FLATTMANN FILES “Quality Is No Accident”
December 2018
FROM THE DESK OF Grady Flattmann
December may be my favorite month. The weather is cool (hopefully), both of my kids have December birthdays, and Christmas is around the corner. While I don’t enjoy how commercialized Christmas has gotten, I love seeing the charity and warmth people show during this season. Over the years, my wife and I have enjoyed being a small part of several organizations with the purpose of providing Christmas for families who otherwise would not have one. It is important to us to engage our own children at an early age, in hopes that it will help them grow in charity and kindness toward others and in thankfulness for their own blessings. It is all too easy to get caught up in today’s world of hate, blame, and unaccountability. The news media (no matter what side) feeds off of it and serves it directly to our living rooms 24 hours a day. Despite the attempts to distract us, I still believe that humans are kind, loving, and understanding in nature. So, this holiday season, when outside forces try to darken your day, resist the bait; instead, try to make someone else’s day just a bit brighter. It doesn’t take much.
“Yesterday, Dec. 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. […] It will be recorded that the distance of Hawaii from Japan makes it obvious that the attack was deliberately planned many days or even weeks ago. [...] With confidence in our armed forces, with the unbounding determination of our people, we will gain the inevitable triumph — so help us, God. I ask that the Congress declare that, since the unprovoked and dastardly attack by Japan on Sunday, Dec. 7, 1941, a state of war has existed between the United States and the Japanese empire.” –President Franklin D. Roosevelt The attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 led to the severe destruction of the United States Pacific Fleet, but it lit a flame in the hearts of Americans. The sudden strike by the Japanese forces destroyed 20 American vessels, eight of which were battleships, and over 300 airplanes. Over 2,000 military and civilian American lives were lost, and another 1,000 suffered injuries. The following day, President Roosevelt gave his Pearl Harbor address to the nation, urging Congress to take action and declare war on Japan. This event brought the citizens of America together for the first time since WWII began. It was time to go to war. Although the attack caught America by surprise, the war had seemed unavoidable for some time. In 1937, Japan declared war on China to seize its import market for financial gain and to expand Japan’s territory. The Japanese government had been struggling with economic and social issues, and its leaders sought to solve these problems by taking the land of neighboring countries. In retaliation, America attempted to intimidate Japan by banning further trade with them. Instead, this action only made the Japanese REMEMBERING PEARL HARBOR T he A ttack T hat B rought W orld W ar II to A merica
-Grady
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