Operation Just Cause... ...for as long as it takes
December 3, 1985
Walter Pleate, America’s oldest military veteran, died on this day at age 108. He was one of a dozen living veterans of the Spanish-American War (1898)
December 7, 1941
This day is remembered as "a date which will live in infamy": Pearl Harbor Day. Thousands of lives were lost, a major portion of America’s Pacific fleet was in pieces and the U.S. was catapulted into war in the Pacific. Today, at the onshore "USS Arizona" Memorial Visitor Center, we can see displays of World War II naval history and wartime Hawaii; and view a film about the Japanese sneak attack on Pearl Harbor.
A ferry shuttles back and forth between the visitor center and the memorial where one can actually stand right above the "Arizona". In fact, the rusted remains of the "Arizona" are clearly visible under the waters of Pearl Harbor. The memorial to the 1,100 men, entombed forever within the sunken, once mighty, battleship, straddles the "USS Arizona". One wall of the structure bears their names.
The Battle of the Bulge, the final major German counteroffensive of World War II, began. Initially, the Nazi commanders were able to thrust deep into Allied territory in North and East Belgium, a 75-mile front, choosing a time when foggy, rainy weather prevailed. The Allies were taken by surprise, but recovered and repulsed the Nazi offensive by January 1945.
Walter Williams, said to be the last surviving veteran of the Civil War, died in Houston, Texas this day. Mr. Williams was 117 years old.
