Remembering the WW2 Doolittle Raid

Doolittle's Raiders; Only Four Survive

[As we regain our national dignity following the Presidential election, we can remember, with honor, a select few of the heroes who protected our country from those who attacked us on December 7, 1941.  These men honored our flag, and put their lives at risk to allow their grandchildren, and great grandchildren, the freedom to express themselves, with some seeking out"safe spaces" offended by those intent on reforming the corrupt government which now is in place.   We also note that this was a period in which the Press reported accurately, and Hollywood was not a Communist colony. 

We salute these heroes!]

 THE FINAL TOAST!

They bombed Tokyo 74 years ago.

 

They once were among the most universally admired and revered men in the United States .. There were 80 of the Raiders in April 1942, when they carried out one of the most courageous and heart-stirring military operations in this nation's history. The mere mention of their unit's name, in those years, would bring tears to the eyes of grateful Americans.
 
  
After Japan's sneak attack on Pearl Harbor [December 7, 1941], with the United States reeling and wounded, our Pacific Fleet devastated,something dramatic was needed to turn the war effort around.
 
 
Although there were no friendly airfields close enough to Japan for the United States to launch a retaliation, a daring plan was devised. Sixteen B-25s
were modified so that they could take off from the deck of an aircraft carrier. This had never before been tried -- sending such big, heavy bombers from a carrier.
 
 

 
 

The 16 five-man crews, under the command of Lieutenant Colonel James Doolittle, who himself flew the lead plane off the USS Hornet, knew that they would not be able to return to the carrier.
They would have to hit Japan and then hope to make it to China for a safe landing.
 
 

But on the day of the raid, the Japanese military learned of the plan. The Raiders were told that they would have to take off from much farther out in the Pacific Ocean than they had counted on, so, they would not have enough fuel to make it to safety.

Undaunted, these crews went anyway.
 
They bombed Tokyo and then flew as far as they could. Four planes crash-landed;11 more crews bailed out, and three of the Raiders died. Eight more were captured; three were executed. 

 
 

Another died of starvation in a Japanese prison camp. One crew made it to Russia

The Doolittle Raiders sent a message from the United States to its enemies, and to the rest of the world: We will fight. And, no matter what it takes, we will win!
 
 
Of the 80 Raiders, 62 survived the war. They were celebrated as national heroes, models of bravery. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer produced a motion picture based on the raid; "Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo," starring Spencer Tracy and Van Johnson, was a patriotic and emotional box-office hit, and the phrase became part of the national lexicon. In the movie-theater previews for the film, MGM proclaimed that it was presenting
the story "with supreme pride."

Beginning in 1946, the surviving Raiders have held a reunion each April, to commemorate the mission. The reunion is in a different city each year. In 1959, the city of Tucson, Arizona, as a gesture of respect and gratitude, presented the Doolittle Raiders with a set of 80 silver goblets. Each goblet was engraved with the name of a Raider.  Every year, a wooden display case bearing all 80 goblets is transported to the reunion city. Each time a Raider passes away, his goblet is turned upside down in the case at the next reunion, as his old friends bear solemn witness.
 
 

Also, in the wooden case is a bottle of 1896 Hennessy Very Special cognac. The year is not happenstance: 1896 was when Jimmy Doolittle was born.
 
 

There has always been a plan: When there are only two surviving Raiders, they would open the bottle at last, drink from it and toast their comrades who preceded them in death.
 
As 2013 began, there were five living Raiders; then, in February, Tom Griffin passed away at age 96.
 
 

He defined the term "War Hero". After bailing out of his plane over a mountainous Chinese forest after the Tokyo raid, he became ill with malaria, and almost died. When he recovered, he was sent to Europe to fly more combat missions. He was shot down, captured, and spent 22 months in a German prisoner of war camp.
 
 

The selflessness of these men, the sheer guts ... there was a passage in the Cincinnati Enquirer obituary for Mr. Griffin that, on the surface, had nothing to do with the war,but that was emblematic of the depth of his sense of duty and devotion:
 
 
"When his wife became ill and needed to go into a nursing home, he visited her every day. He walked from his house to the nursing home, fed his wife and at the end of the day brought home her clothes. At night, he washed and ironed her clothes. Then he walked them up to her room the next morning. He did that for three years until her death in 2005."
 
 

So now, out of the original 80, only four Raiders remain: Dick Cole (Doolittle's co-pilot on the Tokyo raid), Robert Hite, Edward Saylor and David Thatcher. All are in their 90s.  They have decided that there are too few of them for the public reunions to continue.
 
 
The events in Fort Walton Beach marked the end. It has come full circle; Florida's nearby Eglin Field was where the Raiders trained in secrecy for the Tokyo mission. The town planned to do all it can to honor the men: a six-day celebration of their valor, including luncheons, a dinner and a parade.

Do the Dollittle Raiders ever wonder if those of us whom they helped to save the country have tended to it in a way that is worthy of their sacrifice? They don't talk about that, at least not around other people. But if you find yourself near Fort Walton Beach this week, and if you should encounter any of the Raiders, you might want to offer them a word of thanks. I can tell you from first hand observation that they appreciate hearing that
they are remembered.
 
