Sixty-six years ago today

The US was attacked by the Japanese at Pearl Harbor. In that one surprise attack alone, Japan nearly succeeded in crippling the US Navy in the Pacific. If we had lost our carriers there we wouldn't have been able to launch our own surprise attack on Tokyo or fight at Coral Sea or Midway. This would've given the Japanese more time to push themselves farther east and become more firmly entrenched.

This may seem strange to say, but we should be thankful the Japanese attacked when they did. It's what this country needed..... a kick in the rear. To be challenged, to be slapped in the face. Especially when you consider the state of our economy since the stock market crash twelve years prior.

Not only that, but if we hadn't officially become involved in WWII when we did there is the very real possibility that we would've entered far too late to stop Germany and Japan. And that means we might have very well been defeated. Granted, I'm speculating here but it's something to think about.

I have a book called the Reader's Digest Illustrated Story of World War II (it's a great but sometimes gruesome read by the way), and I'd like to quote some statistics about what the US economy produced after entering the war. The numbers are mind boggling. Historian Louis L. Snyder wrote:

Within a year after Pearl Harbor the United States was equaling the entire Axis war production, though the enemy had a head start of ten years. By the end of the war the United States had produced 300,000 planes, 87,000 tanks, 2,400,000 trucks, 17,900,000 firearms, 61,000 pieces of heavy artillery and many millions of tons of shells, bombs and other explosives. From tens of thousands of factories came finished tools of war, more war material than produced by the rest of the world combined. It was an awesome example of audacious planning, mass activity, prodigious energy.

After mentioning various ships that took place in the Battle of the Philippine Sea the following is stated:

None of these warships existed in December 1941. All told, after most of the Pacific Fleet was left twisted and shattered at Pearl Harbor, American shipyards produced 17 fleet carriers, 9 light carriers, 5 battleships, and enough cruisers, destroyers, escort carriers, submarines, and other combat vessels to bring the entire total to 1265 brand-new men-of-war

.

Amazing isn't it? We owe all that to the Japanese being stupid enough to attack us when they did. By the way, with all those figures in mind, consider this: the Japanese only produced two fleet carriers after 1941.



So today, as we think about what happened sixty-six years ago in 1941, we should remember the brave men who died at Pearl Harbor. But also, I think we should thank God for that day as it was a blessing in disguise; it made us face reality and get our act together before it was too late.