A Day That Will Live In Infamy

Today is that day that FDR said was "a day that will live in infamy", 64 years later. Ask anyone that was old enough to remember that day in 1941 and they will tell you, it was a Sunday just like any other Sunday, before Christmas. My father said he was listening to a radio show called, Captain Midnight, when the news came through. There was no CNN, no Fox News, and no 24 hour news cycle complete with sound bites.

In the days leading up to that moment in time, Roosevelt had been arguing for assisting Britain in their time of need, as the Nazis relentlessly bombed the island. Many isolationists were in government and were very resistant to entering what was then perceived as, Europe's war. (They had their heads in the sand, just as Neville Chamberlain and company did before the Battle of Britain.) Many even formed a committee called the America First Committee, with the support and blessings of one famous name, Charles Lindbergh.

They were adamant. They were loud, they were vocal. They participated in the debate and made enough noise, up to that point in time, because FDR could not garner enough support to enter the war. So we didn't.

But when the bombs fell in an unprovoked attack by the Japanese Navy, Americans suddenly woke up. Those that opposed the war before the attack, suddenly were able to come to grips with the fact that they were wrong. There were a few that held out, they held out throughout the war and held out until they died. But the vast majority overcame the sin of human pride and began supporting the effort, after a provocative attack designed to both punish and weaken.

Let's read a short account of this by the former mayor of New York City Ed Koch, posted in an essay last July on the site Real Clear Politics. (I recommend reading the whole piece, because it ties in with the point I am trying to make.)

In 1941, when Japan attacked us at Pearl Harbor and Hitler declared war on the U.S. four days later, there were opponents of the Roosevelt policy of supporting the survival of a British government seeking to repel the pending Nazi invasion. Many of them were allied with the America First Committee led by Charles Lindbergh who sought to use anti-Semitism to coalesce the country, blaming the Jews for the world’s ills. Under that umbrella organization, there were Nazi supporters and others who sought to be neutral in what was then clearly becoming a war of civilizations, pitting European and American democracy against fascist totalitarianism.

Did you catch that? Did you catch the part about the war of civilizations? How familiar does that sound?

Let's read on:

The America First Committee dissolved after December 7, 1941, and most of its adherents stood shoulder-to-shoulder against the enemies of the U.S. and Western civilization.

Let's see, they argued against entering the war, in spite of the formidable threat that was openly apparent. They made their cases. FDR listened to them (for a season) and did not act on his intuitions. And then, when America was attacked, they dissolved the America First Committee and rallied around the cause, the cause of victory.

What a generation of Americans and what a generation of statesmen that must have been. To think that they could disagree, but when the chips were down and American men were going into combat, they could put their differences aside and support the cause of victory for the greatest nation that ever graced this planet.

Now, let's bring this up to more recent history. This generation has now seen its "day of infamy", Sept. 11, 2001. On that day, there was an unprovoked attack on the United States of America. Two planes took down the two towers, one hit the Pentagon, and one took out a field on their way to (probably) somewhere in Washington. But what happened, then?

The people and government united and sang kumbaya, for a little while.

The Administration got approval from Congress to remove the Taliban from Afghanistan and begin to disrupt and break up Al Qaeda. They were successful. During this time, the anthrax attacks were going on, people were definitely concerned. So with all of that in mind, you can see how the whole country was thinking at this time, immediately following this "day of infamy". But that wasn't all.

If that wasn't enough, the threat reports were showing Saddam stood a good chance of possessing WMDs. And that's not all, the previous Administration thought he had them too. So, then we faced a quandry that was debated and argued, the measure was put to a vote. What to do, what to do? On one hand do we vote aginst it and risk that he really does have them? Or, do we get rid the world of him, once and for all, removing all doubt? So, the Congress approved it and rolled the dice with the President. Saddam was to disarm/leave or be disarmed/removed. He refused. We kept our word.

Now, there are many who want to go back and change their vote just as we are getting to the point where we can look at a reasonable exit strategy. They do not want to stay the course. They are now screaming "Vietnam", when Vietnam was much more bloody, more dangerous, and without clearcut objectives. If you don't believe me, visit "In The Middle Of America", where the bloghost G, has done some research and posted some contrasts, between Iraq and Vietnam.

They are not rallying around the cause of victory, they want to cut and run. That's what they want for their legacy and their contribution to this country, in this time of danger. For the life of me, I cannot imagine the "Greatest Generation" cutting and running from this fight. I just can't. I cannot imagine that any that opposed WWII before the attack on that "day of infamy" would want to go back and change their vote, either. They wanted to win. They knew that the best way to get their boys back home sooner, was to unite for victory.

So to all WWII veterans and those that stayed home and supported the war effort in the best way you could, I say, "thank all of you for the sacrifices you all made and thank you all for not cutting and running".

Cross-posted at The Wide Awakes