It was on this day seventy years ago aboard the Seventh Fleet flag ship USS Missouri (BB-63) at anchor in Tokyo Bay that the Supreme Commander of Allied Forces in the Pacific Theater, General Douglas MacArthur, directed the diplomatic representatives of the Empire of Japan to sign the official instrument of surrender. This event marked the official end of hostilities between Japan and all the nations with whom they were engaged in armed conflict and the beginning of the Allied, mainly American, occupation of the Japanese home islands. For all those I have known who were alive and remember this event it marked the end of a great and defining tragedy/adventure of their youth with a feeling of great hope for their future and a decided awareness that the United States had arrived as the pre-eminent global military superpower representing free market capitalism and democratic governance. So began the post-war dream of a better World and way of life for all peoples, both victors and vanquished. That is in fact what echoed in General MacArthur’s comments. So began the American bearing of the burden of supporting any ally sharing our democratic values. Remembering this event is indeed a solemn occasion.
Commemorative plaque on Quarterdeck, USS Missouri (BB-63).As I wax philosophical, I do remember actually standing on the deck adjacent to where the Japanese surrender document was signed. Prior to her refit as part of the defense build up in the early-mid 1980s, USS Missouri was a part of the mothball fleet at the Naval Inactive Ship Facility, Bremerton, WA. I remember actually going aboard her during Labor Day weekend, 1981. Moored across the pier from her was USS New Jersey (BB-62), which was towed out for refit in the Long Beach Naval Shipyard that very week.
USS Missiouri (BB-63) moored Naval Inactive Ship Facility (Mothball Fleet), Bremerton, WA September 1981. Turret 1, Turret 2 and the Bridge from the Forecastle, USS Missouri (BB-63), NISF, Bremerton, WAEven though I have long since lost my fascination with machines and weapons of war, I am still in awe of that ship’s 16 inch guns.
USS Missouri at Sea. Oil painting by Richard Allison. Courtesy of U.S. Navy Art Gallery, Naval History and Heritage Command, Washington, D.C.A fitting and proper final berth for the “Mighty MO” is on the old Battleship Row at Pearl Harbor. Yes, they had an official commemoration of this most solemn event on her deck today. I also remember the eternal presence of USS Arizona, the shrine symbolic of the sacrifice of the nation’s first line of defense and the beginning of the conflagration exemplifying the definition of World War. USS Arizona was never decommissioned. All ships passing her memorial render appropriate passing honors.
Seeing all these things during my first Navy enlistment made me extremely mindful, even all those years ago, of the service and sacrifice of those who have gone before me. Seeing the effects of more recent conflicts on veterans and the communities from which military manpower is recruited have made me more mindful of the service and sacrifice of those who have gone after me. There is no doubt in my mind that the Armed Forces of the United States can militarily defeat any enemy in a toe to toe, head to head straight up match by force of arms. The courage and discipline of the American fighting man and woman is unsurpassed as they are the finest trained, best armed and best supported professionals on the planet. Winning a war has never been a concern. Winning a peace however presents a great deal more intricate and convoluted problem. Therein lie the failures of all conflicts since the conclusion of the last time we achieved absolute victory. The rebuilt Japan is a statement to the commitment of winning a lasting peace. We have seen what can happen when military force is overused in situations which call for a diplomatic solution. The fact we’ve tolerated a perpetual drain on lives and treasure in places like Iraq and Afghanistan is an indication that our chosen policy course goes way beyond anything resembling reasonable ideology. As we pause to look back at where we were seventy years ago, it is my hope we can look ahead and with a little less desire to impose the heavy hand of American military might. To those whose efforts led to the event we commemorate today, let it be known that your efforts have not been forgotten. No, not now, not ever!