Random musings: A date which will live in infamy

Monday, December 7, 2015

A date which will live in infamy

On December 7, 1941 8 year old Allan Tompkins, sometimes called Oddie by his family, was celebrating his mother's 32nd birthday with his parents and 5 year old brother, Rich, at Dimond Park in Oakland, CA. Their family picnic was thrown into turmoil when news of the attack reached the west coast of the United States.

The following day, President Franklin D. Roosevelt delivered his famous "A date which will live in infamy" speech which, according to Wikipedia:

Within an hour of the speech, Congress passed a formal declaration of war against Japan and officially brought the U.S. into World War II. The address is one of the most famous of all American political speeches.

Every generation has a day, or maybe two, which defines it. For the "Greatest Generation" and the "Silent Generation", one of those days was December 7, 1941. For my generation, the "Baby Boomers" we had two...November 22, 1963, the day President Kennedy was shot, and September 11, 2001, the attack on the World Trade Center and Pentagon. Each of these days helps to define all generations alive at that time.