December 7th, 1941 - a Date Which Will...

[LongBlade]

We've gone pretty much 24 hours without mentioning the "anniversary" of Pearl Harbor.

I don't want to belabor the point, nor ignore it.

But I do wonder if it has reached that point in time where it has passed from living memory into "the past."

[Martok]

I was wondering that as well. 

I'm guessing it's likely to happen sooner or later, however distressing I find the notion to be.  Unfortunately, the simple truth is that the number of folks who are old enough to still remember that day -- and who I feel are so critical to helping us remember it -- is becoming smaller each day. 

I realize that's far from the only factor, of course, but it is indicative of how long ago (relatively speaking) that day is for most folks today. 

[GDS_Starfury]

I think in modern times 9/11 has taken the impact out of Pearl Harbor.

[Airborne Rifles]

We'll, the History Channel had a Pawn Stars marathon on yesterday...

[Gusington]

RIP to all lost at Pearl Harbor. For my family personally it was an important day because my maternal Grandpa was already discharged from the regular US Army and then shortly after December 7, 1941, he was brought back into the US Army, in which he served until the end of the war in North Africa, Italy and Sicily. December 7, 1941 was also his 26th birthday. What a way to celebrate :/ At least he was in the artillery and could the fire big guns.

[BanzaiCat]

Last night the Toys for Tots Marine Corps Reserve guys made mention of the anniversary of Pearl Harbor, and it got a huge (good) reaction from us all. I thought this exact thing, wondering what happened to it all.

Did THC really only show Pawn Stars all day? That's atrocious.

[GDS_Starfury]

sadly, most of the world does not have our historical perspective.
in the world of today WW2 is a black and white film eclipsed by a decade of war that was kicked off by a similar bolt from the blue.  as I said, our era has had its Pearl Harbor.

[LongBlade]

as I said, our era has had its Pearl Harbor.

It has.

Too bad we haven't learned to respect our Constitution now any better than we did then.

[mirth]

I did an all day gaming event with my buddies on Dec. 7. Many of us went to a local brew pub after. We raised a glass to those who fought and sacrificed at Pearl Harbor that day.

[undercovergeek]

from a country rife with anti-german songs (in a good natured british humourly way, not nasty), we have the world cups and the world wars we always like to sing about and they are our biggest sporting rivals - certainly in football

is there an air of anti-japanese feeling around this time of year? can you guys take the piss out of japanese folks over the pub table - or is it still rawer than that?

[GDS_Starfury]

none at all.

[mirth]

yeah there really isn't any negative sentiment toward the Japanese these days. I don't even recall it much from my Grandad (who was in the Navy during the war) and most others I knew/know from his generation.

There seems to a clear understanding that modern Japan is not the Japan of the war period.

[GDS_Starfury]

I remember feeling guilty once when I realized I was at a Japanese restaurant eating sushi one Memorial Day.

[Gusington]

My maternal Grandfather hated the Japanese even though he never fought against them, he fought against the Italians and Germans. My paternal Grandfather who did fight in the Pacific did not live long enough for me to know.

[LongBlade]

I remember being a kid hearing my classmates refer to Japanese cars and cycles as "rice-burners" but since the 1980s I can't remember much negative at all. On the contrary, their management methods (which came from American theories that Americans had ignored) were respected and being studied.

We tend not to hate anyone for long. It's one of the reasons that when Serbia and the Balkans were falling apart several years back, we couldn't figure out why they were upset about a battle that took place 400 years before.