Iwo

[peteb]

This is a branch off thread from the ‘most important events of the 20th century’

I want to pay my respects to the people and families and friends affected by the battle of Iwo Jima.


it was stated in the other thread that the battle of Iwo Jima was an important event in the 20th century history, and I agree.

my point is that it was a very important and costly step, but that the conclusion was determined before the battle was even planned.

it was still a very important battle.

i researched the battle after a friend gave a very inaccurate description of his fathers role as a crew member of a landing craft.

the Japanese only hoped to buy time before an invasion of the main islands.

the whole situation is best described when the Japanese commander said that the fortifications were ready.

Iwo Jima was the most fortified position in the history of the world and could only be approached by a significant distance over the ocean. No problem for the US military and the USMC.


when the Japanese commander said that the fortifications were ready, he also said that all that was needed was naval and air support. The powers at be said it is not like that. You will make due with men and guns. The commander said, we can do that, (buy time) , with weapons and guns.

unlike my friends description of his dads experience, the Japanese did not fire on the advancing troops until they were 200 yards inland.

 

[jackinjax]

My uncle was a Marine at Iwo Jima, Guam and others. He told my older brother and me some really hair raising stories about what it was like. I gathered that Iwo was the bloodiest.

 

[trandy9850]

I lost my Uncle Gene on Iwo Jima….he didn’t officially die until 1948… but he was never the same after that battle…they found him drowned in a river near his home….they never could figure out if his death was an accident….or suicide….my grandfather told me much later that Uncle Gene was an excellent swimmer…that left everyone to draw their own conclusions about what happened.

 

[trandy9850]

My uncle was a Marine at Iwo Jima, Guam and others. He told my older brother and me some really hair raising stories about what it was like. I gathered that Iwo was the bloodiest.

Okinawa….almost double the casualties of Iwo Jima….hard to imagine all that horror.

Was Okinawa worse than Iwo Jima?

“Kamikazes would sink dozens of US warships and kill nearly 5,000 sailors during fighting around Okinawa. Total American casualties at Okinawa during three months of fighting there would be nearly double those suffered at Iwo Jima. About 200,000 Japanese soldiers and civilians would die as well.”

 

[Downshift]

I was a Marine rifleman. I fought in the battle of Ramadi which was an extremely hot time period in the war, and suffered undeniable PTSD as a result. Some of the veterans in my platoon had also fought in Fallujah which was the bloodiest battle of the Iraq war. In neither battle did the US lose 100 KIA. In no attempt to trivialize those losses, I simply can not fathom the carnage of battles like Iwo, or Okinawa, or Saipan, Peliliu, and Tarawa. Those Marines really were the old breed.

Legend has it that a high ranking Naval officer, upon seeing the picture of the flag raising, thumped Joe Rosenthal on the back and said "you just guaranteed us a Marine Corps for the next 500 years."

War made me a pacifist, but I still study those Marines and those battles, with such admiration of their indomitable spirit. I pray that no such battles will ever have to be fought again, but I rest assured that if they must be fought, there will be a USMC to rise to the occasion.

Semper Fi