Memorial Day

Eddie Rickenbacker, a Medal of Honor recipient, was the leading
American ace of World War I. His 26 aerial kills made him a hero at
home — an early symbol of American air power. Not directly
associated with the rise of a separate Air Force, he still embodied
its spirit. "Courage is doing what you're afraid to do," he
said. "There can be no courage unless you're scared."

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Tarawa

The Battle of Tarawa was a battle in the Pacific Theatre of World
War II, largely fought from November 20-23, 1943. It was the second
time the United States was on the offensive (the Battle of
Guadalcanal had been the first), and the first offensive in the
critical central Pacific region. It was also the first time in the
war that the United States faced serious Japanese opposition to a US
amphibious landing. Previous landings met little or no initial
resistance; Tarawa was to be different.

The American invasion force was the largest yet put together for a
single operation, consisting of 17 aircraft carriers, 12
battleships, 8 heavy and 4 light cruisers, 66 destroyers and 36
transports. The force carried the 2nd Marine Division and a part of
the 27th Infantry Division, for a total of about 35,000 soldiers and
Marines.

(More at link, much of Wikipedia info NOT posted here)

Only 17 Japanese and 129 Koreans were alive at the end of the
battle. Total Japanese and Korean casualties are about 4,690 killed
in action. For the United States, about 1,000 were killed in action,
and a further 2,200 wounded. The heavy casualties sparked off a
storm of protest in the United States, where the high losses could
not be understood for such a tiny and seemingly unimportant island.

http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USMC/USMC-M-Tarawa/USMC-M-Tarawa-
7.html

There were many other lessons learned at Tarawa. Reports submitted
at the close of the operation are filled with them. Constructive
criticism, comments, suggestions, and ideas provided a wealth of
material that was quickly disseminated so that others might benefit.

There had to be a Tarawa. This was the inevitable point at which
untried doctrine was at length tried in the crucible of battle. The
lessons learned at Tarawa had to be learned somewhere in the course
of the war, and it now seems providential that they were learned as
early and at no greater cost than was involved.

Had there been no Tarawa to point the way, those lessons would have
remained unlearned until they were driven home with even greater
force in the Marshalls, in the Marianas, at Peleliu, or on Iwo Jima.
The last operation, which occurred 14 months after Tarawa, parallels
more closely than any other battle of the war the bitter fight on
Betio, and it was there, if ever, that the experience of Tarawa
sustained and facilitated victory.

Tarawa was the key to the Gilberts, which in turn was one of the
keys that unlocked the Marshalls. The key to victory at Tarawa,
however, in the last analysis, was the individual Marine. His
disciplined fighting ability and courage came into sharper focus,
perhaps, than ever before in World War II. His strength, however,
important as an individual, found real effectiveness in the over-all
collective effort, the effort of the task force.

-Stephen