THE FIRST WEEK OF JUNE

June 4, 1942: The Battle Of Midway occurs. The Japanese sought to lure America's last (what they thought were two) carriers into a final battle. The destruction of the carriers would leave the West Coast of the United States completely open to invasion. The Japanese brought 200 hundred ships into battle. The US Navy had 50. But it was the US, under the command of Admirals Nimitz, Spruance (who was replacing Admiral Halsey who had the shingles) and Fletcher,  who lured Japan into a trap, including the surprising appearance of the Yorktown, who the Japanese thought was out of action after the previous month's battle of the Coral Sea. It all came down to who could find the other side's carriers first. Enter 40 year old Lt. Commander C. Wade McClusky, leading Fighter Squadron 6 from the Enterprise. He was running low on fuel when he spotted a Japanese destroyer moving at top speed. He led his squadron of SBD dive bombers and found the entire Japanese fleet without air cover as the fighters were on deck refueling. McClusky led the attack and sunk three Japanese carriers. The fourth was sunk later that day. The US lost the brave Yorktown, but the battle was won and Japan would never launch another offensive naval campaign. All because of the bravery of a group of men who refused to back down when the odds were against them. Out manned and out gunned, they out thought their enemy, and when the chips were down, young American fight pilots drove home the attack, sunk four enemy carriers,  and turned the tide.

June 6, 1944.  The Citizen Solider of the United States was once again going into Europe to save humanity. They would be facing the professional military Wehrmacht of Germany.  The 18, 19, 20 year old boys from the back woods of West Virginia, the dust bowls of the mid-west, the cities of Brooklyn, Chicago, Dallas, and LA jumped into the darkness over Normandy, and waded off of landing ships into the teeth of devastating fire. The darkness of Nazism had descended over Europe. But the Jewish , Catholic, Baptist boys  and the like from Italian, Irish, and European descent, raised during the depression, went up against the most professional and fearsome army the world has ever seen. And they beat them, heads up, man on man.
Inscribed on the walls of the US Cemetery at Normandy are many inscriptions, including these:

The Battle belonged that morning to the thin wet line of Khaki that dragged itself ashore on the coastline of France. General Omar Bradley, commander of the landing forces.

If ever a proof were needed that we fought for a cause and not a conquest, it could be found in these cemeteries. Here was our only conquest. All we asked for was enough soil to bury our gallant dead.
General Mark Clark.


June 5, 2020
Police officers in Buffalo, New York push to the ground an unarmed, 70 year old man who had a history of peaceful protests. His head struck the ground and he began to bleed from the ears as the riot clad police marched on by. In the police report after the protest, it was noted that one protestor was injured when he tripped and fell.

What happened in 80 years? How did we go from Wade McClusky to this?