To All,
Good Wednesday morning November 29, 2023
I hope you all have a great Day It appears that we may get some rain later today and Tomorrow.
Regards,
Skip
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This day in Naval and Marine Corps History (thanks to NHHC)
29 November
1776—Continental brig Reprisal arrives in Quiberon Bay, France, becoming the first Continental vessel to arrive in Europe. Reprisal was carrying Benjamin Franklin who was acting as the diplomatic agent to the country.
1929—Cmdr. Richard E. Byrd makes the first flight over the South Pole.
1943—TBF aircraft of VC-19 based aboard USS Bogue (CVE 9) sink the German submarine U-86 about 385 miles east of Terceira, Azores.
1944—USS Maryland (BB 46) is hit by a kamikaze off Leyte. She is repaired in time for Okinawa Invasion where she is hit by a kamikaze again April 7, 1945.
1944—USS Archerfish (SS 311) sinks Japanese carrier Shinano on her maiden voyage 160 nautical miles southwest of Tokyo Bay. Shinano is the largest warship sunk by any combatant submarines during World War II. Also on this date, USS Scabbardfish (SS 397) sinks Japanese submarine I-365 east of Honshu.
1990—The UN approves Security Council Resolution 678 authorizing the use of military force unless Iraq vacates Kuwait by 15 January 1991.
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Today in World History
November 29
1760 Major Roger Rogers takes possession of Detroit on behalf of Britain.
1787 Louis XVI promulgates an edict of tolerance, granting civil status to Protestants.
1812 The last elements of Napoleon Bonaparte's Grand Armee retreats across the Beresina River in Russia.
1863 The Battle of Fort Sanders, Knoxville, Tenn., ends with a Confederate withdrawal.
1864 Colonel John M. Chivington's 3rd Colorado Volunteers massacre Black Kettles' camp of Cheyenne and Arapahoe Indians at Sand Creek, Colo.
1903 An Inquiry into the U.S. Postal Service demonstrates the government has lost millions in fraud.
1923 An international commission headed by American banker Charles Dawes is set up to investigate the German economy.
1929 Commander Richard Byrd makes the first flight over the South Pole.
1931 The Spanish government seizes large estates for land redistribution.
1939 Soviet planes bomb an airfield at Helsinki, Finland.
1948 The Metropolitan Opera is televised for the first time as the season opens with "Othello."
1948 The popular children's television show, Kukla, Fran and Ollie, premieres.
1949 The United States announces it will conduct atomic tests at Eniwetok Atoll in the Pacific.
1961 NASA launches a chimpanzee named Enos into Earth orbit.
1962 Algeria bans the Communist Party.
1963 President Lyndon B. Johnson appoints Chief Justice Earl Warren head of a commission to investigate the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.
1967 US Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara announces his resignation.
1972 Atari announces the release of Pong, the first commercially successful video game.
2007 Armed forces of the Philippines besiege The Peninsula Manila in response to a mutiny led by Senator Antonio Trillanes.
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OPERATION COMMANDO HUNT Thanks to the Bear
COMMANDO HUNT … WEEK THREE OF THE HUNT… 27 NOVEMBER TO 3 DECEMBER 1968…
Skip… For The List for the week of Monday, 27 November through Sunday, 3 December 2023… Bear🇺🇸⚓️🐻
OPERATION COMMANDO HUNT I-VII (1968-1972)
From the archives of rollingthunderremembered.com post of 26 November 1968…
A different kind of air war…Directed Air Support with fearless FACs in control…
Thanks to Micro
To remind folks that these are from the Vietnam Air Losses site that Micro put together. You click on the url below and get what happened each day to the crew of the aircraft. ……Skip
From Vietnam Air Losses site for Wednesday November 29
November 29: https://www.vietnamairlosses.com/loss.php?id=2666
This following work accounts for every fixed wing loss of the Vietnam War and you can use it to read more about the losses in The Bear's Daily account. Even better it allows you to add your updated information to the work to update for history…skip Vietnam Air Losses Access Chris Hobson and Dave Lovelady's work at: https://www.VietnamAirLosses.com.
This is a list of all Helicopter Pilots Who Died in the Vietnam War . Listed by last name and has other info https://www.vhpa.org/KIA/KIAINDEX.HTM
MOAA - Wall of Faces Now Includes Photos of All Servicemembers Killed in the Vietnam War
The site works, find anyone you knew in "search" feature.
https://www.vvmf.org/Wall-of-Faces/ )
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Thanks to Dan
Snuffy Smith Passing
I just learned that Sir Snuffy died yesterday with Dottie at his side. He will be buried at the Academy.
