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"About 20 survivors are expected to gather at Pearl Harbor on Friday to pay tribute to the thousands of men lost in the Japanese attack 77 years ago."

"For the first time, no USS Arizona survivors are expected to attend the annual commemoration of the attack on Pearl Harbor, the pivotal Dec. 7, 1941 day of "infamy" that pulled the U.S. into World War II."

Only 5 Arizona survivors are still alive.

"The handful of Arizona survivors -- Lou Conter, Don Stratton, Ken Potts, Lonnie Cook and Lauren Bruner -- are all in their 90s and now find travel to be difficult,"

https://www.apnews.com/c12ddf5b7ba74263bf0dbdfd2e90141d
https://www.foxnews.com/us/pearl-harbor ... first-time

and a great generation is fading away

I hate to say it, but the public doesn't care a whit about Dec. 7th.

The community I grew up in found almost every house flying the flag on 12/2. By the early 2000s none were to be found. I would hang it, but people would as me why I did.

Ditto with "Flag Day". February 14th? In 2002 I drove around my community, pop 27,000 people, and about 3 homes were flying the flag.

Nobody cares any more. Patriotism is a distant memory.

What? After 5 deployments the vets don't care? Oh, oh, I forgot none of them are around. They're all off on their 6th deployment.

Don't worry, now we have sights like Facebook and Twitter, led by benevolent young CEOs with transcendent and magnanimous visions of the future whose platforms are allowing everyone to virtually assemble and sing kumbayah with no misgivings whatsoever... [;)]

Oh wait, no. It turns out that when you swipe any real-world base out from under people's feet, the end result is a whole lot of misanthropic self-loathing nimrods whose knowledge of history extends to whatever anecdotes they can toss forth to gain the upper hand in arguments they sarcastically acknowledge as being ultimately worthless.

Well, I remember. And I can trust the people on this sight to remember as well.

ORIGINAL: Rusty1961

I hate to say it, but the public doesn't care a whit about Dec. 7th.

The community I grew up in found almost every house flying the flag on 12/2. By the early 2000s none were to be found. I would hang it, but people would as me why I did.

Ditto with "Flag Day". February 14th? In 2002 I drove around my community, pop 27,000 people, and about 3 homes were flying the flag.

Nobody cares any more. Patriotism is a distant memory.

It's all a joke these days. Everything is a self-aware ironic joke to be mocked on fauxial media.

Also today, the Fleet Reserve Association (Branch 290) held it's annual Pearl Harbor remembrance. It was also the first time no Pearl Harbor survivors attended. The last member passed in September at 98.

http://coastguard.dodlive.mil/2014/12/p ... -that-day/

Just some of the lesser known facts about the Japanese attack.

Although the CGC Taney had an Aviation Officer assigned I'm (pretty) sure that the ship's aviation capabilities had been removed during her 1941 refit.

Last night I broke a twenty year tradition of watching Tora,Tora,Tora on December 7th, as Friday night is the night that I get together with friends for dinner and D&D. It was also the final episode in a year long campaign so there was no way that I could face myself if I skipped out on my friends. I did run a turn of AE when I got home (going to bed at 1AM as a result), so does that make up for it?

I did run a turn of AE when I got home (going to bed at 1AM as a result), so does that make up for it?

No, you should have 'watched' Tora, Tora, Tora while running your turn of AE, as did I.[:D]

When Pearl Harbor was attacked...my dad was twenty years old and living a very comfortable life. He was employed at Allison's making engines for the P-39 and P-40.
He made great wages and was driving a big black (second hand) Cadillac with the spare tires mounted on the rear of the front fenders.
His job would be labelled as "essential for the war effort", and that means he would have never been drafted.
That generation was not against fulfilling an obligation to the "Greatest Nation" on Earth, and folks felt obligated to the people who went before them, the people who created the Nation and secured our freedoms.
We did not take our Nation for granted back then.
We (as a Nation) knew how fragile freedoms are, and that each generation must fight to preserve it.

