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Post by okla on May 8, 2012 3:29:28 GMT 8
Hey All....Couldn't help but take notice that the 70th Anniversary of the 1942 Surrender of Corregidor has come and gone without much, if any, fanfare. Kinda sad, methinks. They say that time heals all wounds. I suppose this is true, but I ain't forgetting and I am certain that all you "Rock Geeks" aren't either. Cheers.
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Post by sherwino on May 8, 2012 7:13:11 GMT 8
Not present there. Forgot the date. Makes me feel like a sinner.
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Post by rlbj25 on May 8, 2012 8:09:51 GMT 8
okla, for what its worth, I was marking the day with my wife. At the moment of the surrender, I made a post to Facebook (adjusting for the time difference, of course), so at least my smallish circle of friends knew where my heart was at the time. It received a couple of positive reactions, from my Army historian friend (soon-to-be-curator at Arlington Nat'l Cemetary- let me know if anyone wants a tour), and from a Filipina friend who mentioned that she was a close friend of Norman Reyes, the guerrilla radio announcer who announced "Bataan has fallen!" (her dad was a Blue Diamond pilot, too).
As I've been writing this, my wife told me that she saw on TFC today that President Aquino had gone to Corregidor to mark the anniversary, and that our friends Steve and Marcia were shown on the report. So that great to hear.
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Post by sherwino on May 8, 2012 9:11:34 GMT 8
rlbj25, I've done a similar thing during the fall of Bataan. Made also some remembrance in my mind of what was happening by the hour during that day. It was a national holiday so I won't forget the date. But I was thinking if it was May 6, 7 or 9 when Corregidor was surrendered. My bad.
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Post by fots2 on May 8, 2012 9:47:56 GMT 8
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Post by rlbj25 on May 8, 2012 10:00:25 GMT 8
Sherwino, I hope I didn't give the impression that I was impugning you for your "sins" or patting myself on the back for remembering. I've certainly let my share of dates slip by, but thankfully my wedding anniversary has not <yet> been one of them I'm glad I'm not the only sentimentalist, trying to imagine what those men were experiencing at those long ago moments, but knowing that without having been there, I can never come close to understanding what they endured. The words "far above our poor power to add or detract" come to mind.
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Post by sherwino on May 8, 2012 11:17:46 GMT 8
rlbj25, it's ww3 when you forget your wedding anniversary. My "sentimentalist" state is at its peak during the months of December to May. Same months during the war, and same places here in Bataan and Corregidor. It's like WWII keeps on haunting me.
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Post by wwalker on May 8, 2012 12:18:08 GMT 8
Hello Okla,
I really was glad to see your post about the 70th Anniversary of the Fall of Corregidor. You are exactly right, the tragedies and triumphs of Corregidor seem to be less noticed than before with every passing year. I think that this makes me even more determined to keep up the research that I am doing. World War II in the Pacific holds a special place in my families history, and because of this it has inspired me to do the research that I do. My paternal grandfather was on Corregidor, my maternal grandfather was manning a gun on a landing craft at the invasion of Peleliu and Angaur, my great uncle was killed in the bloody battle of Tarawa Atoll w/ the 2nd Marine Division.
These were the challenges that were met by the past generation, and I am amazed everytime I learn more about that time. I am even more greatful for their sacrifices, and I only wish that more people would recognize such inspiring events in history such as that of those gallant, steel-hearted men of Corregidor. I think that everyone can learn from these men. I know I try to.
There are some things that have taken place the past year that make me feel like the subject is getting some well-deserved attention with the publishing of 2 books: "Fighting for MacArthur" by John Gordon & "Undefeated" by Bill Sloan. There was also a good article published in World War II magazine about the last days on Corregidor, just last month.
I've always wondered what kind of man my grandfather was. Through the research and speaking with many veterans of Corregidor, I have received a good idea of what his life was like. He lived through the siege and the POW camps, but it haunted him, like it did so many more of those Philippine defenders. He left the states to escape the depression, and wound up in hell. My uncle told me that when he was young, my grandfather told him a story of a time when he stole a pumpkin from a garden at a POW camp. He made a savory soup from it, and the Japanese caught him. He was tied up by his thumbs and beat over the back with a boat paddle. My grandma told me that his back was striped with scars from being beat with the broad side of a samurai sword. He died at the age of 38, but man what a life he lived during that short time.
It is ultimately up to future generations to keep this heroic epic and very true story alive. That is all the defenders of Corregidor have ever really asked for. Not to be forgotten. From the moment MacArthur left them at the presidents command, to the present day when most people don't even know the name of their struggle....Corregidor!
WW
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Post by okla on May 8, 2012 19:56:57 GMT 8
Hey WW....Very eloquently said. As you stated, so many, if not most, of these men enlisted in the armed forces to escape the depression at home and ended up in far more desperate circumstances than could have been imagined. But these were the guys who held the line during those dire months way back in 1942, waiting for, and during the early months, expecting relief from back home. It was not to be and if they could have been privy to the "big picture", would have known they were doomed. To me this is the sad thing. They, especially after all the other Allied bastions (Singapore, Hong Kong,etc) had capitulated, the holdouts in the PI were still looking for that "Task Force" to appear off the Cavite headllands. Tragically, it did not happen and the Greek Tragedy played on out as it was written by fate. Postscript...Yeah, like some of you other forum folks, I always have to do a "double take" on the actual surrender date when factoring in the International Date Line and the time difference, etc.
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Post by darthdract on May 9, 2012 0:02:09 GMT 8
Was it May 6 or 7. I did interview my 80 year old aunt about wartime Manila as my Personal ceremony . I am member of tech forum and they have an open topic discussion about the China RP stand off as much as I can I plug in some pictures of Battery Hearn and remind them of the Heroism of the Men on the rock. That way people can appreciate history and learn from the great men of the past.
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