"We can now see that the great unraveling that was World War II perhaps began with Japan’s 1931 invasion of Manchuria. Without the benefit of retrospection, we cannot be certain that World War III has not begun."
Friday, April 26, 2024
Friday, April 26, 1974. A Portuguese military coup turns towards democracy.
The Portuguese Junta de Salvação Nacional announced that it would govern Portugal until further notice, but that it would restore democracy and, further, it would pursue a policy to end Portuguese rule of Mozambique, Angola and its other colonies. It was in fact the Portuguese corporatist state's efforts to retain its colonies by force which had led to its junior military officers becoming disaffected, leading to the coup, and a return to democracy, through the Movimento das Forças Armadas.
The junta also released most political prisoners in the country.
I should have noted the coup in yesterday's entries, but I failed to.
Angola and Mozambique would of course slip into civil war.
The West German Bundestag narrowly passed a law allowing abortion in the first trimester, but it was soon suspended by the German supreme court and then found to be unconstitutional. Contrary to what Americans commonly think, abortion was much more restricted in Europe than in the US up until recently, and proposals here to return to the bizarre Roe v. Wade standard would return the US to a far more bloody condition than exists in Europe.
The Ethiopian government arrested members of the government and military that were associated in some fashion with the February 25 coup.
April 26, 1974: The Yankees' Friday Night Massacre
Last prior edition:
Monday, April 15, 1974. The Hibernia Bank Robbery.
Wednesday, April 26, 1944. Pyrrihic Kidnapping.
Example of wartime propaganda aimed at the Japanese.
In a mission months in the making, members of the SOE and Cretan resistance kidnapped Heinrich Kreipe.
Originally directed at Gen. Friedrich-Wilhelm Müller as a reprisal for actions committed under his orders, Kreipe had succeeded him by the time the SOE team arrived. Kreipe's kidnapping would cause Müller to return and order mass reprisals, something that had not occurred under Kreipe.
In short, it was a pointless action and poorly thought out, with ultimately tragic results.
Kreipe would be reunited with his kidnappers in a 1972 Greek television program.
In New Guinea, American beachheads at Tanahmerah Bay and Humboldt Bay were linked up. Australian forces took Alexishafen.
The Yoshida Maru No. 1 was sunk by the USS Jack resulting in the loss of 2,669 men.
The U-488 was sunk off of Cape Verde by the U.S. Navy.
The I-180 was sunk off of Chirikof Island by the USS Gilmore.
The Royal Navy, in an effort to attack the Tirpitz which failed due to weather, found a coastal convoy instead and sunk three ships in it.
The POW camp in Hoopeston, Illinois, received its first prisoners.
Last prior edition:
Tuesday, April 25, 1944. The Blood for Goods deal extended, Air disaster at Montreal, the death of George Herriman.
Well darn.
For fools rush in where angels fear to tread.
Distrustful sense with modest caution speaks,
It still looks home, and short excursions makes;
But rattling nonsense in full volleys breaks,
And, never shocked, and never turned aside,
Bursts out, resistless, with a thundering tide.
Alexander Pope.
Mess mates. Taken in a tent, in South Korea.
Yes, it was foolish.
Hello!
Unfortunately, the cut off age for enlistment in the Armed Forces of Ukraine is 60. Therefore we will not be able to process your application.
But we are grateful for your support and willingness to sacrifice for Ukraine and our brothers in arms.
It means a lot to us, truly.
Even if you cannot fight with us in Ukraine's fields and forests, please keep supporting Ukraine in whatever way you can and see suitable.
Best Regards,
Korvin
Recruitment Department
International Legion for the Defense of Ukraine
https://ildu.com.ua
And I was trained to hold back the Red Horde and everything.
Yes, it's foolish.
Yes, I could get killed. Indeed, I'd guess the chances of my getting killed, given my age, and that I've never been a speedy person (although not an out of shape one) are better than not.
But, with my Congressional representation doing what it can in order to see young Wyomingites get killed in Eastern Europe, well, maybe I could do something to make up for what they're doing.
Thursday, April 25, 2024
Not a profile in courage.
