Political Correctness at the WWII Memorial

e-mail | June 7, 2004 | A fellow activist

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

Date: Mon, 7 Jun 2004 17:27:41 -0400
Subject: Fw: in the event you visit the WW II memorial sad to change history

----- Original Message -----
Sent: Monday, June 07, 2004 12:40 PM
Subject: Fw: in the event you visit the WW II memorial sad to change history

Received this from a friend. Hard to believe this happened!!

-------Original Message-------
Subject: WWII - a date which will live in infamy

> To All,
>
> Forwarded by a cousin and even on Memorials we are doing editing. How
> sad that on a memorial to our WW II vets people have to try and change
> history.
>
> Dean
>
> Today I went to visit the new World War II Memorial in Washington, DC. I got
> an unexpected history lesson. Since I'm a baby boomer, I was one of the
> youngest in the crowd. Most were the age of my parents, veterans of "the greatest
> war" with their families. It was a beautiful day, and people were smiling and
> happy to be there. Hundreds of us milled around the memorial, reading the
> inspiring words of Ike and Truman that are engraved there.
>
>
>
> On the Pacific side of the memorial, a group of us gathered to read the words
> President Roosevelt used to announce the attack on Pearl Harbor: "Yesterday,
> December 7, 1941-- a date which will live in infamy-- the United States of
> America was suddenly and deliberately attacked." One woman read the words aloud:
> " With confidence in our armed forces, with the unbounding determination of
> our people, we will gain the inevitable triumph." But as she read, she was
> suddenly angry. "Wait a minute," she said. "They left out the end of the
quote. > They left out the most important part. Roosevelt said 'so help us God."
>
>
>
> "You're probably right," her husband said. "We're not supposed to say things
> like that now."
>
>
>
> "I know I'm right," she insisted. "I remember the speech." The two shook
> their heads sadly and walked away.
>
>
>
> Listening to their conversation, I thought to myself, "Well, it has been 50
> years. She's probably forgotten."
>
>
>
> But she was right.
>
>
>
> I went home and pulled out the book my book club is reading. It's "Flags of
> Our Fathers" by James Bradley. It's all about Iwo Jima. I haven't gotten too
> far in the book. It's tough to read because it's a graphic description of the
> battles in the Pacific.
>
>
>
> But right there it was on page 58. Roosevelt's speech to the nation. It
ends > "so help us God."
>
>
>
> The people who edited out that part of the speech when they engraved it on
> the memorial could have fooled me. I was born after the war. But they couldn't
> fool the people who were there. Roosevelt's words are engraved on their hearts.
>
>
>
> Send this around to your friends. People need to know before everyone forgets.

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

I know about the skepticism with which e-mail is regarded. I'm sure somebody who has visited the WWII memorial can confirm this bit of PC, however.

[RetiredArmy]

I have heard or read this somewhere else this past week about those words being deleted. I forget where it was though. Sorry.

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

PC bump!

[CasearianDaoist]

I don;t know about the story but they did truncate the quote to avoid the mention of God. Pretty disrespectful to our vet if you as me.

[Mudboy Slim]

"A Patriot Looks at Forty"
(To be sung to Jimmy Buffett's "A Pirate Looks at Forty")

C'mon JusticeLovers...please heed my call.
Ever since that Waco Slaughter, we've known Ol' Slick hadta fall!!
Please heed the call, Clinton must fall!!

Watched as "men" who ruled you...sold OUR Nukes to Beijing...
Sold out this Country fer Chi-Com treasures,
[Slick's] Treason threatens the FRee!!
Medyuh won't see...must ignore TeeVee...

Yes, I am a Patriot, two hundred years too late...
MUD's Ballads, they wonder..."What spell folks're under...
To ignore the Left's Crimes 'Gainst the State?!!"
Folks say I'm too late...Truth's never too late!!

Right's done with meekly strugglin'...I've kicked my share of a$$!!
Left wastes our tax money to fund failure...but Right'll devolve Power en masse!!
Lib'ral mindset can't last...DemonRATS' time has passed!!

Yes, I've been sleepless for over two weeks...
I pass out, then I rally, and I find a way to FReep!!
But we gotta stop bitchin', we gotta stop wishin'...
Gotta FReep fer Justice again!!
Just a few FRiends, Dethronin' Slick!!

(Justa pickin' and a grinnin'...)

Yes, I've known my share of Lib'rals...listened to their Leftist Bile.
Some, I ran 'em away...still more I taught to think...
Some even managed to smile...)=^D!!
We'll change their minds, just takes a while.

C'mon all you Patriots...time we took Slick Willie down!!
Constitutional Powers beats Clinton's sedition...Slick Killed Ron Brown!!
Murdered Ron Brown...brought that airplane down...
MaryJo drowned...kick RATS outta town!!

FReegards...MUD

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

OK, I guess this thread just got a theme song. :-)

[Askel5]

We save God and Scripture for the Really Important Things these days .... like Prime Time spots in which "pro-lifers" can sell to the American Public the use of human lives as mulch for "humanitarian" experiments funded by inimitably moral Uncle Sam.

The memorial's all about "them" anyway. I doubt very seriously we're going to see the most Selfish Generation the world has ever seen (save for the Boomer children with which they saddled us, perhaps) rise up and complain that there wasn't enough room on the monument to include accolades to wimmen AND God.

They're too busy organizing the voting blocs necessary to maintain Bush's grand Medicare giveaway.

