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  • 3 weeks later...
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It's also the 72nd anniversary of the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal. One of the most ridiculously chaotic and savage naval battle described by one of the surviving captains as "a barroom brawl after the lights have been shot out."

 

Worth reading about...except that there's no decent description online that I can find (most try to describe it chronologically, which is ridiculous given how chaotic the battle was.) http://www.historynet.com/battle-of-guadalcanal-first-naval-battle-in-the-ironbottom-sound.htmand wikipedia combined give a decent impression of the battle. Otherwise, pick up Richard Frank's book on Guadalcanal (which is an excellent book.)

Just about finished with this tome. I was astonished to find how narrowly we "won" that six month engagement, given how thoroughly our navy had its collective azzes kicked several times. The Japanese were an extremely formidable adversary, and had a huge head start in their war planning and training - especially in naval combat at night. In contrast, the Americans had a "richness of embarassments" leading them.

 

A good read Tom. Thanks. I'm going to send my copy to my father-in-law who served on a destroyer in the South Pacific during that war. He'll appreciate some of the terminology and turning of phrases that are salted throughout it.

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