From Twitter.
First:
Larry Wolfe@WYWolfe
So Barrasso and Lummis have joined the Pro Putin camp. Lummis makes the same tired argument that we can’t afford it. What is Barrasso’s excuse for abandoning his boss McConnell and instead lining up with the far right fringe of Senate crackpots?
8:51 PM · Apr 24, 2024
It is an excellent question, although probably rhetorical, as we all know why Sen. Barrasso did this, he's running to the right of himself to keep his job. The Wyoming GOP has fallen to the populists, who are not conservatives, and who are definitely isolationist without a grasp on foreign policy. We all know that. And a lot of us know that Barrasso doesn't believe a lot of the things he claims to, which makes this situation, frankly, sad, but for the fact that when Russia quits bleeding Ukraine, if Ukraine doesn't win, American and European blood will flow next.
Barrasso knows that, too.
I used to see Barrasso frequently as a passenger in airplanes. When I did, I always left him alone, even though I slightly know him, and knew his late wife a bit better. I've wanted to speak to him, however, as I frankly can't believe that he believes a lot of the things he states, and I've wanted to tell him that.
Somebody did just that, however.
Cleaned up to take out the awkward nature of Twitter:
Replying to @WYWolfe
drew@drew53430308
Was lucky enough to fly DEN-CPR with JB back in February, the VERY day they failed to move the bill. We were seated close to each other, and had to wait on the jetway in Casper for our carry-ons. So I introduce myself as “Lt Col so-and-so” and offer condolences about his wife’s passing, but then I mentioned the day’s failure, and how the rest of the week was a work session, hard to do from home…
I told him that the innocent civilians in Ukraine needed help, they needed our help to end the rapes and murders. I explained that America doesn’t abandon her allies on the battlefield. I explained that then, that very night, with a few phone calls he could fix it…
I looked him in the eye and told him he was one of the most powerful men on Earth, and that he alone could save lives, starting right then. I told him millions of innocents were counting on him, that this was his moment…
JB thanked me for my service, explained this was all JD Vance’s fault, and there was nothing he could do. Told me I didn’t understand how things work. I replied that I’d flown back enough dead and maimed kids to learn a lifetime’s worth of foreign policy.
Well, good for Lt. Col. Drew.
Postscript:
There's good reason to believe that Barrasso is fighting for his political career this election against a surprisingly strong Reid Rasner. Barrasso has had those in the electorate who were vaguely discontent with him for some time. In retrospect, a lot of that opposition came from people who believe the "Uni Party" brand of nonsense in which anything the government spends is evidence that you are a RINO, unless of course the money is spent subsidizing highways, which is good. The same people, of course, are hugely opposed to balancing the budget, although they don't realize it, as they'd have to be taxed at a fair rate, which they aren't in favor of.
Anyhow, with the strong rise of populism in the state Barrasso is in surprising trouble as he has a track records that isn't populist, but conservative. Those who didn't like him in the first place trend that way, and the overall state GOP is now on a populist warpath, the fall of Liz Cheney being evidence of that. So Barrasso is now campaigning as a populist.
The thing he might be missing is that for a long time there have been Republican moderates and true conservatives, the people that populists, who aren't real Republicans but rather are Dixiecrats, who weren't hugely fond of Barrasso either. Dr. Barrasso also knew that, which was why he was pretty careful, usually, but not always, to take carefully thought out conservative positions. Many in this same class weren't hugely satisfied with Barrasso, if not outright dissatisfied with him, and were held back from voting for a Democratic candidate only due to certain issues, such as right to life issues. Irrespective of that, in 2018, the last time he ran, Barrasso take at the pools declined from a 2012 76% to 67%, which is the same percentage that Donald Trump took in 2016. Democrat Gary Trauner took 30%.
Trauner ran for elective office several times and failed to win, but he was respected and stuck around in the public eye for a while after the 2018 election. He's not involved in politics anymore, but his race is illustrative. Barrasso had no real opposition in the primary, although some gadfly entrants did run. This time he has real opposition. Most of the old moderate Democrats became Republicans in the state long ago and by this time may be too disgusted by these recent developments to even vote in the primary, and those who do may abstain from voting in this race. That might push things over the top for Rasner, as at the end of the day, Barrasso is at least partially counting on conservatives and moderate Republicans who aren't thrilled with him right now to vote for him.
