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#1
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06-23-2009, 08:21 AM
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Photos From the 1941 Japanese Bombing of Pearl Harbor
On December 7, 1941, a date which President Franklin D. Roosevelt famously proclaimed "a date which will live in infamy," the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii was attacked by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service. This surprise military strike was aimed at crippling the U.S. Pacific Fleet and was a pivotal moment in World War II, leading to the direct involvement of the United States in the global conflict. The attack commenced in the early morning hours and was executed in two waves by Japanese aircraft. The U.S. forces at Pearl Harbor were caught largely unprepared, and the attack inflicted significant damage. Eight U.S. Navy battleships were damaged, with four being sunk, including the USS Arizona, which suffered a magazine explosion causing the majority of the fatalities. Additionally, the attack damaged or destroyed numerous other vessels, aircraft, and base facilities. The human toll was severe, with over 2,400 Americans killed and approximately 1,100 wounded. The loss of life, the scale of destruction, and the surprise nature of the attack deeply shocked the American public and galvanized support for entering World War II. Japan's objectives with the Pearl Harbor attack were to prevent the U.S. Pacific Fleet from interfering with its planned military actions in Southeast Asia and to gain a strategic advantage in the Pacific. However, the attack had the opposite effect, uniting American public opinion against Japan and leading to the U.S. declaring war on Japan the following day, December 8, 1941. Shortly thereafter, Germany and Italy declared war on the United States, formally involving the U.S. in both the European and Pacific theaters of World War II. |
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#9
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09-10-2009, 05:58 AM
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Re: Photos From the 1941 Japanese Bombing of Pearl Harbor
I always thought pearl harbor was an inside job? :D Boats do not sink at free-fall speed. Plus in the video, you can clearly see a boat explode before the bomb hits! |