Saturday, December 14, 2013

George B. Singleton's 'Somewhere in Time' from Dec. 7, 2000


(For decades, paranormal investigator George “Buster” Singleton published a weekly newspaper column called “Somewhere in Time.” The column below, which was entitled “Pearl Harbor should always be remembered,” was originally published in the Dec. 7, 2000 edition of The Monroe Journal in Monroeville, Ala. This column and all of Singleton’s other columns are available to the public through the microfilm records at the Monroe County Public Library in Monroeville. Singleton’s columns are presented here for research and scholarship purposes and as part of an effort to keep his work and memory alive. Enjoy.)

We Americans are a forgetful and a forgiving people. Some say that this is good. A few, like myself, believe that we should keep in mind the acts of aggression that have been committed against us and remember that it could and might happen again.

Today (Thursday) should be remembered. Fifty-nine years ago on this date, an act of aggression against us set into motion a war. The intent of that war was to wipe us, the United States, from the face of the earth.

Many who read this were too young to remember that dreadful Sunday when the Japanese Empire launched the attack on our fleet that lay at anchor in the still and peaceful waters of Pearl Harbor.

This peaceful Sunday morning was transformed from a day of worship and relaxation into a living hell for the members of our armed forces who were present on board the naval vessels that lay at anchor in the waters of the harbor that fateful morning.

Without warning, the morning skies grew dark with hundreds of fighter planes and bombers that swept downward leaving death and destruction in their wake. The cries of the wounded and dying settled over the waters of the Pacific as though a giant fog of death had appeared from nowhere. Wave after wave of Japanese bombers returned time and again to drop their loads of death upon our unsuspecting fleet.

Hundreds of our young fighting men wound never see the dawn of another day. Most of them never had the chance to fight back or raise a hand against the Land of the Rising Sun. The still waters of the Pacific received the remains of those who would never see their beloved homeland again.

The mothers and fathers of those who died could only guess what tragedies befell their beautiful sons. They now sleep eternally in the sunken hulls of the bombed out ships still at anchor in Pearl Harbor.

The killing and the destruction did not stop at Pearl Harbor. The armies and navies of the Rising Sun continued to run roughshod over the islands of the Pacific where any Americans were to be found. Bataan, Corregidor, Guam and several more islands fell to the guns of the Rising Sun. The atrocities that befell Allied and American prisoners taken by the Japanese were worse than death itself.

Thousands upon thousands of American and Philippine soldiers were tortured to death. No mercy was shown to the wounded and the starving as the Japanese used every sadistic way known to mankind to torture and kill those who were unlucky enough to be taken prisoner.

The Bataan Death March was to go down in the annals of history as one of the worst atrocities ever. More than 60,000 American and Filipino soldiers were taken prisoner by the Japanese army. These poor, miserable men, many suffering from wounds, starvation and mistreatment, were forced to march more than 70 miles to prison camps. More than 10,000 of these miserable souls died or were killed during this long march of death.

Time and good living has dimmed most of the memories of this dreaded time in our history. Little thought is given to those who sleep forever in a faraway soil so that we may enjoy the good life that we do today.

We turn a deaf ear to the stories of horror and the atrocities that border on the very edge of our worst imagination. Our hearts bleed for the Japanese people who are buying up our country by leaps and bounds. We spend billions for the defense of their country, while not one cent of their money is offered as payment for the destruction and death and sorrow put upon us during that dreadful war.

We hold our heads low when we are scolded for trying to export our manufactured goods to Japan. Then, we sit idle when our sea ports are swamped with the imported goods from the Land of the Rising Sun. Our kind and gentle nation turns a deaf ear when the news reports another billion dollar real estate deal is silently closed by our trusted friends, as they bow politely.

We lie back and enjoy the good life, while watching a television set that was made in Japan, while a Japanese-made automobile sits in our garage. Truly, truly, truly, we Americans are a forgiving and forgetful people.

So, this Thursday, I feel that maybe a total of 60 seconds will be devoted to Dec. 7, 1941. A few will remember, ones like myself and some of those who are older, some of those who survived the marches of death conducted by the armies of the Rising Sun.

I remember too well that fateful day, Mon., Dec. 8, 1941, when a general assembly was called at Sweet Water High School. I remember our principal standing before the school assembly with tears rolling down his cheeks.

“You have slept through a night that will be remembered as long as mankind walks the face of this earth,” he said. At that time, I thought he was right, but now, I’m not sure.

Let us not forget the thousands who sleep today in some faraway land who never had the opportunity to live the good life in this wonderful country we call ours. Perhaps the words of a little known poet might say it better.

When at last the Colors fade,
And the final roll call made.
The fading notes of taps are played.
What If?

When face-to-face with millions slain,
For the cause of freedom’s gain.
The anguished cries, “We died in vain, We died in vain.”
What If?

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