My dad, like many other dad's enlisted as soon as possible.

Dad washed out at Kelly Field after trying to be a fighter pilot...and was sent to OCS at Ft Benning, Ga...and earned his commission.
He went on to land on Omaha Beach as a young Lt with the 116th RCT of the 29th I.D.
Surviving the war, he then went to Korea as a Regimental S2 officer in the 45th ID.
He was on Pork Chop, White Horse, and "Old Baldy".

For my generation...I too enlisted right out of college, became a Ranger, and served a stint with the 2/503rd in Vietnam.

I (like many others on these forums) am a true minority.
I am a veteran.

Pearl Harbor is not forgotten.

Bob, well stated. I was going to go into the army but I failed the physical....GP

I failed my USAF physical, got a waiver, joined, served, and then got kicked out anyway. I wasn't the best behaved young airman. That has meant different things to people over the years. To this day, generally speaking, I would prefer working with a fellow veteran, but don't get to very much. There's just something about the approach to getting the job done. I didn't realize half the elephants I saw 'till I was long on the outside.

ORIGINAL: rustysi

I did run a turn of AE when I got home (going to bed at 1AM as a result), so does that make up for it?

No, you should have 'watched' Tora, Tora, Tora while running your turn of AE, as did I.[:D]

That would have kept me up until 3 AM! [>:]

ORIGINAL: bradfordkay

ORIGINAL: rustysi

I did run a turn of AE when I got home (going to bed at 1AM as a result), so does that make up for it?

No, you should have 'watched' Tora, Tora, Tora while running your turn of AE, as did I.[:D]

That would have kept me up until 3 AM! [>:]

Hehe, I was up 'til 2:30 AM.[:D]

So I get it.

When looking back at what the WWII generation did, it is amazing. Just looking at going from a very small military to the dominant power in just a few years, hard to believe. Taking a 21 year old from Kansas who never saw water or rode in a plane and in a few years he can navigate a destroyer in the middle of a night battle or fly a plane as complex as a B-24, or the courage it took to step off a landing craft Anzio, just amazing

As a Vet (Army) I think most other service men and women I know look back with deep respect on what the generations before us experienced and accomplished; be it Vietnam or Valley Forge.

Back in the early 2000s, one of my Great Aunts brought out her scrap book and told me stories about her time in Hawaii in early 1942. She got a war job working as a secretary for a relative who was a manager in the Pearl Harbor shipyard. He was project manager on the project to right the USS Oklahoma. Even 60 years later, she was still unhappy about the fact that the ship sank on the way to the West Coast later on.

My great uncle was stationed on the army base during the attack. I never met him; he was a West Point grad.

ORIGINAL: Mike Dubost

Back in the early 2000s, one of my Great Aunts brought out her scrap book and told me stories about her time in Hawaii in early 1942. She got a war job working as a secretary for a relative who was a manager in the Pearl Harbor shipyard. He was project manager on the project to right the USS Oklahoma. Even 60 years later, she was still unhappy about the fact that the ship sank on the way to the West Coast later on.

A lot of effort went into salvaging Oklahoma and getting her afloat again. The engineers had to do things never tried before, so regardless of Oklahoma's loss while under tow to WCUSA, the knowledge gained about how to salvage large hulks was invaluable to all humanity. If she is still alive, tell her to take pride in that!

to right the USS Oklahoma. Even 60 years later, she was still unhappy about the fact that the ship sank on the way to the West Coast later on.

Being towed home in order to scrap her. Maybe sinking was a better fate for her.

ORIGINAL: rustysi

to right the USS Oklahoma. Even 60 years later, she was still unhappy about the fact that the ship sank on the way to the West Coast later on.

Being towed home in order to scrap her. Maybe sinking was a better fate for her.

Scrapping sounds ignominious, but I would be proud to drive a car made of BB metal!