75 years ago...

Yesterday, December 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.

So began President Franklin Delano Roosevelt's speech to a joint session of congress, asking for a declaration of war, the day of the bombing of Pearl Harbor.

[reference: Pearl Harbor Speech: Day of Infamy ]

And below is a scene from the the movie, aptly titled, Pearl Harbor (2001) :

So began the United States involvement in World War Two on the fronts: the Atlantic and the Pacific.

[reference: World War Two ]

FDR's speech expresses America's will to triumph grounded in faith of God's help as well as faith in the military and we, the people.

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

The scene below shows the determination of FDR following Pearl Harbor and his push for a plan to strike back at the heart of Japan:

That plan came to fruition in April of 1942 as the Doolittle Raid. It was led by Jimmy Doolittle, which became known as Thirty Seconds over Tokyo.  The attack was a psychological blow for the Japanese.

[reference: Jimmy H. Doolittle ]

And three years later came total victory over Japan, known as V.J. Day. And the moment was captured in this iconic picture:

But 75 years ago, FDR and the  men and women who served, home and abroad, were determined to win and prevailed during those dark days.

They all were patriots.

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Previous posts in series:

Patriots (part 1) - Taps (2016)

Patriots (part 2) - D-Day Courage  (2016)

Patriots (part 3) - Signers of the Declaration (2016)

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photos: USS Arizona/wikipeida.com

             Kissing the War Good-bye/wikipedia.com