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Thanks to Dr.Rich
Thanks to David ....
Alabama
A group of Alabama friends went deer hunting and paired off in twos for the day. That night, one of the hunters returned alone, staggering under the weight of an eight-point buck.
"Where's Henry?" the others asked.
"Henry had a stroke o' some kind. He's a couple of miles back up the trail," the successful hunter replied .
"You left Henry layin' out there and carried the deer back?" they inquired.
"A tough call," nodded the hunter. "But I figured no one's gonna steal Henry!"
Georgia
The owner of a golf course in Georgia was confused about paying an invoice, so he decided to ask his secretary for some mathematical help.
He called her into his office and said, "Y'all graduated from the University of Georgia and I need some help. If I wuz to give yew $20,000, minus 14%, how much would you take off?"
The secretary thought a moment, and then replied, "Everthang but my earrings."
Mississippi
The young man from Mississippi came running into the store and said to his buddy, "Bubba, somebody just stole your pickup truck from the parking lot!"
B ubba replied, "Did y'all see who it was?"
The young man answered, "I couldn't tell, but I got the license number."
North Carolina
A man in North Carolina had a flat tire, pulled off on the side of the road, and proceeded to put a bouquet of flowers in front of the car and one behind it. Then he got back in the car to wait.
A passerby studied the scene as he drove by, and was so curious he turned around and went back. He asked the fellow what the problem was.
The man replied, "I got a flat tahr."
The passerby asked, "But what's with the flowers?"
The man responded, "When you break down they tell you to put flares in the front and flares in the back. I never did understand it neither.."
Louisiana
A Louisiana State trooper pulled over a pickup on I-10. Walking up to the driver's window,
the trooper asked, "Got any ID?"
The driver replied, "Bout whut?"
Tennessee
The Sheriff pulled up next to the guy unloading garbage out of his pick-up into the ditch. The Sheriff asked, "Why are you dumping garbage in the ditch? Don't you see that sign right over your head."
"Yep," he replied. "That's why I'm dumpin' it here, 'cause it says: 'Fine For Dumping Garbage.' "
***
Y'all kin say whut y'all want 'about the South, but y'all never heard o' nobody retirin' an' movin' North.
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Thanks to Brett
STRATFOR
How Much Longer Will Israel and Hamas Keep Extending Their Truce?
Nov 29, 2023
Fighting in the Gaza Strip will likely resume once the diplomatic process to exchange hostages for prisoners has exhausted itself, but the next phase of Israel's military campaign will risk straining U.S.-Israeli ties in the future, even if military and economic aid will continue to flow during the current conflict. On Nov. 27, Israel and Hamas agreed to a two-day extension of the cease-fire they reached last week in an effort to provide more time for aid to enter Gaza and for additional hostages-for-prisoners swaps. International actors are already at work trying to further extend the cease-fire, with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken due to again visit the region, and with the head of Israel's Mossad, David Barnea, in Qatar for further negotiations with Hamas and the Qatari government. New discussions have reportedly centered on the possibility of Hamas releasing captured Israel Defense Force (IDF) soldiers as part of such an extension. But signs continue to show that the pause in fighting will remain temporary, as the IDF is reportedly preparing military options to clear the rest of the northern part of the Gaza Strip and to eventually invade the south as well. Additionally, on Nov. 28, the IDF and Hamas exchanged accusations that the other side had violated the cease-fire in clashes between the two in Gaza City. Abroad, reports emerged that the United States was pushing Israel to conduct a more surgical and precise campaign in the south once fighting resumed, with the White House warning it does not want to see a repeat of the mass civilian displacement that took place in the northern part of the Gaza Strip.
• Since the original cease-fire took effect on the morning of Nov. 24, 50 of the 240 hostages that were taken during Hamas' Oct. 7 attack have been released, and 20 more have been pledged to be released, in exchange for around 210 Palestinian prisoners (of an estimated 5,000 Palestinians held in Israeli jails).
• In the U.S. Congress, senior progressive Senators, like Bernie Sanders and Chris Murphy, have now openly talked about conditioning aid to Israel based on its military behavior in the Gaza Strip. Congress is due to vote on an aid package for Israel in the coming weeks.
• Since beginning its ground invasion of Gaza in late October, the IDF has taken control of much of Gaza City, the biggest city in the Strip. But the Israeli military has also come under intense international criticism for its tactics, which have so far resulted in up to 10,000 Palestinian civilian casualties and has seen the IDF carry out combat operations at controversial places like the Shifa Hospital, which the IDF claimed was a Hamas operational headquarters — a claim backed by the United States and the United Kingdom, but not by many Arab and Muslim states.
