THE AIR RAID ON PEARL HARBOR. So much for the guesswork this past week over whether a Japanese strike in the South Pacific would lead to a U.S. declaration of war, a "war of nerves," or something in-between. In one brash, audacious, and villainous move, Tokyo has made things crystal-clear. America is now at war -- not an undeclared war such as the one we’ve been fighting with Nazi vessels in the Atlantic, but an all-out war of survival. Whether Congress votes a declaration of war or acknowledges a "state of war" or does nothing, it does not matter now. What matters is that the Japanese Empire has cold-bloodedly decided to try and kill us. To save ourselves, we must kill the Japanese Empire. It’s as simple as that.
H.V. Kaltenborn’s mid-afternoon commentary on the N.B.C.-Red network offered some reassuring words -- "You may rest assured that both our army and particularly our navy and our air force were not caught by surprise by this attack. They knew what they might have to expect and they were ready for anything that might happen. They have been ready for along time." I so hope that’s true. But all I know is my first response was -- Hawaii?? There’s been a lot of press speculation about where the Japanese might strike -- Thailand, Burma, the Dutch East Indies, Siberia. But not Pearl Harbor.
BOMBING RAID OR PRELUDE TO INVASION? It’s hard to say for sure yet. Here’s what we do know, taken from a bulletin broadcast on N.B.C. a little while ago, and compiled by reporters for the Honolulu Advertiser --
The first group of planes attacked Ford Island at Pearl Harbor. Japanese planes attacked Hickam Field and Wheeler Field as well. Bellows Field "bombed very heavily." At Pearl, three ships were attacked -- the Oklahoma was set afire. All lines of communications down. No statement from the Navy Department yet. Civilians are to stay off the streets. After attacking the airfields, several squadrons of planes came in from the south over Diamond Head, dropping bombs and incendiary bombs on Honolulu. One bomb fell in front of the governor’s mansion, another near the Honolulu Advertiser. "Heavy bombing" in two residential districts. A direct bomb hit on a barrack at Hickam Field killed 350 men.
As grim as this sounds, other reports are are even more worrying. One N.B.C. bulletin says that "parachute troops" have been sighted off Harbor Point. An unverified report from a United Press correspondent in Honolulu says that "cannon fire" could be heard from a "foreign warship" sighted off Pearl Harbor. Another N.B.C. bulletin this afternoon says "at least one enemy aircraft carrier" is participating in a "naval engagement" near Pearl. All this suggests that Tokyo has more in mind than a quick strike against the U.S. Navy -- they plan to seize the islands and complete the destructive work their air raiders have begun.
On the other hand, I’ve only heard one direct eyewitness report of the raid, which came from KGO in Honolulu via a telephone line to N.B.C.-Red. The correspondent, whose name I didn’t catch, described the raid as "very severe," almost three hours in duration, but said "the navy and army appear to have the air and sea under control." Let’s hope and pray that's the case.
MAYBE TOKYO’S NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS? I can’t recall ever listening-in to Upton Close before. He’s a "Far Eastern expert" for N.B.C., and judging by his comments on the Pearl Harbor bombing, he’s also flakier than a coconut pie. I don’t know his political leanings, but his comments today are drawn deep from the well of crackpot isolationism.
His theory, as broadcast this afternoon -- the Japanese government is innocent of complicity in the attack, which was launched by rogue elements in the Japanese Navy, assisted by Nazi conspirators who are trying to embroil the U.S. and Japan in war. His evidence -- he spoke by telephone to the Japanese consul-general in San Francisco, who denied knowing anything about plans for the attack! Well? What more proof do you need? Obviously, Tokyo was in the dark about this.
Here’s a transcription of his comments, from acetate --
"I suppose that if the attack on Honolulu had been made in such force as to destroy the American naval base there, we might believe that the Japanese government is behind it as a matter of policy. But you notice that the news gives us every assurance that it is far from destroyed, and that the only thing left there now as a result of the first attack are a few parachute troops wandering around on the sand somewhere on the north end of Oahu Island. They will soon be pulled in the bag and we’ll find out who sent them. It is possible, my friends, that this is a coup engineered by German influences and with the aid of German vessels in the Pacific. . . . engineered by a small portion of the Japanese navy that has gone fanatic and decided to precipitate war."
Shortly after this, Mr. Close left the surface of the Earth --
"Still again, it is possible that this is a coup engineered by the group in Japan that wants the group that wants war kicked out of office. And that when the thing is brought home to the Tokyo government, it might be possible for the Tokyo government to repudiate the action, call upon the nation to repair the injury to America, by agreeing to American terms, and precipitating a complete revolution in the government in Tokyo. All these things are possible."
In other words, the Pearl Harbor attack could lead to peace. But only if the Roosevelt Administration doesn’t overreact to it. After all, Mr. Close surmised, Secretary of State Hull’s nastiness might have caused the Japanese to strike in the first place. Yes, that’s what he said --
"You’ll notice, we are told, that Mr. Hull burst out in true Tennessee language and told the Japanese that their reply was ‘crowded with infamous falsehoods and distortions.’ I have been in many a Japanese brawl, I am sorry to say, and I have seen many an argument with Japanese that would have ended just an argument, suddenly burst into violence because something was said by one of the so-called 'white' people in the brawl that suddenly lashed across the Japanese face. Now, it is possible that the Japanese completely lost face and descended to the status of being willing to engage in a violent brawl as a result of this answer, although it might be that this answer and Secretary Hull’s message came at the same time. But it sounds like one of those Japanese arguments that suddenly descends into violence."
Then, finally, Mr. Close offered what he called San Francisco’s man-in-the-street response to the Japanese attack -- "If they did it on purpose, they have certainly got guts." Somehow I doubt that’s what the cabbies in San Fran are saying this afternoon.
And even if somehow, it turned out that the Pearl Harbor attack was a military decision, and not a political one, does it matter? This is clearly a major raid, not some kids tossing a string of firecrackers on Grandpa’s front porch. If "rogue" military elements in Japan have the capability to launch a major attack involving large forces of the Japanese military, that gives them the status of a government. Of course, General Tojo’s cabinet is not exactly composed of pacifists, and the idea that the current Tokyo regime would oppose such an attack is ludicrous in the first place -- not to mention contrary to Tojo’s own recent comments.
N.B.C. listeners deserve better on this critical day than this kind of hooey.
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