⌛ Liberation Day

who have they all been overrun by? (sorry hard to get good history stuff), I thought the majority of the Filipino's where of Malasian origin and had overrun the original inhabitants. I just heard that Lapu-Lapu was actually a muslim leader (that sounds pretty ironic).

I had never realised that Manila was such a battle and hardly anything was left standing and loads of civilian casualties.

 

Sorry but there are not two sides to that story at all and it is not about views either, it might be a bit touchy for some US citizens that they have a colonial history as well but that is just what it is (Cuba and Philipines gave the US its source of sugar that in that time was booming).

I am not a US basher but countries should just accept their history and after 100 years it is time to take the nationalistic sauce of it. The Dutch did plenty of sh*t in Indonesia but I doubt there is anybody still alive who believed we did it out of the good of our hearts. (it does not mean that colonial powers just did bad things in these countries and went around slaughtering babies)

 

There was some discussion among US admirals etc opposing the US retaking the Philippines during WWII as it was not directly a necessary pathway to Japan. MacArthur having a 16yo Filipina g/f before the war when he was living in Manila might have something to do with it? (he later took her to the US)

I have an 87yo American friend in Calif that was fighting the Japanese outide Bacolod near Murcia on Easter Sunday, 1945. I think I can just about pinpoint the spot where that action took place once I get up there.

 

Mc Arthurs influence with the general staff was minimal, he was basicaly send to the Filipines before the war to get rid of him (with the task of setting up the new Fillipino Army, Eisenhouwer was then on his staff).

There is some real good (and long) footage on youtube (battle for leyte gulf) about the stratigic sense of that attack and how the Japanese defense was organized.

My mother in law lived very close to where the Americans landed but I got little more out of her that then that sort of lived underground with all the bombing (the amount of shells they shot at the coast before the landing was incredible), the Japanese where the bad guys and she adores McArthur (but then she adored Imelda as well since she was in school with her:D ). Her husband must have fought in that war but I can not even get out of her what unit (likely he was original Philipino rangers or something), while she is having a US militairy pension.

 

Message to Arlie.. You wrote to me earlier in this thread "Sorry but there are not two sides to that story at all and it is not about views either,...." The fact that you disagree with me is proof positive that there are two sides. You contradicted yourself in half of a sentence (and perhaps with your first word). That is an achievement in itself. We are talking about WWII and wars prior. How can you suggest that there are not two sides of opinion in war? Is that not the definition and premise of war?

 

:D well ok sorry I do not think I put it very well, I mean there are enough sources and historical material to paste together what exactly has happened and why (all archives are open now). Stories have more sides (perceptions) but once there are facts the situation is pretty clear.

The story aproach on history always gets my hairs up there are loads of sides but such an aproach usually refers to baised national(istic) history. The US should be able to teach a well balanced factual history on the matter.

That the US at the time turned on their allies once the Spanish where beat is a fact. That they occupied the country out of economic motives can be considered a fact as well. It is likely a fact as well that if the US had not somebody else would have (the Germans?).