Further hostages-for-prisoners exchanges and cease-fire extensions are possible, but there are only so many hostages Hamas and other militants can trade, meaning a resumption of fighting is likely. The current cease-fire deal has seen Hamas release 10 hostages per day, which implies that there may only be around 17 days' worth of hostages left for Hamas to exchange. However, not all 170 of the hostages that were taken during Hamas' Oct. 7 assault are in the group's hands; at least 40 or so are being held by other militant groups, like Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), which have said they won't trade their hostages for anything less than politically impossible demands, like releasing all Palestinian prisoners in Israel. Meanwhile, even if there is some societal pressure on the Israeli government to prioritize hostage releases, no members of Israel's War Cabinet support negotiations with Hamas short of its surrender. Shortly after the cease-fire was enacted on Nov. 24, wartime cabinet member and former IDF head Benny Gantz, who is also a frontrunner to replace current Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should elections be held, said that military operations would resume as soon as the cease-fire expired.
• Israel has continued to say its wartime goal is to remove Hamas from power in Gaza, an objective that the United States has publicly continued to back.
• Despite high IDF casualties in Gaza, wartime interruptions to daily life and the threat of regional escalation, Israel's public continues to support the goal of toppling Hamas from power, with 90% agreeing with the policy, according to a poll conducted by the Israel Democracy Institute that was released on Nov. 24 and took into account opinion in the weeks before the cease-fire was announced.
Once fighting likely resumes in Gaza, the United States will probably intensify pressure on Israel to limit civilian casualties — especially in the south, where some 1.7 million Palestinian refugees have now fled. Israel's military campaign in northern Gaza was characterized by an intense bombardment of built-up areas to degrade and deter Hamas. But the campaign also resulted in significant civilian casualties and allegations of war crimes. While southern Gaza doesn't have as large of built-up areas as the north, there are some 1.7 million Palestinian refugees in the region crowded largely along the Egyptian-Gaza border. These refugees will be difficult to protect if Israel decides to carry out another wide-scale aerial bombardment before moving ground troops into the southern part of the Gaza Strip. Hamas militants will likely also infiltrate civilian areas, leaving civilians caught in the crossfire between the IDF and Hamas. With these factors in mind, the United States will be eager to avoid repeating incidents like the hospital explosion at the al-Ahli Hospital and the battle at the Shifa Hospital, which produced significant Muslim and Arab grassroots outrage and threatened to provoke Iranian or Iranian-aligned militia escalation against the United States and Israel. Washington will likely push Israel to carry out more targeted and surgical attacks in the south and to avoid battles in areas where there are large numbers of refugees, while also attempting to establish safe zones for civilians.
• The deadly Oct. 17 explosion at the al-Ahli Hospital has largely been blamed on an errant Palestinian rocket (including, most recently, by Human Rights Watch). But the incident nevertheless provoked widespread popular outrage and protests around the world, with demonstrators in Jordan and Turkey targeting Israeli embassies. Regardless of the IDF's involvement, further Palestinian mass casualty incidents would likely inflame anti-Israeli and -U.S. sentiment and provoke more protests and unrest globally.
• The United Nations estimates that up to 60% of housing in Gaza has so far been destroyed since the latest Israel-Hamas war broke out last month. This means Palestinians cannot return readily to the north as combat operations wind down there.
If Israel is unwilling or unable to minimize Palestinian civilian casualties once it begins its expected military campaign in southern Gaza, U.S.-Israeli ties will strain as lawmakers in Congress, particularly Democrats, become more openly critical of Israel's policies. Even in highly surgical campaigns, civilian casualties are inevitable and operations, especially in densely packed areas, could result in significant civilian losses. This is particularly likely to be the case as Israel has signaled its intent to return to the same intensity of fighting that existed before the cease-fire. Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said on Nov. 27 that fighting would resume ''with the same power and more'' when speaking to IDF troops, in a sign that the IDF is disinclined to utilize restraint despite U.S. pressure. Moreover, restraint may also extend the length of the military campaign in the Gaza strip — something that is not in Israel's interest, with the Israeli government eager to declare victory, demobilize its population from war footing, and offset global criticism. However, if there are significant civilian casualties in the south and Israel appears to be fighting an unrestrained campaign, it will further mar Israel's image around the world, particularly in the United States, where sentiment critical of Israel's policies is rising, will manifest in the Congressional debate over aid to Israel. While Congress is unlikely to block aid to Israel, individual lawmakers will increasingly demand the White House use the United States' military and economic leverage over Israel to alter its behavior. This more overt criticism of Israel in Congress — especially if the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden also becomes more openly critical of the country to appease its left-wing critics ahead of the November 2024 elections — will shape norms and perceptions of the U.S.-Israeli relationship, alter public narratives about the strategic value and liabilities of Israel, and open up space for U.S. politicians more openly criticize their country's ties with the Middle East country.
