On the night of 17 August 1942, two thousand miles southwest of Hawaii, the Raiders surfaced in the middle of a tropical storm. The heavy rain and high sea states frustrated the Raiders as they made their way up to the main deck of the submarine to pull and build their inflatable rubber boats which were in the storage locker on deck. The Raiders had difficulty timing their jumps from the submarine to the rubber boats resulting in many falling in. Additionally, due to a faulty design of the spark plugs in the outboard motors, the Marines paddled to shore. Eventually, at 0430, just before civil twilight , the Raiders made landfall. Carlson’s original plan was for A and B companies to land on different beaches, but due to the heavy weather he …show more content…
Once the Japanese realized the Raiders overwhelming abilities were crushing them, they attempted two Banzai Charges . Most of the Japanese were killed in this action. Around the afternoon as the battle began to subside, the Japanese attempted to land reinforcements via seaplanes. The Marines forced one to crash and the other to ignite from viscous machine gun fire. Moreover, the Japanese also attempted to send two small ships into the lagoon which the submarines sunk using their deck guns. Although the Raiders did not realize it, they almost destroyed all of the entire Japanese forces. The Raiders also gained valuable resources by gaining favor with the local Makin inhabitants. It is through this relationship they were able to gain much needed intelligence on enemy positions. As the Raiders mission was complete, orders for departure were passed, readying the rubber boats. Unbeknownst to the Raiders, the surf began to become incredibly difficult to navigate. The engines on the boats still did not work, forcing the men to paddle. Already exhausted from the ensuing battle the Raiders quickly became at a …show more content…
But I believe these gallant men who so eagerly, so willingly, went forth to meet the enemy would not have us weep and bemoan their passing. … They believed that if this country of ours is to be saved, the job of saving it belongs to those who enjoy the benefits of our institutions. They didn’t ask someone else to perform the task for them. They went out to do it themselves to the supreme heights of human achievement. Rather than have us weep over this achievement, I believe they would have us rejoice with them at the example of courage, of fortitude, and of nobility of character they have set for us. … We salute you as comrades. We salute you as Raiders, as Marines, as Americans, as men. God bless
They grabbed them and started rowing toward shore. The Oiler complained about the rowing, but that didn’t stop them. They weren’t just rowing for their own lives, but the lives of their comrades. The captain made sure to tell the rowers to take it easy, if they have to start swimming for shore they will need all their strength to do so. The boat began to turn it’s nose to the wind, once again.
"Dear Mom and Dad: The war that has taken my life, and many thousands of others before me, is immoral, unlawful, and an atrocity," (letter of anonymous soldier qtd. In Fussell 653).
Drama ‘Saving Private Ryan’ salutes the ‘citizen soldier of WWII’.” L.A. Times 10, May 1998: 4/13/99 http://www.multimania.com/spielbrg
When the flag was finished and he showed the men, they all saluted it and many began to cry. When the guards came across Mike’s treasure, he was beaten bloody. But remarkably, “He recovered in a couple of weeks and immediately started looking for another piece of cloth,” (Thorsness 109). This event is a clear demonstration of the pride each and every soldier feels for America. It demonstrated their ever growing desire for freedom.
"There is one front and one battle where everyone in the United States—every man, woman, and child—is in action, and will be privileged to remain in action throughout this war. That front is right here at home, in our daily lives, and in our daily tasks."
One of the darkest times in American history was the conflict with the natives. A “war” fought with lies and brute force, the eviction and genocide of Native Americans still remains one of the most controversial topics when the subject of morality comes up. Perhaps one of the most egregious events to come of this atrocity was the Sand Creek Massacre. On the morning of November 29th, 1864, under the command of Colonel John Chivington, 700 members of the Colorado Volunteer Cavalry raped, looted, and killed the members of a Cheyenne tribe (Brown 86-94). Hearing the story of Sand Creek, one of the most horrific acts in American History, begs the question: Who were the savages?
"I made my first visit to them as chaplain on Sunday morning. The scene beggars all description. Some of them were comparatively young men. But they made the fatal mistake. They had only twenty-four hours to live.... Here was a wife to say farewell to a husband forever. Here a mother to take the last look at her ruined son, and then a sister who had come to embrace for the last time the brother who had brought disgrace upon the very name she bore by his treason to his country."
On May 5, 1945, the 6th Bomb Squadron 29th Bomb Group 314th Wing had just completed a bombing run on Tachairai air depot and was returning to our base in Guam. The following crew members were onboard: William R. Fredericks, Co-Pilot; Howard T. Shingledecker, Bombardier; Charles Kearns, Navigator; Dale Plambeck, Radar Navigator; Teddy Poncezki, Engineer; John Colehower, Gunner; Cpl. Johnson, Gunner; Cpl. Oeinck, Gunner; Cpl. Czarnecki, Gunner; Robert Williams, Radio Operator; and myself as pilot.
This gathering to honor the American Veteran is a tribute to their glory and their devotion to duty.
rocket propelled grenades, but its American crew of about 20 successfully blockaded themselves in the engine room and warded off the attack with evasive maneuvers…. The U.S. plans to send an envoy to an April 23rd conference on piracy in Brussels.” (MSNBC News). The pirates, abandoned and even in some cases committed suicide from the overwhelming force of America. The U.S. Navy was on th...
General Douglas MacArthur uses pathos in his speech. To give gratitude to the soldiers have been fighting beside him and to those who has devoted their life on the battlefield, he told the audience how some of his brothers died uncomplaining with honor and glory in their hearts. Such words have the ability to arise American's appreciation along with sympathy. How some people will devote their life for the love of their country is, indeed, something that is truly affecting.
In the early morning of 19 February 1945, United States Marines assigned to the 3rd, 4th and 5th Marine Division led the initial assault on the Japanese controlled island of Iwo Jima, with the objective of capturing and securing the island. This was the beginning of one of the fiercest and bloodiest; and more decisively, the most strategically important battles fought during World War II. After the dust had settled, and the smoke had cleared, the causalities and losses were astounding. 6,821 U.S. Marines along with 18,844 members of the Imperial Japanese Army had paid the ultimate sacrifice. A decisive US victory on the island of Iwo Jima later played a pivotal role in the overarching defeat of the Japanese Empire and its Armed Forces (Morison, 1945).
...though people believe that, those on the home front have it just as a bad as the soldiers, because they have to deal with the responsibilities of their husbands, there is nothing that can compare to what these men have gone through. The war itself consumed them of their ideology of a happy life, and while some might have entered the war with the hope that they would soon return home, most men came to grips with the fact that they might never make it out alive. The biggest tragedy that follows the war is not the number of deaths and the damages done, it is the broken mindset derives from being at war. These men are all prime examples of the hardships of being out at war and the consequences, ideologies, and lifestyles that develop from it.
In the front lines here in Western Germany, France, and Belgium, it’s all about defending the Fatherland, watching for artillery attacks, trying to stay alive and low, and making sure to run from any grenades, and most importantly, help save those that you can. The only people in the world I love more than each and every one of these boys, is you, my family. I feel so defeated when one of these young men die. The first to go was Albert, with an infected leg. I hope that if God claims these boys, he does it quickly and painlessly. I hope to set an example for them, and for you, on the subjects of honor and duty. I hope that if you, my family, ever had to go into war, that someone would take care of you as I’ve taken care of these boys, my second family, my frontlines family. They alone have seen me at my worst, and still follow me, look up to me as I hope you, my family do. I pray that you never see what I have seen, these horrors of war, the killing, explosions, dismembered boys, young men, old men, all lying on the fields, eaten by rats, disease, infection, infestation, the absolute worst conditions of all