Posted by
paddy o'furniture on Thursday, August 14, 2008 3:56:12 PM
Yeah, I know....I used this picture for V-E Day too, but this photo was actually taken on V-J Day, August 14th, 1945. With all this talk about the Russkies in Georgia, this anniversary has been completely overlooked, as was V-E Day.
This victory was not something to overlook. The Germans were fierce and tough, but they wre civilized and for the most part treated enemy combatants civilly and with respect (that does not necessarily apply to the SS or Gestapo).
The Japanese, however, were another animal entirely (figure of speech, not ethnic slur). They fought under a warrrior code called bushido, which descended from the Samurai class of the preceding four centuries. There was no such thing as an honorable surrender, and they regarded Allied prisoners who did so as subhuman and unworthy of respect. In many cases, prisoners were killed for no reason, sometimes even for entertainment purposes.
Japanese troops were sent to occupy islands the higher command felt would need defending. When this did not prove to be the case, they were simply abandoned. Hundreds of thousand of troops were left without provision on Pacific atolls. They were forced to turn to cannibalism, and regularly ate American and allied KIA (you don't see that in the John Wayne movies, do you?).
Therefore, I wish a very happy V-J Day to all, and a special salute to all who participated in this most brutal of conflicts. This one must never be forgotten, and we can be grateful to God that it ended short of a boots-on-the-ground invasion.
God bless
paddy