View Single Post
Old 04-21-2015, 12:53 PM   #8
Jim in CT
Registered User
 
Join Date: Jul 2008
Posts: 20,428
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nebe View Post
Yes. He passed away 5 years ago, and in his final years worked very closely with the author of the book to get his experience on paper. It was a great read. Wading across the lagoon in Tarawa drove me to tears.
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device
Holy sh*t, he was a Marine at Tarawa? I know of that battle, which might have been the most ferocious (if you measure that by deaths per hour) in the entire war. Due to a variety of scientific factors, the tides were way lower than expected that day, so all of the Higgins boats bottomed out on the reef hundreds of yards from shore, so all the Marines had to wade in chest deep water, across a lagoon protected by a series of machine gun nests. Shooting fish in a barrel. The assault in was led by Colonel Shoup, who won the medal of honor. Many marines were awarded the medal of honor as a result of that battle, which goes down with Tripoli and the Chosin Reservoir in Marine Corps history.

I'll be getting that book.

Wow.

You should be mighty proud...
Jim in CT is offline   Reply With Quote