And while the winner of that race will win, whomever it is may not have the level of support that they have in the past. 30% of the electorate was voting against him already, which was worse than Cheney did in 2020 and worse than Hageman did in 2022.
Related thread:
The 2024 Election, Part XVII. Standing on their feet or crawling on their knees.
Tuesday, April 25, 1944. The Blood for Goods deal extended, Air disaster at Montreal, the death of George Herriman.
Joel Brand in 1961, age 55.
The Nazis offered Hungarian rescue worker Joel Brand an offer which has been termed the "Blood for Goods" deal. It was an offer to free 1,000,000 Hungarian Jews, releasing them to an Allied country, save for Palestine (oddly) for goods. The offer was extended through Adolf Eichmann to Brand, who was a pre-war Hungarian Zionist.
Brand carried the message to the Allies, making his way through Turkey to Egypt, where he was arrested by the British. The British did not take the offer seriously and believed it was a trick. The US was cautious about the offer but less hostile to it. British opposition to exploring it ended the matter, and the British press leaked it and termed it blackmail by the fall.
At this point in the war, members of the SS were not completely loyal to Hitler and there is some reason to believe that this was a camouflaged effort to open up communications with the Western Allies in order to advance a separate peace, a delusional prospect of that is what they were thinking.
Brand moved to Israel after the war and was haunted the rest of his life by the failure of the proposal. He died visiting Germany in 1964, at age 58.
A Royal Air Force variant of the B-24, a Liberator B Mark VI crashed into the Griffintown neighborhood of Montreal after taking off from Dorval Airport. The crew and ten civilians were killed.
My mother lived in the St. Lambert district of Montreal at the time. St. Lambert is directly across the river from Griffentown. I'd never heard of this incident, but then, there are many such thing that my parents never mentioned to me on matters like this, and I suppose that's to be expected. Casper suffered numerous air disasters during World War Two.
My mother, then 19 years of age, would have been working in the city at this time, so was likely on the Griffentown side of the river when the accident occured.
The first combat helicopter evacuation completed in the CBI:
21–25 April 1944
The Luftwaffe raided shipping at Portsmouth and Plymouth-Devonport in a nighttime raid. The same night, the HMS Black Prince and three Canadian destroyers engaged German warships in the English Channel, sinking the T-29 and damaging the T-24 and T-27.
The T-39 series of German ships were torpedo "boats", but due to their size they were more in the nature of corvettes.
Allied forces landed at Humboldt Bay, New Guinea.
The British government announced that it had a £2.76 billion deficit, £89 million smaller than anticipated.
Service Club mural, Ft. Bliss, Texas. April 25, 1944.
The United Negro College Fund was established.
George Herriman, the creator of Krazy Kat, died at age 63.
Herriman was creole and born in New Orleans, although he speant much of his adult life in Los Angeles. The Creole are their own distinct ethnicity, with some noting that means by default that they are of "mixed race", something that a lot of non Louisianians don't realize as they confuse creole with Cajun, the two not being the same. Under the bizarre rules of American culture, Herriman would have been regarded as "black" in some regions of the United States, although legally, and equally bizarrely, he could at the time choose to self identify as white or black, neither of which really describes his ethnic heritage. He self identified as white, which makes sense, as to do otherwise would have hindered his career.
Herriman was a shy and gentlemanly man. A Catholic, he married his childhood sweetheart and had two children, as well as a lot of pets, of which he wsa very fond.
Last prior edition:Monday, April 24, 1944. Violating Swiss Airspace.
Friday, April 25, 1924. Denver Colorado receives 24" of snow, Jilted "Girl" lawyer turns killer.
16th Street, 1924.
Belgium accepted the Dawes Plan.
Of the two, at the time, Casper newspapers, the Herald leaned on sensational headlines, but there was plenty to be sensationalist about.