[johnnycap]

So they have revised the language in the memorial and revised Eisenhower's "crusader" speech. We don't want to offend anybody so we basically are writing ourselves and our most sacred beliefs out of history.

Who can blame us when we disappear. We stood for nothing really. We never said "No".

[Askel5]

=== To ignore the Left's Crimes 'Gainst the State?!!"



No such thing. Where were you on November 8, 2000 when Danforth and the Republicans gave Clinton and Reno a clean bill of slate on Waco?

Not glued to the "Election Crisis," I trust ... (sucker).

[Askel5]

=== To ignore the Left's Crimes 'Gainst the State?!!"



No such thing. Where were you on November 8, 2000 when Danforth and the Republicans gave Clinton and Reno a clean bill of health on Waco?

Not glued to the "Election Crisis," I trust ... (sucker).

[Coop]

Portion of memorial in question:

Actual quote:

Yesterday, Dec. 7, 1941 - a date which will live in infamy - the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan.

The United States was at peace with that nation and, at the solicitation of Japan, was still in conversation with the government and its emperor looking toward the maintenance of peace in the Pacific.

Indeed, one hour after Japanese air squadrons had commenced bombing in Oahu, the Japanese ambassador to the United States and his colleagues delivered to the Secretary of State a formal reply to a recent American message. While this reply stated that it seemed useless to continue the existing diplomatic negotiations, it contained no threat or hint of war or armed attack.

It will be recorded that the distance of Hawaii from Japan makes it obvious that the attack was deliberately planned many days or even weeks ago. During the intervening time, the Japanese government has deliberately sought to deceive the United States by false statements and expressions of hope for continued peace.

The attack yesterday on the Hawaiian islands has caused severe damage to American naval and military forces. Very many American lives have been lost. In addition, American ships have been reported torpedoed on the high seas between San Francisco and Honolulu.

Yesterday, the Japanese government also launched an attack against Malaya.

Last night, Japanese forces attacked Hong Kong.

Last night, Japanese forces attacked Guam.

Last night, Japanese forces attacked the Philippine Islands.

Last night, the Japanese attacked Wake Island.

This morning, the Japanese attacked Midway Island.

Japan has, therefore, undertaken a surprise offensive extending throughout the Pacific area. The facts of yesterday speak for themselves. The people of the United States have already formed their opinions and well understand the implications to the very life and safety of our nation.

As commander in chief of the Army and Navy, I have directed that all measures be taken for our defense.

Always will we remember the character of the onslaught against us.

No matter how long it may take us to overcome this premeditated invasion, the American people in their righteous might will win through to absolute victory.

I believe I interpret the will of the Congress and of the people when I assert that we will not only defend ourselves to the uttermost, but will make very certain that this form of treachery shall never endanger us again.

Hostilities exist. There is no blinking at the fact that that our people, our territory and our interests are in grave danger.

With confidence in our armed forces - with the unbounding determination of our people - we will gain the inevitable triumph - so help us God.

I ask that the Congress declare that since the unprovoked and dastardly attack by Japan on Sunday, Dec. 7, a state of war has existed between the United States and the Japanese empire.

Here

[GailA]

Our local talk host in Memphis also mentioned it, and one caller said they left of the part about Japan being the attacker.

[Mudboy Slim]

LOL...every thread needs one...MUD

[microgood]

The memorial's all about "them" anyway. I doubt very seriously we're going to see the most Selfish Generation the world has ever seen

You obviously know nothing about that generation. You should remain silent rather than spew ignorance.

[Phantom Lord]

What do we expect when a statue of the 3 firefighters raising the Flag on the WTC rubble have their race changed just a few short months after the actual event.

Had it been a generic memorial statue to those who served with honor that day then a multicultural statue would have been fine. But to make a statue from an actual photograph and change the people in it is wrong and PC run amuk.

[Military family member]

As much as i hate to admit it, they pulled the quote out of the middle. One could argue that this was done for length not to avoid mentioning God.

I have seen other examples. A statue of Lincoln in my parents hometown quotes "With Malice toward none, with Charity toward all." and leaves out under God.

[Phantom Lord]

I don't know. They do seem to be of the "gimmie, gimmie, gimmie" mindset far to often.

[microgood]

I am not sure what you are talking about. They lived through the depression, lost 400,000 lives and over a million casualties during the war, rebuilt Japan and Europe, and paid off the WWII debt in seven years. Most of them are dead now, and they did not even ask for the Memorial. Their kids and people who respected them like me paid for that memorial. These people are a minimum of 80 years old at this time.

[bondjamesbond]

PEARL HARBOR

DECEMBER 7, 1941, A DATE
WHICH WILL LIVE IN INFAMY...
NO MATTER HOW LONG IT
MAY TAKE US TO OVERCOME
THIS PREMEDITATED INVASION,
THE AMERICAN PEOPLE, IN
THEIR RIGHTEOUS MIGHT,
WILL WIN THROUGH
TO ABSOLUTE VICTORY

President Franklin D. Roosevelt

Excerpted is the sudden and premeditated attack
Excerpted is any mention of the Empire of Japan
Excerpted is the United States' fervent desire for peace
Excerpted is the account of Japanese treachery
Excerpted is the mention of our honored dead
Excerpted is the extent of the Japanese onslaught
Excerpted is the President's assertion of civilian authority over the military
Excerpted is the justification for our retaliation
Excerpted is the statement of faith in the American people and a beneficent God
Excerpted is the Declaration of War...

After everything that is important is removed, this is the sound-bite that you have left...

[johnb838]

I liked the part about "Women Stepped Up."