Pearl Harbor and Forgetting History (Updated (not much) from 12/3/2014)

 

(U.S. Navy photo by Chief Mass Communication Specialist Ryan J. Courtade/Released)

This photo slipped through all the "bullshit" filters and was finally caught and declared "inaccurate."  The story has it, that all five carriers were ordered back to port for "routine maintenance," which is the issue in dispute.  MPR News says they have ferreted out the truth, an excerpt of which I have added below, along with the link, so you can read the short article from February 25, 2013:

What’s the real story? Welcome to the sequester. 

First, the picture was actually taken in mid-December, not this month. Second, none was ordered into port for “routine maintenance.” 

The USS Enterprise was retired from the Navy in January. It’s being dismantled. 

The USS Eisenhower deployed on Thursday and is on its way to the Middle East to relieve the USS Stennis, which will return to its home port on the West Coast. The Eisenhower was in port for two months to get its flight deck resurfaced. 

The USS Harry Truman was to depart on a mission to the Central Command in early February, but Navy officials asked the secretary of defense to cancel that mission, which presumably was to the Persian Gulf where the U.S. has had two aircraft carriers. Now it will have one — the Eisenhower. 

The USS Bush was not ordered into port for “routine inspections.” It had been undergoing tests of its ability to have aircraft, which it does not presently have. Its cruise was canceled because of the sequester. 

The USS Lincoln also was not ordered into port for routine maintenance. It was in port for a two-year refueling mission, which the Navy has now canceled because of the sequester cuts. 

http://blogs.mprnews.org/newscut/2013/02/the_truth_behind_the_aircraft/

All things being equal, and knowing we can "believe" everything we read on the internet, I'll make the assumption their story sucks less than the one currently circulating.  They address the inaccuracy of the original story, but they do not address the vitally important point of the story.  Why they're in port is immaterial.  The fact we have four aircraft carriers lined up, and vulnerable to a strafing run by any incoming fighter force, is a mistake we made once before.  The photograph depicts what a Japanese Type 99 "Val" or Type 00 "Zero" would have seen, just before they visited "total destruction" on the American fleet, at Pearl Harbor.  I mean, you don't have to be an Intelligence analyst to ask, "How could they miss?"

"Always we will remember the onslaught against us." 

Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Pearl Harbor Speech - December 8, 1941

It would seem the U.S. Navy has forgotten "the onslaught against us."  As a military man, I find this seeming incompetence troubling.  I'm sure they ran the idea up the flagpole and came up with an acceptable excuse, as the military hierarchy always does, for putting these aircraft carriers in harm's way.  A "sequester" is not a reason, and the Navy should have balked at the idea of this regardless of who ordered it.  Their reasoning will seem valid... until the carriers are destroyed during another bombing run.  "Always we will remember..."  Will we?  Always?  History repeats itself.

I would like to think, we have fighters on strip alert while these ships are in port, ready at a moment's notice, to take down any encroaching aircraft.  Let's hope they do a better job than the Secret Service in protecting the White House, or the military in protecting the Pentagon.  Rule of thumb, no matter how prepared you are, something will always go wrong.  Be prepared for what you didn't prepare for. 

According to a couple of Murphy's New Military Laws:

1.  There are two kinds of naval vessels: Submarines and targets.

2.  Surprise is an event that takes place in the mind of a commander.

I will remember history.  I always do.  The curse of Intelligence personnel.  I will remember the 2471 lives that were lost at Pearl Harbor, due to our smug incompetence.  I will remember what it took to get our navy back into fighting condition after the attack.  I will remember we did all this with a President, a Congress, a military, and the American people who were capable of coming together. We united against a threat to our existence as a nation.  As a patriot, I  hope we can do it all again if, God forbid, it is required of us.  From what I see, I am a bit concerned.

Of course, all of this is just an opinion.  It could be wrong.  I doubt it, but it could be.

I invite those interested in additional reading to visit another on this subject: Revisiting Pearl Harbor.

Editor's Note

(Re: disclaimer cum "get out of jail free" card)

Before you go getting your panties in a bunch - it is essential to understand that this is just an opinion site and, as such, can be subjected to scrutiny by anyone with a differing opinion. It doesn't make either view any more right or wrong than the other. Opinion, presented in this context, is a way of inciting others to think and, hopefully, to form their own opinions, if they haven't already done so. This is also why, occasionally, I will present an "opinion" just to stir an emotional pot. Where it may sound like I agree with the statements made, I'm more interested in getting others to consider an alternate viewpoint.

I fervently hope that we keep open and active minds when reading opinions while engaging in peaceful and constructive discussion in an arena of mutual respect concerning those opinions offered. After twenty-three years of military intelligence, I believe that engaging each other in this manner, and in this arena, is a way we will learn tolerance and respect for differing beliefs, cultures, and viewpoints.

We all fall from grace, some more often than others; it is part of being human. God's test for us is what we learn from the experience... and what we do afterward.

Pastor Tony spent 22 years with United States Air Force Intelligence as a planner, analyst, briefer, instructor, and senior manager. Following his service career, he spent 17 years working with the premier and world-renowned Western Institutional Review Board, helping to protect the rights of human subjects involved in pharmaceutical research. He also served 8 years on the Board of Directors for the Angela J. Bowen Foundation.

Ordained in 2013 as an "interfaith" minister, he founded the Congregation for Religious Tolerance in response to intolerance shown by Christians toward peaceful Islam. As a weapon for his war on intolerance, he chose the pen. He wages his "battle" in the guise of the Congregation's official online blog, The Path, of which he is both author and editor. "The Path" offers a vehicle for commentary and guidance concerning one's personal, spiritual path toward peace and the final destination for us all. He resides in Pass Christian, Mississippi, where he volunteered as the lead chaplain at a regional medical center.

Feel free to contact Pastor Tony at: tolerantpastor@gmail.com