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Filipino Women Seek Japan's Apology for WWII Rapes
Two dozen elderly Filipino women and their supporters protested outside the Japanese Embassy in Manila on Friday demanding a clear-cut apology and compensation from Tokyo for wartime sexual slavery.
Japan has acknowledged its troops forced women into front-line brothels across Asia during World War II, and its leaders have apologized.
But last year, many surviving "comfort women" were outraged when then-Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said there was no proof the women were coerced.
"The Japanese government should publicly apologize and put in history how the women were abducted and forced to serve in the comfort women system," said Rechilda Extremadura, head of a group called Lila-Pilipina that has documented 174 cases of Filipino women who were forced into wartime brothels. About 100 women remain alive.
"This is a war crime," Extremadura said. "But the Japanese government continues to be deaf."
Virginia Villarma, 79, said she was victimized between 1943 and 1944. "We can never forget what they did to us. Until now, it's been a wound in our chest."
The Japanese Embassy in Manila refused to immediately answer a request for comment and asked that questions be e-mailed.
Tokyo has generally refused to pay damages to individuals for the war, saying the issue was settled between governments in postwar treaties. Japanese courts have rejected a number of lawsuits brought by former sex slaves. Two dozen elderly Filipino women and their supporters protested outside the Japanese Embassy in Manila on Friday demanding a clear-cut... more -
Witness to Mans Inhumanity to Man
Disguised as a mild mannered mail man in his small town in Iowa James Hoyt was an actual American hero that was one of only four US soldiers to first see the horrors of Germany's Buchenwald concentration camp. James Hoyt died in his home in Oxford, IA at the age of 83. Disguised as a mild mannered mail man in his small town in Iowa James Hoyt was an actual American hero that was one of only four US so... more
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Black soldiers receive apology for wrongful convictions
The Army formally apologized Saturday for the wrongful conviction of 28 black soldiers accused of rioting and lynching an Italian prisoner of war in Seattle, Washington, more than six decades ago.
"We had not done right by these soldiers," Ronald James, assistant secretary of the Army for manpower and reserve affairs, said Saturday. "The Army is genuinely sorry. I am genuinely sorry."
Relatives of the soldiers joined elected officials, military officers and one of the defense lawyers to hear James give the apology before hundreds of people in a meadow near the old Fort Lawton parade grounds and chapel in Discovery Park.
In addition, the soldiers' convictions were set aside, their dishonorable discharges were changed to honorable discharges and they and their survivors were awarded back pay for their time in the brig.
All but two of the soldiers are dead. One, Samuel Snow of Leesburg, Florida, planned to attend the ceremony but wound up in the hospital instead because of a problem with his pacemaker.
The convictions were overturned in October at the prodding of Rep. Jim McDermott, D-Seattle, largely based on the book "On American Soil" published in 2005 by Jack Hamann, a CNN and PBS journalist, and his wife Leslie about the riot on the night of Aug. 14, 1944, and subsequent events at Fort Lawton.
Dozens were injured in the melee that started with a scuffle between an Italian prisoner of war and a black soldier from the segregated barracks near the POW housing. A POW, Guglielmo Olivotto, was found hanged at the bottom of a bluff the next day.
The Army prosecutor was Leon Jaworski, who went on to become special prosecutor in the Watergate scandal of the early 1970s.
Forty-three black soldiers were charged with rioting and three also were charged with murder. Two defense lawyers were assigned to the case and given two weeks to prepare without ever being shown an Army investigation criticizing the way the riot was handled. The Army formally apologized Saturday for the wrongful conviction of 28 black soldiers accused of rioting and lynching an Italian pris... more -
Dangerous toy: boy brings home live World War II shell
A 10-year-old boy in the German city of Kassel is lucky to be alive after playing with a new "toy" that turned out to be a high-explosive shell from World War II.
It's not uncommon for kids to bring home unusual finds, such as a lost puppy. But things are a lot less cute when the discovery turns out to be a high-explosive shell from World War II.