The "Girl Lawyer" was Wanda Stopa, who must have been both brilliant and unstable. The story reminds us of the Biblical warning that "the wages of sin is death", quite literally in this instance. Stopa
startred down the path that lead to her own death through adultery.
Last prior edition:
Wednesday, April 24, 2024
Monday, April 24, 1944. Violating Swiss Airspace.
L-R: Lt. Col. Earl Hormell, aide to Gen. Devers, and Lt. Gen. Jacob L. Devers, Deputy Supreme Commander, Me. Theater, pose with Ghurka troops as the general visits the front that the Ghurka was fighting on. Orsogna Sector, Italy, April 24, 1944. Lt. Gen. Devers is wearing a non-regulation set of pull on "engineer's boots". Devers was an artilleryman who was an early advocated of mechanization and who had participated in the development of the Army's armored forces, including the design of the M4 Sherman and the M26 Pershing. Upon his retirement in 1949 at age 62, he became a cattle farmer.
The Finisterre Range Campaign in New Guinea concluded in an Allied victory. US forces reached Lake Sentani near Hollandia. Australian forces took Madang.
The RAF violated Swiss airspace in order to evade Munich's air warning system. Earlier in the day, the U.S. Army Air Force had raided the heavily defended city, losing 55 aircraft, 14 of which crashed into Switzerland.
Italy started fielding a "Co Belligerent Air Force" in support of the Allies over the Adriatic.
The Special Boat Service raided Santorini in the Aegean.
A British blockade of mutinous Greek troops in Egypt ceased.
Double Indemnity was released in Brazil, a few months ahead of the American release.
Why Brazil? I have no idea.
Funeral for German POW Richard Jasker, Camp Robinson Nebraska. 24 April, 1944.
Last prior edition:
Sunday, April 23, 1944. Hollandia taken, MacArthur lands, John C. Squire's posthumous MoH, Greek troubles, Pyrgoi Massacre, Tragic accident, Missing mobster.
Thursday, April 24, 1924. Protecting the Icons.
Russian Orthodox faithful prevented the police from confiscating icons from St. Andrew's Cathedral in St. Petersburg.
Communist authorities subsequently turned the church over to the Soviet-sponsored Renovationist Church that promoted a pro-Communist Orthodox body which originally been a post Russian Revolution reform movement with in the Russian Orthodox Church, but which was taken over by the Communist infiltration. It received Communist backing at first, but was ultimately repressed, just as the Russian Orthodox Church was. It never received the support of the Russian faithful, and it passed away after World War Two. Almost all of its priests returned to the Orthodox Church after Stalin stopped the strict oppression of it during World War Two.
Last prior edition:
Wednesday, April 23, 1924. Debutants drill team
Tuesday, April 23, 2024
Turning the Tide in Ukraine (maybe) or at least helping them a bunch. What else the US can do. Part Two.
Gen. Clair Chennault.
Clair Chennault entered the U.S. Army during World War One, and resigned in 1937, going from there to China as a mercenary pilot for the Nationalist in their war against Japan. Following a mission on behalf of the Chinese to the US in 1939, the US funded and equipped the American Volunteer Group of pilots, the legendary P-40 flying "Flying Tigers". They weren't in the US military, at least not at that time. They were, quite frankly, mercenaries, but specialized ones.
A bit different, as they were officially in the Royal Air Force, the British fielded three fighter squadrons made up of US volunteers. "Eagle Squadrons"
There was a well-worn precedent for that. During World War One, while Woodrow Wilson was promising to keep us out of war, the French fielded Escadrille N. 124, the Escadrille de La Fayette. It's pilots were Americans.
They weren't the only unit in the Great War like that. Perhaps the most famous one was the Czech Legion, made up of Czech and Slovak volunteers who fought at first on the Eastern Front, and then fought their way across Siberia to Vladivostok so they could be taken to France, after the Russian Revolution broke out, to rejoin the Allied effort.
During the Mexican War, the Republic of Mexico fielded a unit of volunteer, mostly Irish and Irish American, artillerymen, known as the San Patricio's. While Mexico lost the war, their performance was excellent.
