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Korea - Irrelevant?


Airplanes have been on my mind forever. While others studied and took tests in elementary school, I looked out the window hoping to see a plane flying over. It was World War II then. Reminders were all around. Life magazine, Collier's, The Saturday Evening Post, newspapers, Movietone News, reminders everywhere. We played war games after school. There was always one of the kids on the block that had a dad or an uncle in the thick of it. Probably becoming a hero like we saw in comics: Terry & The Pirates, Steve Canyon, Willie & Joe, and others. 


The "Allies" were mostly British and American. All of the others were in second place - and of course, the Allies were good guys. The Germans and Japanese were the bad guys. Newspapers were headlined with bomb pictures, firestorms, ugly damage and cruel death.
SPITFIRE, HURRICAINE AND LANDCASTER
 WINNERS OF THE BATTLE OF BRITAIN
Families at home saved grease from the kitchen and took the cans to the local butcher for the war effort. Somebody a block behind our house had a Gold Star in the window. Not good. FDR talked about lend lease, and signs told us that "Loose lips sink ships". Everybody had a Victory Garden in their back yard. My parents bought "War Bonds" in my name, and they had a gasoline rationing sticker on the lower right of the car's windshield. Every kid had his favorite branch of the service, usually the one where they knew a member, and they dreamed about which they would join as soon as they were old enough.  Would it be Army (tanks, mud & foxholes), Navy (good food, no mud or marching) or Marines (the first in and most dangerous)?  Or the relatively new Army Air Force (AAF)?  My school book covers were littered with carefully drawn doodles of  airplanes. I don't remember ever considering any other branch of the military. 


GRANDSONS SHANE AND DEVON 
ON THE USS MIDWAY IN SAN DIEGO
The kids above in the picture are my grandsons. They have no clue about WW II or Korea. Apparently schools don't think young people need to learn about wars America doesn't win? If so, it's becomes another sad omission from their store of knowledge. 

Not good.


















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