VJ Day: Unbridled Joy

With our country mired in two (or is it three?) wars that have a fuzzy mission and ever-diminishing support at home, it is interesting to think back to the end of World War II, a conflict that had a definite beginning and more importantly, an END.

The country came together back then—and joined the world community in defeating a common foe. The mission was clear, the goal: unconditional surrender. There were no protests in the streets, no pundits second-guessing the Commander-in-Chief and no whining about the shared sacrifice that touched every single person in America.

Contrast that with our current situation, where there are literally servicemen and women now serving in Iraq who were in SECOND GRADE when that war began. Their valor is no less, their bravery not subordinate to any other war-and their sacrifice is surely as great.
What’s missing is a clear objective—it has just never been there.

Check out this amateur video, shot by a serviceman on VJ Day in Honolulu in 1945, following the announcement of the Japanese surrender. Many thanks to my cousin ,Beth Callanan, who sent this to me via e-mail.

Spontaneous joy:

VJ Day, Honolulu Hawaii, August 14, 1945 from Richard Sullivan on Vimeo.

http://vimeo.com/5645171

It seemed like a much simpler time. Granted, it was an era fraught with its own issues, from the racial segregation in the service to the internment of Japanese-Americans following Pearl Harbor. Nevertheless, there is a certain innocence that this movie camera captured which is nothing short of precious.

Our fathers fought that war—and some were scarred for life as a result. Seldom did they speak of it without much prompting from youngsters like me, who were curious. Still, they received a hero’s welcome home—and a government ready to assimilate them back to civilian life via the G.I. Bill. Veterans of Viet Nam never enjoyed this welcome upon their return. No, the anti-war sentiment that should have been focused on government was instead directed at those who merely answered their country’s call to action.

Shameful.

At least now, there is the just separation between the politicians who send young people into battle—and the soldiers themselves. Our troops have rightly received our support throughout in spite of the growing questioning of the war itself.

Perhaps someday, the human race will see the enormous waste that is war. As a means of resolving conflicts among peoples, it is a barbaric way for supposedly intelligent beings to deal with problems.

During WWII, it was equally barbaric—but unavoidable since the U.S. was not the perpetrator. We didn’t start the fight, but we sure ENDED it.

We knew then how to win---and certainly how to CELEBRATE.

If you’d like my blog in your box, just let me know: tim.moore@citcomm.com