• The IDF regularly practices surgical operations to limit civilian casualties, including so-called ''roof knocking'' exercises that try to warn civilians to evacuate from imminent targets. Nevertheless, high civilian casualties are typical during IDF operations in Gaza.
• U.S. polling shows a large partisan and demographic divide over Israel, with younger and Democratic voters wanting extended or permanent cease-fires, while older and Republican voters tending to favor continued backing of Israel's current strategy. Younger voters are key to Biden's re-election in 2024 and may play an instrumental role in a handful of swing states to decide the presidency.
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Thanks to Interesting Facts
Our Favorite Nostalgic TV Show Facts
THE FIRST 11 HERE--more later
Take a trip down memory lane with this collection of nostalgic TV show facts from around the website. Did you know that M*A*S*H was based on a true story? How about the fact that the pilot of I Love Lucy was lost for over 40 years? Dig deeper into these stories and more with 25 of our favorite vintage TV show tidbits.
1 of 25
The "M*A*S*H" Finale Was Watched by More People Than Any Other Series Finale
After 11 years on the small screen, M*A*S*H aired its series finale on February 28, 1983 — and made history in the process. More than 106 million people tuned in to watch "Goodbye, Farewell and Amen," making it the most-viewed series finale ever. Until Super Bowl XLIV in 2010, which saw the post-Hurricane Katrina New Orleans Saints defeat the Indianapolis Colts, it was the most-watched television broadcast in U.S. history. No episode of a scripted series has come close in the decades since. The series finale of Cheers earned 80.4 million viewers, Seinfeld got 76.3 million, and Game of Thrones — the most-talked-about show on television for years — had 19.3 million.
2 of 25
More Than 100 Cheesecakes Were Eaten on "The Golden Girls"
On The Golden Girls, there were very few problems that a slice of cheesecake couldn't solve, from small scuffles to big life crises. Throughout seven seasons, more than 100 cheesecakes were eaten during the ladies' late-night kitchen table commiserations.
However, if you look closely, you'll notice that Dorothy rarely takes a bite. In real life, Bea Arthur reportedly hated cheesecake.
3 of 25
Lucille Ball Was Only the Second Woman to Appear Pregnant on Network TV
When Lucille Ball became pregnant in real life, she and her husband and co-star, Desi Arnaz, considered taking a hiatus from I Love Lucy — but then thought it would be an opportunity to break the mold. "We think the American people will buy Lucy's having a baby if it's done with taste," Arnaz said. "Pregnant women are not kept off the streets, so why should she be kept off television? There's nothing disgraceful about a wife becoming a mother." Ball ended up being the one of the first women to appear pregnant on a major television network and received more than 30,000 supportive letters from fans, despite the fact that the cast wasn't allowed to say the word "pregnant" on-screen.
4 of 25
Angela Lansbury Wasn't the First Choice for Jessica Fletcher in "Murder, She Wrote"
It's nearly impossible to imagine anyone but Angela Lansbury playing Jessica Fletcher, but she wasn't a shoo-in for the job. Doris Day turned it down; Jean Stapleton (aka Edith Bunker) also declined, partly because she didn't feel ready to jump into another series so soon after wrapping up the 1970s sitcom All in the Family. "Every time I saw Angela during those years, she'd say, 'Thank you, Jean,'" Stapleton once said.
Out of all of her roles, Lansbury ended up identifying the most with Fletcher. "The closest I came to playing myself … was really as Jessica Fletcher," Lansbury told Parade magazine in 2018. However, in 1985 — a year after the show began — she also told The New York Times: "Jessica has extreme sincerity, compassion, extraordinary intuition. I'm not like her. My imagination runs riot. I'm not a pragmatist. Jessica is."
5 of 25
"Masterpiece Theatre" Is the Longest-Running Prime-Time Drama in the History of U.S. Television
Masterpiece Theatre premiered its first episode on January 10, 1971, following the success of a 1967 adaptation of John Galsworthy's The Forsyte Saga. Stanford Calderwood, who was then the president of WGBH, Boston's PBS affiliate, saw that success and wondered whether there might be a growing American appetite for British drama. His instincts proved spot-on. While on vacation in London, he convinced the execs at BBC that a partnership could prove fruitful for both networks; now, 50 years later, American viewers continue to clamor for classic British stories told with beautiful sets and elaborate costumes.
