Anniversary of Pearl Harbor Attack, December 7th, 1941 (VIDEO)

Today's an important day, the anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, December 7, 1941. The U.S. declared war on Japan the next day, and Adolf Hitler's Nazi Germany declared war on the U.S. three days after that. 

See, from 2016, "Pearl Harbor’s 75th Anniversary: A Look Back at the Attack."

Please take the time and watch the video below, featuring U.S. Air Force Captain Jerry Yellin, who flew the last combat mission of World War II. In later life, he reconciled with the Japanese and at home he worked on various causes to support American veterans of foreign wars, especially those suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. 

Yellen passed away in 2017 at the age of 93. Yellen, and men like him, are the last of a dying breed --- patriotic Americans who volunteered for military service to defend their country, and they were just boys, teenagers often of 18, or even younger, as the young one lied about their age because they wanted to serve their nation so badly. 

Yellen's youngest son married the daughter of a Japanese Kamikaze ("divine wind") pilot. The joining of family was a major element of healing for Captain Yellen and serves as an example of American honor and magnanimity in the wake of the evil of man's inhumanity to fellow man.

Think hard about the men (and women) of this generation, sometimes called the "Greatest Generation." Would you sign up for military service at 18-years-old, still just a babe in the woods, barely out of high school, prepared to fight and die for your country --- with few if any reservations whatsoever?  The fact is, millions of Americans today --- in particular far-left Democrats (who often despise American and its history) --- would not. (Scroll down to "WHAT WOULD AMERICANS DO?")

I can't help but think the decline of patriotism among young people, and their unwillingness to sacrifice for one's country, foretells bad things for America in the future, and the not too distant future at that. Liberty is not free, and there's nothing to guarantee its survival, unless those who enjoy its blessings will stand up --- in time of need --- for truth, justice, and the American way of good in the world. 

Again, think hard. What would you do if faced with virtually the same circumstances, the specter of world totalitarianism threatening peace and freedom in the world? 

Here, below, Captain Yellen tells his story, during a visit to Iwo Jima, in 2010. 

Have a great day. 

SBLVI Most Valuable Player Aaron Donald

This is to take nothing --- absolutely nothing! --- off Cooper Kupp. Damn though, I'm not alone when I say this man was the MVP of the night, of the Rams franchise all year, and the entire NFL 2021-2022 season. 

Have you ever seen a grown man cry, like this?!! Pure heart. 

My goodness I was right there with him feelin' it. God bless that man. All he said all season long is we have to win the Super Bowl, and he worked harder than anyone else to get there. 

Volume on people!

WE DID THIS, @AARONDONALD97!!

📺: #SBLVI on NBC pic.twitter.com/wEtNE5R7DU

— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) February 14, 2022

GIVE AARON DONALD HIS RING. #SBLVI #RAMSHOUSE pic.twitter.com/pCBiKkq1L7

— NFL (@NFL) February 14, 2022

"Aaron Donald's gonna make a play."

Sean McVay knew this was 99's moment. Epic. (via @NFLFilms, @insidetheNFL) pic.twitter.com/a0E6vSpsFH

— NFL (@NFL) February 14, 2022

80th Anniversary of Pearl Harbor Attack (VIDEO)

Yesteryear's heroes are slipping away.

We have not too many of them left to tell the stories of the history of World War II.

At Reuters, "U.S. observes 80th anniversary of attack on Pearl Harbor," and "Pearl Harbor Day 2021: 80th anniversary of ‘date which will live in infamy’."

Here's Jerry Yellin at the video. He's reported to have flown the final combat mission of World War II in a North American P-51 Mustang against a military airfield near Tokyo on August 14, 1945.

Brigitte Gabriel: United We Stood on September 11th

She's a good lady.

Interview with Maj. Dick Winters (VIDEO)

I'm a major fan of "Band of Brothers," and especially Episode 2, and Easy Company's destruction of the German 88 artillery emplacement at Brecourt Manner. 

If you've seen the series, then you know the story-line of Lieutenant Colonel Ronald Speirs and the legend of him gunning down more than a dozen Nazi captives.

Watch and be amazed:

Bob Dole Diagnosed With Lung Cancer (VIDEO)

His farewell speech in the U.S. Senate is here.

He wasn't the greatest presidential candidate, obviously, but he's a true patriot, serving his country in WWII, where in the Italian campaign he took German machine gun fire in the Apennine mountains near Castel d'Aiano, southwest of Bologna. His personal recovery from his injuries was apparently miraculous, and his physician was a Holocaust survivor who helped him develop an outlook on loss and recovery after such great personal sacrifice. 

He's got stage 4 lung cancer, which is what killed Rush Limbaugh yesterday, so it's pretty clear that Dole, who is 97-years-old, has got a tough battle ahead. 

Prayers up. 

More at MSNBC:

Remembering 9/11

It's been 9 years since I visited New York on September 11. See, "Faith, Freedom, and Memory: Report From Ground Zero, September 11, 2010."

At USA Today, "'America will always rise up': Trump and Biden pay respects to 9/11 victims in memorial visits."

