Today on the History Channel was an episode of "Battlefield Detectives" dealing with the 24 day battle for Saipan, the last battle before the planned invasion of the Japanese mainland. I the early morning hours of July 7th,1944 the remaining 3,000 soldiers of the Japanese army launched a head-on Banzai charge at US lines, which were manned by US Marines and members of the US Army 27th and 105th Infantry. The battle soon bacame hand-to-hand fighting, with rifle butts, bayonets, clubs and fists...No quarter was ask for or given by either side. At the end, all 3,000 plus Jap soldiers lay dead...some piled 2-3 high where they fell, and over 900 Americans were killed or wounded in this final assault. My God, what courage....God Bless these Brave American Fighting men. It probably sounds a bit corny or perhaps even phony to say this, but these are now the things that go through my head as I am standing next to a man in his 80's in a grocery line...or when I catch myself starting to become irritated by the car ahead going "too slow" when all I can see from behind is a shock of white hair...
Jim 