6 of 25
Valerie Harper Almost Didn't Get the Role of Rhoda on "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" Because She Was Too Pretty
Rhoda Morgenstern, Mary Tyler Moore's Bronx-born sidekick, was the last major role to be cast in the series, with more than 50 actresses reading opposite Moore for the part. Valerie Harper nailed her audition as Rhoda and even brought her own cloth for washing Mary's apartment window in her first scene. But the producers weren't sure she matched their vision.
"She was something we never expected the part to be… which is someone as attractive as she was," Burns said in Mary and Lou and Rhoda and Ted. "But you've got to go with the talent." Director Jay Sandrich felt strongly Harper was right for the role and suggested she not wear any makeup for her callback. Producers immediately changed their minds when they brought Moore in to read a scene with Harper. Rhoda's character switched gears a little bit — rather than being unattractive, which is subjective anyway, Rhoda just felt like she was unattractive.
"Rhoda felt inferior to Mary, Rhoda wished she was Mary," Harper later recalled. "All I could do was, not being as pretty, as thin, as accomplished, was: 'I'm a New Yorker, and I'm going to straighten this shiksa out.'"
7 of 25
"Rubber Duckie" Was a Billboard Hit Song
Of all the catchy and memorable songs on Sesame Street, the only one to ever become a certified Billboard hit was "Rubber Duckie," which was on the Hot 100 for seven weeks in 1970, topping out at No. 16. The tune was performed by Jim Henson himself, in character as Ernie — and was also nominated for a Grammy for Best Recording for Children that year. Little Richard covered the song in 1994, and an all-star version for National Rubber Duckie Day, featuring Tori Kelly, James Corden, Sia, Jason Derulo, Daveed Diggs, and Anthony Mackie, was released in 2018.
8 of 25
Ron Howard Accepted His "Happy Days" Offer to Avoid the Draft
Ron Howard was ambivalent about accepting an offer to headline what became Happy Days, as he'd already experienced sitcom success with The Andy Griffith Show and was looking forward to starting film school at USC. However, he'd also been saddled with what he called a "horrible draft number," and given that he stood a better chance of avoiding the Vietnam War through work than a college deferment, he elected to roll the dice with the good-natured '50s sitcom.
9 of 25
The Theme Song for Each "Seinfeld" Episode Is Different
For the first seven seasons of Seinfeld, every episode started with Jerry Seinfeld doing a stand-up routine. But what only eagle-eared listeners will notice is that the theme song was made to match those monologues, which means every single episode had a slightly different one. Composer Jonathan Wolff used instruments like the bass — plus his fingers and mouth — to improvise the sounds, and synced them to Seinfeld's stand-up timing to build a simple melody that could easily start and stop for jokes.
"I have no idea how many themes we did for Seinfeld…" he told Great Big Story. "The timing, the length, had to be adjustable in a way it would still hold water and still sound like the Seinfeld theme."
10 of 25
Mork From "Mork & Mindy" Originated on "Happy Days"
Fans may remember that Mork from Ork initially appeared in Richie Cunningham's dream during a February 1978 episode of Happy Days, a premise apparently conceived of by the 8-year-old son of series creator Garry Marshall. Although this seemed like a terrible idea to the writers, they quickly realized the potential of the situation when the little-known actor Robin Williams wowed during his audition and rehearsals. Mork then proved a hit after going toe-to-toe with the Fonz on-screen, prompting Marshall and his cohorts to devise a spinoff series about the character in time for the fall 1978 TV season. Meanwhile, the "My Favorite Orkan" Happy Days episode was reedited for syndication to show that the alien encounter was real.
11 of 25
Only One Actor Appeared in Every "M*A*S*H" Episode
M*A*S*H experienced several significant cast changes, and a few favorite characters were replaced with equally dynamic new ones — a standard practice on long-running shows today, but rare back then. Of the many actors who appeared on the show, Alan Alda (Benjamin Franklin "Hawkeye" Pierce) was the only star to appear in every episode. Through its run, the actor took increasing creative control of the series, directing 31 episodes including the finale, and co-writing 13 episodes. He became the first person ever to win Emmy Awards for acting, directing, and writing for the same show. Loretta Swift (Margaret "Hot Lips" Houlihan) was a close second in terms of longevity; she appeared in all 11 seasons but missed a handful of episodes along the way.
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Thanks to Shadow
Ted Willams - USMC Aviation History
A couple of comments on Williams… my source was Col. John Verdi, who was a squadron mate and flight lead… in fact he took both Williams and Glenn on their first FAM hops and actual missions. Verdi spoke high praises of both men! Ask any Marine that knew Verdi… if John gave praises… you could take it to the bank that those guys were good.