On Tuesday evening, one 10-year-old boy was playing on the edge of a field near his home in the central German city of Kassel when he found a cylindrical metal object about 25 centimeters (10 inches) in length and 7.5 centimeters (3 inches) in diameter, according to statement released by police. The boy brought the "toy" home Wednesday morning and showed it to his father, who immediately telephoned the police.
Upon examining the object, the police notified the state weapons disposal service. Contractors of the service identified the article as a high-explosive shell from World War II, before safely transporting it to a dedicated weapons-disposal facility, where it was destroyed.
Gossens said that in the state of Hesse alone, 230 tons of World War II-era weapons and munitions were found in 2007 -- over 60 years after the end of the war. The shell the boy brought home still contained 250-300 grams (8.8-10.6 ounces) of explosive -- but had lost its detonator. A 10-year-old boy in the German city of Kassel is lucky to be alive after playing with a new "toy" that turned out to be a h... more -
Okinawa, Japan 26: Final Thoughts
Visit http://StrayCompass.com for more great travel videos. James Knott reflects on his favorite moments in Okinawa.
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Okinawa, Japan 25: WW2 Peace Memorial
Visit http://StrayCompass.com for more great travel videos. The Battle of Okinawa in WW2 devasted the island. Over 100,000 Okinawan civilians were killed in the fighting. Today a very fitting peace memorial sits in southern Okinawa. Visit http://StrayCompass.com for more great travel videos. The Battle of Okinawa in WW2 devasted the island. Over 100,000 Okinawan ci... more
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Book: Paris Under Nazis Was One Big Sex Romp
A new book which suggests that the German occupation of France encouraged the sexual liberation of women has shocked a country still struggling to come to terms with its troubled history of collaboration with the Nazis.
Like a recent photographic exhibition showing Parisians enjoying themselves under the occupation, the book's depiction of life in Paris as one big party is at odds with the collective memory of hunger, resistance and fear.
"It is a taboo subject, a story nobody wants to hear," said Patrick Buisson, author of "1940-1945 Années Erotiques" ("erotic years"). "It may hurt our national pride, but the reality is that people adapted to occupation."
Many might prefer to forget but, with their husbands in prison camps, numerous women slept not only with German soldiers — the young "blond barbarians" were particularly attractive to French women, says Buisson — but also conducted affairs with anyone else who could help them through financially difficult times: "They gave way to the advances of the boss, to the tradesman they owed money to, their neighbor. In times of rationing, the body is the only renewable, inexhaustible currency."
Cold winters, when coal was in short supply, and a curfew from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m. also encouraged sexual activity, says Buisson, with the result that the birth rate shot up in 1942 even though 2 million men were locked up in prison camps. A new book which suggests that the German occupation of France encouraged the sexual liberation of women has shocked a country still s... more -
Downing St is at it's most rightwing since WW2
I worry about what the Tories might do if they get in. I also worry about what Labour might do if it wins another term. Why should anyone on the left seek the re-election of the most rightwing government Britain has had since the second world war? I worry about what the Tories might do if they get in. I also worry about what Labour might do if it wins another term. Why should any... more
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Remembering my dad for Memorial Day
My dad grew up on the Kickapoo Indian Reservation in Northeast Kansas and joined the Navy when he was 17. He served in WW2 and the Korean War, and was stationed on ships in the Pacific. I think about him every day and what it must have been like for him to be away from his family and being introduced to new people and cultures. I am grateful for his choosing to be adventurous and having such loyalty to the service and his duty. Thank you, Dad! I miss you. My dad grew up on the Kickapoo Indian Reservation in Northeast Kansas and joined the Navy when he was 17. He served in WW2 and the Kor... more
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Unreleased photos of Hiroshima
The Robert L. Capp collection at the Hoover Institution Archives contains ten never-before-published photographs illustrating the immediate aftermath of the Hiroshima bombing. These photographs, taken by an unknown Japanese photographer, were found in 1945 among rolls of undeveloped film in a cave outside Hiroshima by U.S. serviceman Robert L. Capp, who was attached to the occupation forces. Unlike most photos of the Hiroshima bombing, these dramatically convey the human as well as material destruction unleashed by the atomic bomb. The Robert L. Capp collection at the Hoover Institution Archives contains ten never-before-published photographs illustrating the imm... more
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Herman Goring seems frighteningly relevant
He was often described has Hitlers right hand man and at the Nuremberg trials he began to crack under the strain of what he had done and what was happening to him. Ironically, the only journalist allowed any access to the Nazi's on trial was a jewish journalist by the name Gustaf Gilbert. These words were taken from Gilbert's notes, Goring did not offer them whilst on trial. He pleaded guilty to his charges and was sentenced to death by hanging but he killed himself before the sentence could be carried out using cyanide capsules smuggled in by a companion
"Naturally the common people don't want war; neither in Russia, nor in England, nor in America, nor in Germany. That is understood. But after all, it is the leaders of the country who determine policy, and it is always a simple matter to drag the people along, whether it is a democracy, or a fascist dictatorship, or a parliament, or a communist dictatorship. Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is to tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same in any country."