The point?
Ukraine is taking in foreign volunteers for the Ukrainian Legion. However, much more here could be done along the same lines as the AVG. The AVG, basically, took in American military pilots used to American military gear, with that gear purchased for Nationalist China through an arrangement with the US.
This could be done in the war in Ukraine on a ground combat basis.
The US military was traditionally quite small before World War Two. From 1947 through 1990, however, it was very large due to the Cold War, and it's not been inconsequential in size since that time. The youngest of the Cold War warriors are now 52 years old, not young. But maybe not as old, in modern terms, as it might seem. At any rate, there are thousands of Americans in their 30s, 40s, and 50s who have served in the U.S. military.
Those men trained to fight the Soviet Union. And they used, in many cases, late Cold War and early post Cold War US equipment.
This isn't unique to the U.S. Germany only ended universal conscription of men n 2011. France in 1996. Thousands of men have served in the various NATO armies, using NATO standard equipment.
Why not create an American Volunteer Group and a European Volunteer Group and allow Ukraine to equip them with NATO standard weapons? There's more than enough old NATO equipment, surely, to equip two divisions in this fashion.
Would they be elite? Well, probably not, but they wouldn't be bad. Some have actually trained to fight the very war that's being fought right now.
And then there's pilots and aircraft.
Lots of men trained to fly high test American fighters are now flying commercial jet liners. Ukraine has asked for F-16s. Why not give them the F-16s with volunteer pilots?
And, we might at this point, why not include A-10s?
Comparison and Contrast, was Lex Anteinternet: Earth Day, 2024. Native to this place.
We ran this yesterday:
Lex Anteinternet: Earth Day, 2024. Native to this place.: We have become a more juvenile culture. We have become a childish "me, me, me" culture with fifteen-second attention spans. The gl...
On the same day, various Federal office holders and their lieutenants were engaged in Earth Day related activities. For example:
|
Biden-Harris Administration Invests in Clean Energy and Domestic Biofuels to Strengthen American Farms and Small Businesses as Part of Investing in America Agenda
Projects Funded by President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act Will Lower Energy Costs and Expand Access to Cleaner Fueling Options
ERIE, Pa., April 23, 2024 – Today, in honor of Earth Day 2024, Agriculture Deputy Secretary Xochitl Torres Small announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is funding more than 700 clean energy projects to lower energy bills, expand access to domestic biofuels and create jobs and new market opportunities for U.S. farmers, ranchers and agricultural producers. Many of the projects are funded by President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, the nation’s largest-ever investment in combating the climate crisis.
The projects advance President Biden’s Investing in America agenda to grow the nation’s economy from the middle out and bottom up. They will create jobs and spur economic growth in rural communities by increasing competition in agricultural markets, lowering costs and build more clean energy projects.
“The Biden-Harris Administration and USDA are committed to expanding access to modern clean energy systems and fueling options that strengthen the nation’s energy independence while creating good-paying jobs and saving people money,” Deputy Secretary Torres Small said. “As we celebrate Earth Day this year, we are excited to partner with hundreds more family farms and small businesses to address the impacts of climate change, grow the economy and keep rural communities throughout the country strong and resilient.”
In all, USDA is providing $238 million in funding through the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) and the Higher Blends Infrastructure Incentive Program (HBIIP).
Rural Clean Energy Production
Torres Small announced more than $194 million in loans and grants through REAP to support projects in 35 states and Puerto Rico.
The REAP program helps agricultural producers and rural small business owners expand their use of wind, solar, geothermal and small hydropower energy and make energy efficiency improvements. These innovations help them increase their income, grow their businesses, address climate change and lower energy costs for American families.
The REAP program is part of the President’s Justice40 Initiative, which aims to ensure 40% of the overall benefits of certain federal climate, clean energy and other investment areas flow to disadvantaged communities that are marginalized by underinvestment and overburdened by pollution.