Not mentioned, was Williams' recall to active duty was a PR gambit by the Marine Corps. Williams hadn't flown a military airplane since 1945, when he was recalled in 1952! He was not an active reservist and was not current in any aircraft… he was also in the prime of his baseball career. Why he was called up instead of those in the Ready Reserves proves it was both political and a public relations gambit.
Verdi had perhaps the most brilliant mind I've ever known; it knew no limits. He was a check pilot and Division Leader as a 1stLt. in VMF-311 when Williams and Glenn joined the squadron. An Indication of Verdi's standing, intelligence and competence… was he would be checking out and leading men far senior to him. He praised both men's aviation skills, although he had to caution Glenn about flying his bomb and strafing runs too slow… Glenn was stubborn until he almost got shot down and brought his Panther home with holes all in it… resulting in Verdi assigning him the title of "Old Magnet Ass".
His observations about Williams were pointed… He said Ted was a "World Class Bithcher"! Complained about everything… but Verdi and his other squadron mates took the attitude of… he was entitled to bitch considering the circumstance's of his call to active duty. But Verdi also pointed out that Williams flew every mission he was assigned; never sniveled out of a hop, never aborted a mission. In fact it was Verdi and Glenn that went to the Flight Surgeon to make him aware that Ted was flying, even though he suffering from onset pneumonia. Williams himself, had refused to go to the Docs because he was well aware that snipers would accuse him of malingering. Verdi and Glenn forced the issue and got him grounded.
BTW… all three men remained correspondents with each until the very end… Mutual respect!
One last note…. Verdi was enraged at the Corps for never giving Glenn a Command of a Squadron or Group. Petty jealousy, according to Verdi.
Shadow
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November 29
This Day in U S Military History
1760 – Major Robert Rogers and his Rangers took possession of Detroit on behalf of Britain. French commandant Belotre surrendered Detroit. General James Amherst selected Rogers for the honor of receiving the surrender of the western French posts——Detroit, Michilimackinac, Ouiatenon, and others. This was the first British expedition into the French held Great Lakes region in almost a hundred years. It would have been a challenge at any time, but winter was drawing near, adding the dimension of a race to an already difficult task. Although not all of the posts were reached before the winter of 1760-61 set in, the mission is still regarded as a success.
1776 – The Battle of Fort Cumberland, Nova Scotia, comes to an end with the arrival of British reinforcements. The Battle of Fort Cumberland (also known as the Eddy Rebellion) was an attempt by a small number of militia commanded by Jonathan Eddy to bring the American Revolutionary War to Nova Scotia in late 1776. With minimal logistical support from Massachusetts and four to five hundred volunteer militia and Natives, Eddy attempted to besiege and storm Fort Cumberland in central Nova Scotia (near the present-day border between Nova Scotia and New Brunswick) in November 1776. The fort's defenders, the Royal Fencible American Regiment led by Joseph Goreham, a veteran of the French and Indian War, successfully repelled several attempts by Eddy's militia to storm the fort, and the siege was ultimately relieved when the RFA plus Royal Marine reinforcements drove off the besiegers on November 29. In retaliation for the role of locals who supported the siege, numerous homes and farms were destroyed, and Patriot sympathizers were driven out of the area. The successful defense of Fort Cumberland preserved the territorial integrity of the British Maritime possessions, and Nova Scotia remained loyal throughout the war.
1947 – Despite strong Arab opposition, the United Nations votes for the partition of Palestine and the creation of an independent Jewish state. The modern conflict between Jews and Arabs in Palestine dates back to the 1910s, when both groups laid claim to the British-controlled territory. The Jews were Zionists, recent emigrants from Europe and Russia who came to the ancient homeland of the Jews to establish a Jewish national state. The native Palestinian Arabs sought to stem Jewish immigration and set up a secular Palestinian state. Beginning in 1929, Arabs and Jews openly fought in Palestine, and Britain attempted to limit Jewish immigration as a means of appeasing the Arabs. As a result of the Holocaust in Europe, many Jews illegally entered Palestine during World War II. Radical Jewish groups employed terrorism against British forces in Palestine, which they thought had betrayed the Zionist cause. At the end of World War II, in 1945, the United States took up the Zionist cause. Britain, unable to find a practical solution, referred the problem to the United Nations, which on November 29, 1947, voted to partition Palestine. The Jews were to possess more than half of Palestine, though they made up less than half of Palestine's population. The Palestinian Arabs, aided by volunteers from other countries, fought the Zionist forces, but the Jews secured full control of their U.N.-allocated share of Palestine and also some Arab territory. On May 14, 1948, Britain withdrew with the expiration of its mandate, and the State of Israel was proclaimed by Jewish Agency Chairman David Ben-Gurion. The next day, forces from Egypt, Transjordan, Syria, Lebanon, and Iraq invaded. The Israelis, though less well equipped, managed to fight off the Arabs and then seize key territories, such as Galilee, the Palestinian coast, and a strip of territory connecting the coastal region to the western section of Jerusalem. In 1949, U.N.-brokered cease-fires left the State of Israel in permanent control of those conquered areas. The departure of hundreds of thousands of Palestinian Arabs from Israel during the war left the country with a substantial Jewish majority.
