Pearl Harbor
December 8th, 2005 by rsm
Sixty-four years ago. Just a lifetime, but an important one in which our country changed to become one of the pre-eminant players on the world stage. Those who still remember that day are fewer than they were last year, even yesterday. We were attacked on our own land, though it wasn’t within our continental territory, unlike recent attacks.
And unlike recent attacks, we came together as a nation. That generation of young adults, often dubbed “The Greatest Generation,” were sober to the realization there was a job to do. It was a wake up call to the point of battle, the Pacific, and as long as we were at it, we might as well take care of things with another who had already indicated his hatred of us, proven himself as a threat to his neighbors and even to those within his own country whom he and his fellow leaders deemed less worthy than they.
My first degree is in history, focussed on the period between the two wars along with the Second World War itself. This included study in Germany for a different perspective. I only mention it because I really do see the parallels from a more than an amateur standpoint as I am sometimes accused. But I also see the differences.
The parents of the Greatest Generation were not happy about seeing their children off, but they knew it necessary. Also, they understood that while the fighters were “their children,” they were also adults. They were tired from the effects of the Depression, but knew hard work, should a man… and eventually a woman… be able to find work, was always necessary. They were used to sacrifice, so additional sacrifices were par for the course, unlike our current generation of leaders and older adults.
Many of our kids today see this moment as a time with a call to duty. I talk with some of them every day. Most of those come from homes that are used to self-discipline over instant gratification. I find the error with my own and my parents’ generations who grew comfortable and willing to give themselves to whatever pleasure, whim or moral struck them as convenient at the time. This is the example we are giving the latest group of young adults, and yet some see the folly of our ways, a maturity we never achieved as a whole. Make no mistake, the Greatest Generation enjoyed themselves, living and playing hard, but also many dying far too young so the rest of us could live. It is our duty to honor them.
And for those who say no good can come from conflict, I used to be one of you. I am no longer. Reality set in with a vengeance along with historical perspective and research. From that conflict all those years ago, we did set the world stage for new problems that we weren’t ready to tackle at the time, but we also became close allies with one of our most culturally different and fierce enemies.
On my iPod I have a number of playlists. In many of those are interspersed public service announcements from that era, serving as a reminder. Deep voices enjoined us then to share rides, donate waste paper for artillery shells, avoid eating red meat as often because the “boys at the front need it,” and to even save our used fats. Today we “sacrifice” by spending a couple of bucks at Walmart for a removable ribbon magnet to show we support our soldiers, though few of us have any direct connection to them. (I’m about to get started on that one too.)
I wonder what our grandparents think about that. I know we owe their brothers and sisters who died before their children were born, or even conceived, better than that.
Remember.
Sixty-four years ago. Just a lifetime, but an important one in which our country changed to become one of the pre-eminant players on the world stage. Those who still remember that day are fewer than they were last year, even yesterday. We were attacked on our own land, though it wasn’t within our continental territory, unlike recent attacks.
And unlike recent attacks, we came together as a nation. That generation of young adults, often dubbed “The Greatest Generation,” were sober to the realization there was a job to do. It was a wake up call to the point of battle, the Pacific, and as long as we were at it, we might as well take care of things with another who had already indicated his hatred of us, proven himself as a threat to his neighbors and even to those within his own country whom he and his fellow leaders deemed less worthy than they.
My first degree is in history, focussed on the period between the two wars along with the Second World War itself. This included study in Germany for a different perspective. I only mention it because I really do see the parallels from a more than an amateur standpoint as I am sometimes accused. But I also see the differences.
The parents of the Greatest Generation were not happy about seeing their children off, but they knew it necessary. Also, they understood that while the fighters were “their children,” they were also adults. They were tired from the effects of the Depression, but knew hard work, should a man… and eventually a woman… be able to find work, was always necessary. They were used to sacrifice, so additional sacrifices were par for the course, unlike our current generation of leaders and older adults.
Many of our kids today see this moment as a time with a call to duty. I talk with some of them every day. Most of those come from homes that are used to self-discipline over instant gratification. I find the error with my own and my parents’ generations who grew comfortable and willing to give themselves to whatever pleasure, whim or moral struck them as convenient at the time. This is the example we are giving the latest group of young adults, and yet some see the folly of our ways, a maturity we never achieved as a whole. Make no mistake, the Greatest Generation enjoyed themselves, living and playing hard, but also many dying far too young so the rest of us could live. It is our duty to honor them.
And for those who say no good can come from conflict, I used to be one of you. I am no longer. Reality set in with a vengeance along with historical perspective and research. From that conflict all those years ago, we did set the world stage for new problems that we weren’t ready to tackle at the time, but we also became close allies with one of our most culturally different and fierce enemies.
On my iPod I have a number of playlists. In many of those are interspersed public service announcements from that era, serving as a reminder. Deep voices enjoined us then to share rides, donate waste paper for artillery shells, avoid eating red meat as often because the “boys at the front need it,” and to even save our used fats. Today we “sacrifice” by spending a couple of bucks at Walmart for a removable ribbon magnet to show we support our soldiers, though few of us have any direct connection to them. (I’m about to get started on that one too.)
I wonder what our grandparents think about that. I know we owe their brothers and sisters who died before their children were born, or even conceived, better than that.
Remember.