Do his words still carry relevance today? He was often described has Hitlers right hand man and at the Nuremberg trials he began to crack under the strain of what he had done a... more -
One quarter of Brits think Churchill was a myth
In a recent survey, 23 percent of 3,000 people questioned thought Winston Churchill was a myth. Of the same group of people, 53 per cent reckoned fictional detective Sherlock Homes really existed.
Mahatma Gandhi and Battle of Waterloo victor the Duke of Wellington also appeared in the top 10 of people thought to be myths.
Imagine all 690 of the idiots who think Churchill didn't exist, in a room, talking about what happened in the Second World War. That's a surreal conversation I'd genuinely pay to hear. In a recent survey, 23 percent of 3,000 people questioned thought Winston Churchill was a myth. Of the same group of people, 53 per ce... more -
Is Hitler's Child Living In The UK?
It sounds like something straight out of the National Enquirer but apparently there's some substance in this rumour. The New Statesman claim that a British socialite had an affair with the Nazi dictator and bore his child around the time the Second World War broke out in 1939. Who reckons this is actually true? It sounds like something straight out of the National Enquirer but apparently there's some substance in this rumour. The New Stat... more
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Paper cranes of the Children's Peace Monument
Here are some photos from the Hiroshima Peace Park in Japan, the paper cranes all over the place are amazing and chilling.
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Meet The Real Life Band of Brothers
After parachuting into Europe during World War II, battling along a strip of road called Hell's Highway in the Netherlands and surviving the freezing woods of Bastogne surrounded by German troops, William Guarnere and Edward Heffron do not consider themselves heroes. Guarnere, 84, and Heffron, 84, are among the surviving members of the fabled Easy Company memorialized in the HBO miniseries "Band of Brothers", and they recently published a new book, "Brothers in Battle: Best of Friends".
The book began after the two were interviewed for a magazine article in 2001 when the miniseries aired. They hadn't talked to their families much about the war, but as some of the last remaining members of Easy Company Guarnere estimates about 23 are still alive they felt an obligation to tell their story.
The book is told through alternating voices, each man describing his childhood, the war and the years that followed. After parachuting into Europe during World War II, battling along a strip of road called Hell's Highway in the Netherlands and su... more -
Your Job In Germany- fascinating historical propaganda
Directed by movie legend Frank Capra and written by... ...wait, WTF... Dr. Seuss??????
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In the Wake of War
This Universal Newsreel from April 23, 1945, gives viewers a glimpse at life in the Wake of War in Germany.
This Current Flashback shows the Allies continue to pile up crushing defeats on the Nazis as they rush eastward from the Rhine. Footage takes us from the wreckage and riots in city streets to the liberation of concentration camp prisoners, including several U.S. soldiers. This Universal Newsreel from April 23, 1945, gives viewers a glimpse at life in the Wake of War in Germany. ... more
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