1950 – Three weeks after U.S. General Douglas MacArthur first reported Chinese communist troops in action in North Korea, U.S.-led U.N. troops begin a desperate retreat out of North Korea under heavy fire from the Chinese. Near the end of World War II, the "Big Three" Allied powers–the United States, the Soviet Union, and Great Britain–agreed to divide Korea into two separate occupation zones and temporarily govern the nation. The country was split along the 38th parallel, with Soviet forces occupying the northern zone and Americans stationed in the south. By 1949, separate Korean governments had been established, and both the United States and the USSR withdrew the majority of their troops from the Korean Peninsula. The 38th parallel was heavily fortified on both sides, but the South Koreans were unprepared for the hordes of North Korean troops and Soviet-made tanks that suddenly rolled across the border on June 25, 1950. Two days later, President Harry Truman announced that the United States would intervene in the Korean conflict to stem the spread of communism, and on June 28 the United Nations approved the use of force against communist North Korea. In the opening months of the war, the U.S.-led U.N. forces rapidly advanced against the North Koreans, but in October, Chinese communist troops entered the fray, throwing the Allies into retreat. By May 1951, the communists were pushed back to the 38th parallel, where the battle line remained for the rest of the war. In 1953, an armistice was signed, ending the war and reestablishing the 1945 division of Korea that still exists today. Approximately 150,000 troops from South Korea, the United States, and participating U.N. nations were killed in the Korean War, and as many as one million South Korean civilians perished. An estimated 800,000 communist soldiers were killed, and more than 200,000 North Korean civilians died. The original figure of American troops lost–54,246 killed–became controversial when the Pentagon acknowledged in 2000 that all U.S. troops killed around the world during the period of the Korean War were incorporated into that number. For example, any American soldier killed in a car accident anywhere in the world from June 1950 to July 1953 was considered a casualty of the Korean War. If these deaths are subtracted from the 54,246 total, leaving just the Americans who died (from whatever cause) in the Korean theater of operations, the total U.S. dead in the Korean War numbers 36,516
1968 – The Viet Cong High Command orders an all-out attempt to smash the Phoenix program. Hanoi Radio broadcasted a National Liberation Front directive calling for a new offensive to "utterly destroy" Allied forces. The broadcast added that the new operation was particularly concerned with eliminating the "Phoenix Organization." The Phoenix program (or "Phuong Hoang" as it was called in Vietnamese) was a hamlet security initiative run by the Central Intelligence Agency that relied on centralized, computerized intelligence gathering aimed at identifying and eliminating the Viet Cong infrastructure–the upper echelon of the National Liberation Front political cadres and party members. The program became one of the most controversial operations undertaken by U.S. personnel in South Vietnam. Critics charged that American-led South Vietnamese "hit teams" indiscriminately arrested and murdered many communist suspects on flimsy pretexts. Despite the criticism and media attention, the program was acknowledged by top-level U.S. government officials, as well as Viet Cong and North Vietnamese leaders after the war, to have been very effective in reducing the power of the local communist cadres in the South Vietnamese countryside.
