Battles that Changed (American) History, Period 2, 12-3
Steve greeted his class on Friday with, "December seventh, 1941. The attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, and a day that will live in infamy. Context: World War II, the second war to end all wars, was already well underway in Europe, Africa, and Asia, but the United States had thus far declined to get involved. We were certainly going to, at least in my world--" the fact that Steve had already been retrofitted was proof of that-- "but we hadn't picked our moment yet. So Japan decided to do it for us. This has generally been regarded as a mistake." He clicked the control in his hand, and the Danger Shop turned into a harbor, with naval ships at anchor.
"On the morning of December seventh, the US Pacific Fleet lay at anchor here, in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. This was standard, and there was nothing awry...until the bombs started dropping. Nine ships sank, including four battleships, twenty-one were severely damaged, over two thousand people died, and close to thirteen hundred more were injured. The attack was unprovoked, unannounced, and came before Japan had declared war on the United States, and frankly, all it accomplished was to piss a whole lot of Americans off." Ooh, strong language there, Steve. "America was in the war now, all right, and the wheels started turning. Young men enlisted by the thousands, even before the draft was called for, and America--as one of the most industrialized nations in the world at the time, with plentiful natural resources--turned their production lines toward war.
"The war would drag on for four more years, ending in Europe a few months before it did in the Pacific theater. And in the Pacific, it would end with the only two times the nuclear bomb, the most horrific weapon in any arsenal on Earth, has been deployed in war in human history, when the United States bombed the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. A lot of people, myself included, feel that it was unnecessary to drop the a-bomb, and that the catastrophic loss of life that followed could have been avoided, but it can't be denied that the memory of Pearl Harbor was involved in the decision to do so. The lesson to be learned here? Don't try to get someone to turn around and punch you in the nose, because when they do, you'll regret it.
"This is a simulation, not the real thing--Portalocity and I don't get along--but you're welcome to take the rest of class to explore the area. You may want to visit the USS Arizona Memorial."
"On the morning of December seventh, the US Pacific Fleet lay at anchor here, in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. This was standard, and there was nothing awry...until the bombs started dropping. Nine ships sank, including four battleships, twenty-one were severely damaged, over two thousand people died, and close to thirteen hundred more were injured. The attack was unprovoked, unannounced, and came before Japan had declared war on the United States, and frankly, all it accomplished was to piss a whole lot of Americans off." Ooh, strong language there, Steve. "America was in the war now, all right, and the wheels started turning. Young men enlisted by the thousands, even before the draft was called for, and America--as one of the most industrialized nations in the world at the time, with plentiful natural resources--turned their production lines toward war.
"The war would drag on for four more years, ending in Europe a few months before it did in the Pacific theater. And in the Pacific, it would end with the only two times the nuclear bomb, the most horrific weapon in any arsenal on Earth, has been deployed in war in human history, when the United States bombed the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. A lot of people, myself included, feel that it was unnecessary to drop the a-bomb, and that the catastrophic loss of life that followed could have been avoided, but it can't be denied that the memory of Pearl Harbor was involved in the decision to do so. The lesson to be learned here? Don't try to get someone to turn around and punch you in the nose, because when they do, you'll regret it.
"This is a simulation, not the real thing--Portalocity and I don't get along--but you're welcome to take the rest of class to explore the area. You may want to visit the USS Arizona Memorial."