 
The men have decided that after this final public reunion they will wait until a later date -- sometime this year -- to get together once more, informally
and in absolute privacy. That is when they will open the bottle of brandy. The years are flowing by too swiftly now; they are not going to wait until there are only two of them.
 
 
They will fill the four remaining upturned goblets. And raise them in a toast to those who are gone. 
 
 

Their 70th Anniversary Photo 

Only one member of the Doolittle Raid remains as fellow airman ... David Thatcher, a staff sergeant during the Doolittle Raid, smiles with pride as he listens to a speaker talk about the Doolittle Raiders, April 20, 2013 in Fort ...

Trump to Close ODNI?

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ObamaCare - An Election Referendum!

A new guest post by Betsy McCaughey

Here's How the Impending ObamaCare Disaster Affects You 

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You've been focused on the outrageous criminal conduct 

of Hillary and Bill now being revealed by 
WikiLeaks [aka: FBI/NSA/DIA]. 

Betsy lays out the issues we face if Trump 
is defeated and unable to repeal ObamaCare.

  Read this expose' and see how you will be affected.

This election is also a referendum on the Affordable Care Act. Almost everyone in America is affected. Contrary to what ObamaCare’s defenders claim, the law is hurting millions more people than it’s helping. Hillary Clinton defends it and wants to “build on it.” Donald Trump is promising to “repeal and replace the disaster known as ObamaCare.”  It’s probably our last chance. “Disaster” sums up the skyrocketing premiums and lack of choice facing many of the 11 million people enrolled in the exchange plans. The plans are unaffordable, unless you’re a low earner getting a free ride. ObamaCare enrollees aren’t the only people being clobbered.  If you get insured at work — as 155 million people do — your deductibles are up a staggering 49 percent since 2011 thanks to ObamaCare. Part-timers are working fewer hours, so business owners can avoid the law’s employer mandate. Taxpayers are on the hook for some 50 new taxes. Seniors get hit the hardest.  More than half of ObamaCare’s costs are paid for by cutting Medicare, resulting in stingy care for seniors. Here’s how ObamaCare affects you: Insured through work?  The law forces employers to provide a one-size-fits-all benefits package costing much more than pre-ObamaCare coverage. The law also imposes a slew of new taxes.  No surprise, employers are offsetting these costs by raising deductibles and reducing family coverage.  In 2017, many companies will eliminate insurance for spouses. Working part-time? Hundreds of thousands of workers have had their hours cut because ObamaCare requires employers to cover full-time employees, meaning those working 30 hours a week or more.  Ironically, colleges, where Democrats outnumber Republicans, are major culprits, slashing hours for adjuncts and student workers to avoid providing insurance. Job-hunting?  ObamaCare dampens the job market.  In New York, 17 percent of service companies and 21 percent of manufacturers are reducing their workforces to stay below 50 full-time workers and dodge the employer mandate, according to the New York Federal Reserve.  Sixty-five or older? ObamaCare awards bonus points to hospitals that spend the least per senior.    [Now a policy at VA]  Researchers found that at 231 hospitals getting bonuses for low spending, seniors died needlessly because of inadequate care. For example, seniors having heart attacks were forced to wait too long for angioplasties and died before they could get the procedure. ObamaCare emergency-room rules slap seniors with bills for “observation care.” You’re in the hospital, but you’re not officially “admitted.” It’s a cost-cutting gimmick.  When it’s time to go home, Medicare doesn’t pay and you’re stuck with a huge tab.

A Physician?

Thank ObamaCare for the thousands of pages of new regulations dictating how you treat your Medicare patients. Precious minutes that could be spent talking to a patient are wasted filling out tedious, repetitive government forms. 

Physicians are glued to computer screens, following prompts instead of making eye contact with their patients and listening to them.

Refusenik? 

If you’re uninsured and refuse to buy ObamaCare, the average penalty is $995 per adult, $500 per child. Ouch.

Clinton promises voters that she’ll make ObamaCare better with billions of dollars of extra spending. 

1. But she’s not going to remove the mandates causing people to lose work hours or their jobs. 
2. As for the regulations suffocating doctors, count on Hillary to pile on more.
3. Worst of all, Clinton wants to expand Medicare to people in their 50s.          
4. Seniors are already having a hard time finding a doctor to treat them for Medicare’s low rates. 
5. Adding millions of “50-somethings” trying to see the same doctors will make it impossible to get an appointment.

Trump knows ObamaCare has to be junked

His plan eliminates the unaffordable mandates and penalties. Consumers will choose from a wide variety of plans, sold across state lines, with special help for people with pre-existing conditions.

Trump gives states flexibility to improve Medicaid for the poor. His plan resembles what House Republicans are pushing, which means it might actually get passed. 

On Nov. 8, voters have the chance to 

rid this nation of ObamaCare. 

They should seize it!