On December 7th, 1941 at 8:00 a.m. a bomb was dropped on Pearl Harbor by Japan. There had been no official declaration of war. The U.S.S Arizona (BB39 Battleship) was struck by a converted armor penetrating naval shell. This explosion caused the U.S.S Arizona to sink to the harbor bottom in just a few minutes. The explosion and sinking resulted in the death of over 1,100 crew members (mt. Diablo/pearlharbor). This brutality caused the U.S to respond in a very hostile and brutal manner.
             Admiral Isoroko Yamamoto had conceived the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor. It was a force of 353 Japanese aircraft that was lead by Commander Mitsuo Fuchida. After the attack on Pearl Harbor people from all over began to flood recruiting stations. People from all over the U.S wanted to fight back. "People at that time were very patriotic and wanted to fight for their freedom." (Personal interview Joseph Paul Buckman ). The propaganda at this time made the war seem rather exciting and even glorious, but little did the people of the U.S know, they had a long hard road ahead of them. During the war almost everyone was affected in some way or another. Even the civilians in the U.S suffered. The government rationed things such as sugar, shoes, meat, coffee, liquor, nylons, and gas. (Personal interview Kay Buckman). These few items may not seem like much, but that's simply because we take them for granite.
             Many things came about due to the bombing of Pearl Harbor. The Japanese did not get away Scots free. Due to their sneak attack on the United States. Ground fire and United States pilots from various military instillations on O'ahu shot down a total of 29 Japanese aircraft. On Monday, the day after the attack the U.S President declared war on Japan and Germany. "December 7th was a day that will live in infamy." Franklin D. Roosevelt. Just a few years later the U.S. gained their "revenge" o...