These investments will cut energy costs for family farms and other businesses, increasing their resiliency and allowing them to invest back into their communities by creating new jobs and other opportunities. For example:
· In Pennsylvania, Cellar ‘54 LLC will use a $49,000 grant to buy and install a 48-kilowatt solar photovoltaic system for its winery in the Lake Erie wine region in the borough of North East. This project is expected to save the business approximately $4,500 annually and will generate more than 32,000 kilowatt hours per year.
· In New Jersey, Oishii Mega Farm NJ LLC will use a $15 million loan to convert a vacant building in Phillipsburg into an energy efficient production facility to grow Omakase and Koyo strawberries. The facility will include a high-tech indoor vertical farming operation and facilities to harvest, package, ship and distribute produce. The project will create 45 new jobs and reduce operating costs by $150,000 annually by being able to grow strawberries in a more efficient and controlled environment.
· In Tennessee, Yarbro Farms will use a $536,000 grant to install a 301.92-kilowatt ground-mounted solar array on its row crop farm in the city of Martin. The project is expected to save the family farm more than $32,000 annually. It will also save 406,900 kilowatt hours of energy per year, enough to power 34 homes.
USDA is making the REAP awards in Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Washington, Wisconsin, Wyoming and Puerto Rico.
Since the start of the Biden-Harris Administration, USDA has invested more than $2 billion through REAP to support renewable energy and energy efficiency improvements that will help rural business owners lower energy costs, generate new income, and strengthen their resiliency of operations.
USDA continues to accept REAP applications and will hold funding competitions quarterly through Sept. 30, 2024. The funding includes a dedicated portion for underutilized renewable energy technologies. For additional information, contact a local energy coordinator.
Cleaner and More Affordable Fueling Options
USDA is also awarding more than $43 million in grants through HBIIP to business owners to increase the availability of domestic biofuels in 15 states and give Americans cleaner, more affordable fuel options.
HBIIP provides grants to fueling station and distribution facility owners, including marine, rail, and home heating oil facilities, to help expand access to domestic biofuels, a clean and affordable source of energy. These investments help business owners install and upgrade infrastructure such as fuel pumps, dispensers and storage tanks. For example:
· In Pennsylvania, Clyde S. Walton Inc. will use a grant of more than $810,000 to install a 30,000-gallon biodiesel storage tank and loading equipment at its home heating oil distribution facility in Lansdale. This project is expected to increase the amount of biodiesel sold by more than 5 million gallons per year.
· In Kansas, Blue River Valley LLC will use a $3 million grant to rebuild a pair of 2-million-gallon ethanol storage tanks and other equipment at a fuel distribution facility in Potwin. This project is expected to increase the amount of ethanol sold by more than 238 million gallons per year.
· In Minnesota, Twin Cities Auto Repair & Gas LTD will use a $402,000 grant to install four E15 dispensers and two ethanol storage tanks at a fueling station in Burnsville. This project is expected to increase the amount of ethanol sold by 996,000 gallons per year.
USDA is making the HBIIP awards in California, Florida, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New York, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Texas and Wisconsin.
Since the start of the Biden-Harris Administration, USDA has invested approximately $135 million to increase access to biofuels at fueling stations. In June 2023, USDA made $450 million available in Inflation Reduction Act funding through the HBIIP to expand the use and availability of higher-blend biofuels.
USDA continues to accept applications for funding to expand access to domestic biofuels. These grants will support the infrastructure needed to reduce out-of-pocket costs for transportation fueling and distribution facilities to install and upgrade biofuel-related infrastructure such as pumps, dispensers and storage tanks. Applications are being accepted quarterly through Sept. 30, 2024.
USDA Rural Development provides loans and grants to help expand economic opportunities, create jobs and improve the quality of life for millions of Americans in rural areas. This assistance supports infrastructure improvements; business development; housing; community facilities such as schools, public safety and health care; and high-speed internet access in rural, tribal and high-poverty areas. Visit the Rural Data Gateway to learn how and where these investments are impacting rural America. To subscribe to USDA Rural Development updates, visit the GovDelivery Subscriber page.
