just chalk it up to US propaganda.
But don't get me wrong; I know a lot of Japanese people and they are, wihtout exception, peaceful and friendly people and especially warm hearted toward America. It's just that they don't teach them about WWII in school, and isntead they pick up their history from Manga and television, which often portray the war very inaccurately, from a Japanese as heroic warriors point of view. Fortunately that doesn't really mesh at all with modern Japanese youth culture, so there doesn't seem to be any harm beyond misinformation.
But don't get me wrong; I know a lot of Japanese people and they are, wihtout exception, peaceful and friendly people and especially warm hearted toward America. It's just that they don't teach them about WWII in school, and isntead they pick up their history from Manga and television, which often portray the war very inaccurately, from a Japanese as heroic warriors point of view. Fortunately that doesn't really mesh at all with modern Japanese youth culture, so there doesn't seem to be any harm beyond misinformation.
We didn't have long lines when we went back in '04, quite the opposite actually--it was eerily quiet. Definitely a touching memorial.
Master slacker
Something awesome.
One day I'll go. Just a matter of time.
jmbeck
Well-known member
From what I've been told, there is no rhyme or reason to the "crowded-ness" of the memorial. But, most of the time, it is very crowded, mostly due to it being free.
They dedicated the first phase of the new visitor's center yesterday. It's supposed to be really nice ($50MIL once it's all said and done). They said the old one was in really bad shape, but I certainly didn't notice. It's hard to focus on the extraneous details when you grasp the enormity of what you're experiencing.
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