And here's CJ Pearson, for Prager University:

Alt-Hero Posters

A Vox Day joint, on Twitter:

Coming later today, Alt★Hero posters. Help us Make Comics Great Again!https://t.co/Szc274yaiW pic.twitter.com/LVBJoNfQ1P

— Supreme Dark Lord (@voxday) October 18, 2017

Six Seconds to Live

This is astonishing.

Here, on Twitter.

Wow. Read this. pic.twitter.com/gg4pkFL23Y

— Jay Caruso (@JayCaruso) October 23, 2017

Scouts Placed Flags at More Than 88,000 Graves at Los Angeles National Cemetery (VIDEO)

Well, not everything's gone to hell in this country, thank God.

At CBS News 2 Los Angeles:

John Glenn, Legendary American, Dies at 95

When the news broke the other day that John Glenn had died, I thought it was sad, but that he'd lived a full life until the ripe old age of 95.

What a kind and decent man, I thought.

It wasn't until I watched CBS This Morning's review of his life when I shook my head and said, "Damn, the dude's a freakin' American hero!"

Really, just wow.

And below is the New York Times obituary:

John Glenn, 1921-2016 https://t.co/lE2UaH5PLl

— The New York Times (@nytimes) December 9, 2016

Modesto Man Places 75 Crosses on His Lawn to Honor Those Who Made the Ultimate Sacrifice (VIDEO)

Via KCRA News 3 Sacramento:

Jamie Foxx Saves Man from Burning Truck (VIDEO)

Hey, credit where credit's due.

He did a good thing, and the man's father is forever grateful.

At the Los Angeles Times, "Jamie Foxx on rescuing man from burning truck: 'You just had to do something."

And watch, at CBS News 2 Los Angeles, "Jamie Foxx Saves Driver From Burning Truck Outside His Home."

France Train Hero Spencer Stone Stabbed in Sacramento Street Fight (VIDEO)

The Sacramento Police Department's going all out in stressing that the knife attack on decorated hero Spencer Stone wasn't terrorism.

See the Sacramento Bee, "Train hero Spencer Stone stabbed, in serious condition."

But news reports out of Britain say that authorities are searching for two "Asian" suspects, which for the politically correct British media means two Muslim suspects. See Jihad Watch, "Spencer Stone stabbing: police searching for two “Asian” male suspects, say attack not terrorism":

The Daily Mail is a British paper, and in the British press, “Asian” is the universally-employed code word for “Muslim.” If this British paper is suddenly using the word to refer, as in the American custom, to people from China or Japan, they’re not saying so. It is also possible that the Sacramento police said they were looking for “Asians,” by which they really did mean Chinese or Japanese or Koreans or Southeast Asians, etc., and the Daily Mail is too careless to note the difference in usage.

And so now the plot thickens. Police are insisting this attack had nothing to do with terrorism, but they always do that, no matter what the circumstances. If Spencer Stone was indeed stabbed by Muslims, then the possibility that the stabbing was related to his stopping the jihad attack on the French train cannot be dismissed out of hand...

Also at Atlas Shrugs, "Watch VIDEO: CCTV of Fight, France Train Hero Stabbed, Police Hunt 'Asians,' aka Muslims."

VIDEO: Hero Knocks Out Bully Who Attacked Blind Student at Huntington Beach High School

At KTLA, via Memeorandum, "Huntington Beach High Student Arrested for Allegedly Beating Visually Impaired Teen; Video of Incident Goes Viral."

And watch, at CBS News 2 Los Angeles, "Caught on Video: Huntington Beach High Student Comes to Defense of Blind Friend and Knocks Out Bully."

This should be the regular thing, the heroism. But what if it was Muslim bully attacking a blind student. Oh boy, CAIR would be screaming "Islamophobia' from the rooftops.

Spencer Stone Homecoming (VIDEO)

At the Sacramento Bee, "French train hero Spencer Stone returns to California."

And at KCRA News 3 Sacramento, "Euro train hero Spencer Stone welcomed home at Travis AFB."

France Bestows Legion d'Honneur on Amsterdam-Paris Train Shooting Heroes (VIDEO)

These guys are awesome.

At the New York Times, "Americans and Briton Who Thwarted Train Attack Receive Top French Honor":

PARIS — President François Hollande of France on Monday awarded the Legion of Honor, France’s highest award, to three Americans and a Briton for their role in stopping a gunman on a high-speed train traveling to Paris from Amsterdam on Friday.

The three Americans — airman First Class Spencer Stone, 23; Alek Skarlatos, 22, a specialist in the Oregon National Guard; and their friend Anthony Sadler, 23, — received the honor in the gilded halls of the Élysée Palace, where they were joined by Chris Norman, 62, a British consultant.

“One need only know that Ayoub El Khazzani was in possession of 300 rounds of ammunition and firearms to understand what we narrowly avoided, a tragedy, a massacre,” Mr. Hollande said at the ceremony, referring to the suspect in the attack, a Moroccan who is in police custody and denies that he had planned to stage a terrorist attack.

