Tuesday, December 2, 2008

Hawaii Part 2

There were only 3 places that I absolutely insisted on seeing. Thankfully, the same 3 places were on everyone's mind. One of those places was Pearl Harbor.


This is the memorial that is built over the Arizona. For those who don't know any history, the Arizona was a ship that was sunk by the Japanese and we lost over 1100 lives with that ship alone. Many of the men who died on the Arizona remain in the ship below the surface.



At one end of the memorial is a wall which lists the names of the lost men. Many of those who survived Pearl Harbor have asked that upon their death that their remains be buried alongside their comrades. There are several urns placed along the wall of some of these men.

As soon as you step onto the national landmark, you feel a sense of loss and grief for these men who gave their lives. Everyone speaks in whispers and are very respectful.



The Arizona continues to leak oil...some 60 years after the attack. I'm not sure how much or how long it will continue to leak. But, it's disturbing to think that after 60+ years that this ship continues to "live" as it leaks its lifeblood into the ocean. I couldn't get my video uploaded that shows the oil actually ascending to the surface.



This is the Missouri ("Mighty Mo"), the site of the Japanese surrender to General MacArthur in 1945. It's pretty impressive when you're on board. Those guns are HUGE. And did you know that this same ship was used in the Gulf War? They outfitted her with Tomahawk missiles and some other impressive combat weapon (can you tell that I don't know much about weaponry?). The thing that impressed me with this was that this ship was so powerful during the Gulf War, that she could fire and pound our enemies from so far away that they couldn't discern where the bombardment was originating.


They have some bomb thing and flags from all 50 states next to the ship. Here I am standing next to the Indiana state flag (the blue one with the torch directly to my right).

A couple of thoughts before we leave Pearl Harbor. Many tours were given while we were there. We did a self-tour and at one point, we were overrun by a Japanese tour group. Never before did I wish I could speak Japanese so badly. I wondered how the history was recited for these tourists. After all, history is written by the victors. As we toured, everywhere you looked or heard, the American soldiers were being lauded and praised. And the Japanese were depicted as enemies who plotted and executed a heinous act.

Finally, I was struck by the patriotism shown by all Americans who toured here. Many of the tourists were obviously military (haircuts and uniforms give them away). I have always been proud to be an American. And as I visited this site, I was impressed again that although beaten, Americans do not give up. We rally to the cause and fight the good fight.

I'm proud to be an American!

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