US veterans return to Iwo Jima for 70th anniversary

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP-Excite

By ERIC TALMADGE

IOTO, Japan (AP) — Dozens of aging U.S. veterans, many in their early 90s and some in wheelchairs, gathered on the tiny, barren island of Iwo Jima on Saturday to mark the 70th anniversary of one of the bloodiest and most iconic battles of World War II.

More than 30 veterans flown in from the U.S. island territory of Guam toured the black sand beaches where they invaded the deeply dug-in forces of the island's Japanese defenders in early 1945.

They were bussed to the top of Mount Suribachi, an active volcano, where an Associated Press photo of the raising of the American flag while the battle was still raging became a potent symbol of hope and valor to a war-weary public back home that was growing increasingly disillusioned with the seemingly unending battle in the Pacific.

For some of the veterans, the return to the island where many of their comrades died, and which is still inhabited only by a contingent of Japanese military troops, brought out difficult emotions.

FULL story at link.



A U.S. veteran with uniform attends a ceremony commemorating the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Iwo Jima, now known officially as Ioto, Japan Saturday March 21, 2015. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

Read more: http://apnews.excite.com/article/20150321/as--japan-iwo_jima-fd2b1efb33.html

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[Snow Leopard]

1. Salute to those vets

Nt

[Cooley Hurd]

2. One of the painful things about my aging...

I'm pushing 50, but my Dad served in WW2. One of the painful things about my aging is that all these interesting, dynamic people who served during the conflict are leaving us. My Dad, Uncles, and their friends from that era are all but gone. So much, including my unabashed Liberalism (Mom and Dad were FDR Democrats) stems from them.

Back then, we wanted to protect the world from Fascism. Now, all wars are fought to protect Capitalism (the father of Fascism)...

[Dustlawyer]

4. I have represented asbestos victims for the last 25 years. I have presented WWI, WWII,

Korean, and Vietnam veterans for depositions. Because many were exposed to asbestos during their service years, and because the defendants wanted to go through each man's life history looking for something else to blame the man's illness on, we would hear the real stories of war. Most didn't want to talk about it.
One man in particular stood out because he almost backed out of his case rather than re-live the horrors he had seen. He went through with it and we were all speechless! The defense lawyers forgot why they were even there as they heard his story, forgetting to ask their questions about the asbestos products that their clients knew, even during WWI, would sicken and kill millions of our soldiers, sailors, and shipyard workers.
This man had been in the Pacific theater and fought on Iwo Jima. He had been shot, stabbed, and even partially blown up during his service. He had risked his life several times to save his fellow soldiers and would be decorated with most of our countries highest awards. Later when asked about his final injury, he raised up his sleeve and showed us a bicep that was nothing more than skin over bone. A 50 caliber almost took off his arm. He still managed to have a 40 year career as a sandblasted by resting the "gun" over the top of his weak arm.
These stories are public record as they were filed in his case like all of the others. Stories told by soldiers who lived through D-Day, Battle of the Bulge, Iwo Jima, Pearl Harbor.... all told under oath! I wish someone would review all of these millions of depositions and preserve the stories of these true heroes and provide the truth of the consequences of war.

[YvonneCa]

6. Turn in what you can to the Veterans' History...

...Project at the Library of Congress in DC. They have been compiling such stories from veterans.
My dad was a WWII veteran from the Pacific Theater. My family hand delivered audiotapes of his stories there after he died in 2007. I am sure they would preserve documentation and eventually follow up. Their goal is his try documentation and they need the memories of those who actually served.

[YvonneCa]

8. And thank you for what you do...

...on behalf of those who served, like my dad.

[Dustlawyer]

10. Good advice, thank you!

[kairos12]

5. ...and protect a flock of chickenhawk rethugs who will fight to the last drop of your blood.

[Hoppy]

3. My father was there. He was on a Navy small craft that carried marines to the island.

I remember watching Eastwood's, "Letters from Iwo Jima" where it showed such boats being shelled while transporting the troops.
He went to the unveiling of the monument in D.C. It was the only time my mother can recall his crying.

[Archae]

7. My Dad was offered a trip to Korea, with a veterans group.

He turned them down, said he never wanted to get out of a country as much as he did in Korea.

He called it "The Useless War."

[csziggy]

9. My Mom took care of many of the veterans from the Pacific Island battles

First at Camp Pendleton where she was among the first group of Navy Nurses at the new Naval Hospital when it was still called Rancho Santa Marguerita, then at Aeia heights Hospital in Hawaii.

I just finished scanning all her momentos from those days and putting the originals into protective sleeves in a huge notebook. Her 94th birthday is today and she has been enjoying looking at that notebook and remembering her days as a Navy Nurse.

[truckin]

11. My Dad fought in the Pacific

In 2008, two months before he passed, I interviewed my Dad for about 3 hours about his war experiences. He barely said anything in the previous 50 years that I was around. However on this morning he spoke freely and I learned so much about my Father that I never knew. Then we got to Iwo and he couldn't talk anymore and he started to break down. The one thing I do know is that he was always very strict about how we handled the flag because he saw it at the top of Mount Sirabachi while he was pinned down on the bottom of the hill. Other than that he wasn't a rah rah patriotic type and he was very against the Iraq war. But seeing the flag at Iwo gave him hope and he never forgot it.