“Your heroism must be an example for many and a source of inspiration,” Mr. Hollande added. “Faced with the evil of terrorism, there is a good, that of humanity. You are the incarnation of that.”

After his speech, Mr. Hollande pinned the Legion of Honor medal on the three Americans, who wore khaki slacks and polo shirts, bringing a casual touch to the ornate ceremony. Airman Stone, whose thumb was severely cut by the gunman, still had his left arm in a sling as well as a bruised eye.

The three friends were on a tour of Europe that included stops in France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Spain. They had originally intended to spend Friday night in Amsterdam but changed their minds and boarded a high-speed Thalys train to Paris. Shortly after the train crossed the Belgian border into France, they heard a shot, saw a gunman with an AK-47 and rushed to stop him.

A French citizen who was the first to tackle Mr. Khazzani but who has declined to be identified will receive the honor at a later date, as will Mark Moogalian, 51, a passenger with dual French and American citizenship who struggled with the attacker and is recovering from a bullet wound.

The courageous responses to the presence of a gunman drew attention and praise from around the world, especially in France, where many quickly encouraged Mr. Hollande to award the men the Legion of Honor, which was created by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1802 to reward “outstanding merit.” Several senior officials, including Prime Minister Manuel Valls and the head of the French rail company, attended the ceremony on Monday.

PREVIOUSLY: "2 of 3 Heroes Who Stopped Terrorist Attack on Amsterdam-Paris Train Hail from California (VIDEO)."

2 of 3 Heroes Who Stopped Terrorist Attack on Amsterdam-Paris Train Hail from California (VIDEO)

Well, all of the Americans are being honored for their heroism, but two of them are from right here in California. Amazing, since this state is so far left-wing it's ridiculous. It's one of those stories that remind that there is still decency in the world, and it's not coming from the political left of the spectrum.

At the Telegraph UK, "France train attack: Americans hailed as heroes, gunman 'had ties to Isil'."

And the local angle at CBS News 2 Los Angeles:



Also, at the Los Angeles Times, "Americans who took down terrorist were childhood pals.

Plus, at People Magazine, "U.S. Airman Spencer Stone's Heroic Actions Aboard Attacked Train Are 'No Surprise' to Hometown Friends."

And it's a good thing these guys were aboard. The train's crew wasn't about to do jack to stop the attempted jihadi attack. At London's Daily Mail, "Crew on Paris-bound train 'barricaded themselves in their staffroom and locked the door as Kalashnikov-wielding terrorist went on the rampage – leaving PASSENGERS to take him down'."

More at the New York Times, "A Shot, a Glimpse of an AK-47, and U.S. Servicemen Pounced on Gunman on Train to France."

Gunnery Sgt. Brian Jacklin Awarded the Navy Cross

At the O.C. Register, "Valor is 'what these Marines are all about,' officer says of those who earned Navy Cross, Bronze Star":

CAMP PENDLETON – Gunnery Sgt. Brian Jacklin still remembers being vastly outnumbered and surrounded by the enemy in a small village in the volatile Helmand Province of western Afghanistan.

He and his team of nine special operations Marines had taken heavy fire for hours from outside a compound. His captain and a sergeant had been hit and were bleeding out. Jacklin saw blowing out the wall as the only way to evacuate his wounded comrades and get his team to a landing zone and an arriving copter.

“I asked the guys, ‘Does anyone have a problem with blowing out the wall to get out of here?’” Jacklin recalled. “They all said ‘I’m in, just do it.’ There was no hesitation when I gave the order. I told them, ‘If you get hit on your way out just keep going and we’ll figure it out afterward.’”

After the wounded and his team were evacuated, Jacklin stayed behind providing intelligence and personal fire to the assisting SEAL Team 3 and local Afghan forces.

Jacklin, 32, a critical skills operator with 1st Marine Special Operations Battalion, on Thursday was awarded the Navy Cross – the nation’s second-highest award for valor.

“With his decisive actions, bold initiative and complete dedication to duty, Jacklin reflected great credit upon himself and upheld the highest traditions of the U.S. Naval Service,” his citation reads.

He was decorated by Maj. Gen. Joseph Osterman, commander of the Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command, during a ceremony at Camp Pendleton. Jacklin received his medal for heroic actions during a 48-hour standoff with the enemy while he was part of a team conducting village stability operations in Afghanistan’s volatile Upper Gereshk Valley in June 2012.

During the ceremony, five of Jacklin’s team members – all critical skill operators – also were honored with the Bronze Star with combat “V” device for their role in the battle. They included Gunnery Sgt. William Simpson IV, Staff Sgt. Christopher Buckminster, Staff Sgt. Hafeez Hussein, Sgt. William Hall and Sgt. David Harris.

“These six extraordinary Marines are being recognized for their gallantry and valor,” Osterman said. “It always takes a team to make it work. This epitomizes the team concept and what these Marines are all about.”

Taya Kyle Expected to Testify at Trial of Husband's Alleged Murderer

At CBS This Morning:



Also at Dallas Morning News, "Chris Kyle's widow Taya will be among first witnesses in 'American Sniper' trial."