That was how Franklin Delano Roosevelt, President of the United States described December 7, 1941 after the Japanese attacked the military facilities in Hawaii. Pearl Harbor Navy Base received the biggest attack, but Hickam Airfield was also heavily damaged. The Japanese sank eight battleships and destroyed 350 US aircraft, most of them sitting on the ground. By luck or Divine intervention, the US aircraft carriers were at sea undergoing training; if they had been docked at Pearl Harbor, America might not have been able to resist the Japanese advances.
For good or for ill, this day does not live in infamy. Many people today are clueless about today’s significance, or even the fact that the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor.
Today Japan and the United States are strong allies. This is, perhaps, the best possible outcome out of any war. The worst outcome is to forget that liberty and security are precious gifts that are constantly at risk.
The opposite of war is not peace; the opposite of war is freedom.
sfnowak 