USDA touches the lives of all Americans each day in so many positive ways. Under the Biden-Harris Administration, USDA is transforming America’s food system with a greater focus on more resilient local and regional food production, fairer markets for all producers, ensuring access to safe, healthy and nutritious food in all communities, building new markets and streams of income for farmers and producers using climate-smart food and forestry practices, making historic investments in infrastructure and clean energy capabilities in rural America, and committing to equity across the Department by removing systemic barriers and building a workforce more representative of America. To learn more, visit www.usda.gov.
Senators Lummis and Barrasso, in contrast, were going after a SEC regulation requiring climate disclosure information of businesses by introducing a Congressional Review Act joint resolution of disapproval.
Sunday, April 23, 1944. Hollandia taken, MacArthur lands, John C. Squire's posthumous MoH, Greek troubles, Pyrgoi Massacre, Tragic accident, Missing mobster.
Gen. MacArthur, Colonel Lloyd Lehbras, his aides, and other high officers, landing on the beach at Aitape, New Guinea, 23 April, 1944.
Hollandia fell to US forces and Tadji airfield is taken. However, resistance was met inland at Sabron and the beachheads were experiencing congestion.
F4U crashing on the USS Guadalcanal, April 23, 1944.
The Amagiri was sunk in the Makassar Strait by a mine.
Mussolini agreed to continue permitting Italian troops to be trained in Germany. The best of them were to be used to form a new National Republican Army.
In Italy, U.S. Army PFC John C. Squires lost his life in an action which resulted in his receiving a posthumous Medal of Honor.
For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at risk of life above and beyond the call of duty. At the start of his company's attack on strongly held enemy positions in and around Spaccasassi Creek, near Padiglione, Italy, on the night of 23-April 24, 1944, Pfc. Squires, platoon messenger, participating in his first offensive action, braved intense artillery, mortar, and antitank gun fire in order to investigate the effects of an antitank mine explosion on the leading platoon. Despite shells which burst close to him, Pfc. Squires made his way 50 yards forward to the advance element, noted the situation, reconnoitered a new route of advance and informed his platoon leader of the casualties sustained and the alternate route. Acting without orders, he rounded up stragglers, organized a group of lost men into a squad and led them forward. When the platoon reached Spaccasassi Creek and established an outpost, Pfc. Squires, knowing that almost all of the noncommissioned officers were casualties, placed 8 men in position of his own volition, disregarding enemy machinegun, machine-pistol, and grenade fire which covered the creek draw. When his platoon had been reduced to 14 men, he brought up reinforcements twice. On each trip he went through barbed wire and across an enemy minefield, under intense artillery and mortar fire. Three times in the early morning the outpost was counterattacked. Each time Pfc. Squires ignored withering enemy automatic fire and grenades which struck all around him, and fired hundreds of rounds of rifle, Browning automatic rifle, and captured German Spandau machinegun ammunition at the enemy, inflicting numerous casualties and materially aiding in repulsing the attacks. Following these fights, he moved 50 yards to the south end of the outpost and engaged 21 German soldiers in individual machinegun duels at point-blank range, forcing all 21 enemy to surrender and capturing 13 more Spandau guns. Learning the function of this weapon by questioning a German officer prisoner, he placed the captured guns in position and instructed other members of his platoon in their operation. The next night when the Germans attacked the outpost again he killed 3 and wounded more Germans with captured potato-masher grenades and fire from his Spandau gun. Pfc. Squires was killed in a subsequent action.
Finnish modified Soviet Il-4 bomber, April 23, 1944.
A communist mutiny on five Greek warships (it's always the sailors) was put down by loyal Greek forces.
Also in Greece, the Pyrgoi Massacre took place in which the SS killed 563 men, women and children, with the aid of local Greek accomplices.
Marion Harris, the first white singer to widely sing and record blues, died in a hotel fire caused by her falling asleep with a lit cigarette. She was 48 years old.
Canadian bootlegger Rocco Perri went for a walk in Hamilton Ontario to clear his head and disappeared. It's widely believed he was fitted with cement shoes and drowned, but there are those who assert he lived into the 1950s in the U.S.
Last prior edition:
Saturday, April 22, 1944. American landings at Hollandia and Aitape.
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