Browsing: Military

On April 11, 1951, President Harry Truman had had enough, and fired General of the Army (5 star general) Douglas MacArthur.  Firing the senior American general during a war, especially one that had been awarded the Medal of Honor (in World War II) and that was a national hero is not to be taken lightly; however, Truman had no choice and “Dugout Doug” was out. Sometimes during the emergencies of war even senior officers are found to be lacking in brains, skills, or character necessary to win the war.  When officers of exalted rank get fired, it is unusual enough…

On April 7, 1945, the Japanese Navy sent the most powerful (along with her sister ship, the Musashi) battleship ever built on a one way suicide mission.  The incredible amount of man-hours, money, and physical resources that went into that ship are staggering, yet the mighty Yamato never made a difference during its short life.  This incident was not the only mistake Japan made during the war, so here are 10 of them. Digging Deeper 10. Underestimating the Soviets. Although the war was already lost, the few days of fighting between Soviet and Japanese forces were a vivid example of…

A Brief History On April 7, 1945, the biggest and most heavily armed battleship created by man was sunk without ever fighting another battleship! Digging Deeper The Japanese battleship Yamato was the first of a two ship class (Musashi was the second) of battleships designed to survive hits by the guns of British and American battleships, and to sink them with her giant guns. The 9 main guns of the Yamato fired 2,800 pound projectiles that were 18.1 inches in diameter, the biggest guns ever placed on a ship. By contrast, the German Bismarck had 8 X 15 inch guns,…

A Brief History On November 8, 2016, the 58th quadrennial American presidential election will be held.  In the current race to become a major party Presidential Nominee, the list of candidates lack military experience or inclination, with only Donald Trump having the slightest military connection.  Considering that each of these candidates wants to be the Commander in Chief of our military forces the situation is somewhat ridiculous.  Of our 44 Presidents only 11 had no military experience. Digging Deeper Trump claims the closest thing to military experience by having attended the New York Military Academy from age 13 (8th grade) through…

A Brief History On February 20th, we covered how Ted Kaczynski (the “Unabomber”) blew up a computer store in 1987.   Today marked the end of his reign of terror as he was finally arrested on April 3, 1996.  A recluse who was anti-technology, he probably would not have been caught without his brother having turned him in.  Here are 10 civilian people who are known for bombing, good or bad.  (For our companion list of military bombers, please see this article). Please Note: This list is not a rogues’ gallery!  It includes good guys as well as bad guys famously…