Medal of Honor Citations for Actions Taken This Day
*MILLER, ANDREW
Rank and organization: Staff Sergeant, U.S. Army, Company G, 377th Infantry, 95th Infantry Division. Place and date: From Woippy, France, through Metz to Kerprich Hemmersdorf, Germany, 16-29 November 1944. Entered service at: Two Rivers, Wis. Birth: Manitowoc, Wis. G.O. No.: 74, 1 September 1945. Citation: For performing a series of heroic deeds from 1629 November 1944, during his company's relentless drive from Woippy, France, through Metz to Kerprich Hemmersdorf, Germany. As he led a rifle squad on 16 November at Woippy, a crossfire from enemy machineguns pinned down his unit. Ordering his men to remain under cover, he went forward alone, entered a building housing 1 of the guns and forced S Germans to surrender at bayonet point. He then took the second gun single-handedly by hurling grenades into the enemy position, killing 2, wounding 3 more, and taking 2 additional prisoners. At the outskirts of Metz the next day, when his platoon, confused by heavy explosions and the withdrawal of friendly tanks, retired, he fearlessly remained behind armed with an automatic rifle and exchanged bursts with a German machinegun until he silenced the enemy weapon. His quick action in covering his comrades gave the platoon time to regroup and carry on the fight. On 19 November S/Sgt. Miller led an attack on large enemy barracks. Covered by his squad, he crawled to a barracks window, climbed in and captured 6 riflemen occupying the room. His men, and then the entire company, followed through the window, scoured the building, and took 75 prisoners. S/Sgt. Miller volunteered, with 3 comrades, to capture Gestapo officers who were preventing the surrender of German troops in another building. He ran a gauntlet of machinegun fire and was lifted through a window. Inside, he found himself covered by a machine pistol, but he persuaded the 4 Gestapo agents confronting him to surrender. Early the next morning, when strong hostile forces punished his company with heavy fire, S/Sgt. Miller assumed the task of destroying a well-placed machinegun. He was knocked down by a rifle grenade as he climbed an open stairway in a house, but pressed on with a bazooka to find an advantageous spot from which to launch his rocket. He discovered that he could fire only from the roof, a position where he would draw tremendous enemy fire. Facing the risk, he moved into the open, coolly took aim and scored a direct hit on the hostile emplacement, wreaking such havoc that the enemy troops became completely demoralized and began surrendering by the score. The following day, in Metz, he captured 12 more prisoners and silenced an enemy machinegun after volunteering for a hazardous mission in advance of his company's position. On 29 November, as Company G climbed a hill overlooking Kerprich Hemmersdorf, enemy fire pinned the unit to the ground. S/Sgt. Miller, on his own initiative, pressed ahead with his squad past the company's leading element to meet the surprise resistance. His men stood up and advanced deliberately, firing as they went. Inspired by S/Sgt. Miller's leadership, the platoon followed, and then another platoon arose and grimly closed with the Germans. The enemy action was smothered, but at the cost of S/Sgt. Miller's life. His tenacious devotion to the attack, his gallant choice to expose himself to enemy action rather than endanger his men, his limitless bravery, assured the success of Company G.
*BAUGH, WILLIAM B.
Rank and organization: Private First Class, U.S. Marine Corps, Company G, 3d Battalion, 1st Marine, 1st Marine Division (Rein.). Place and date: Along road from Koto-ri to Hagaru-ri, Korea, 29 November 1950. Entered service at: Harrison, Ohio. Born: 7 July 1930, McKinney, Ky. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a member of an antitank assault squad attached to Company G, during a nighttime enemy attack against a motorized column. Acting instantly when a hostile hand grenade landed in his truck as he and his squad prepared to alight and assist in the repulse of an enemy force delivering intense automatic-weapons and grenade fire from deeply entrenched and well-concealed roadside positions, Pfc. Baugh quickly shouted a warning to the other men in the vehicle and, unmindful of his personal safety, hurled himself upon the deadly missile, thereby saving his comrades from serious injury or possible death. Sustaining severe wounds from which he died a short time afterward, Pfc. Baugh, by his superb courage and valiant spirit of self-sacrifice, upheld the highest traditions of the U.S. Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.
MYERS, REGINALD R.
Rank and organization: Major, U.S. Marine Corps, 3d Battalion, 1st Marines, 1st Marine Division, (Rein.). Place and date: Near Hagaru-ri, Korea, 29 November 1950. Entered service at: Boise, Idaho. Born: 26 November 1919, Boise, Idaho. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty as executive officer of the 3d Battalion, in action against enemy aggressor forces. Assuming command of a composite unit of Army and Marine service and headquarters elements totaling approximately 250 men, during a critical stage in the vital defense of the strategically important military base at Hagaru-ri, Maj. Myers immediately initiated a determined and aggressive counterattack against a well-entrenched and cleverly concealed enemy force numbering an estimated 4,000. Severely handicapped by a lack of trained personnel and experienced leaders in his valiant efforts to regain maximum ground prior to daylight, he persisted in constantly exposing himself to intense, accurate, and sustained hostile fire in order to direct and supervise the employment of his men and to encourage and spur them on in pressing the attack. Inexorably moving forward up the steep, snow-covered slope with his depleted group in the face of apparently insurmountable odds, he concurrently directed artillery and mortar fire with superb skill and although losing 170 of his men during 14 hours of raging combat in subzero temperatures, continued to reorganize his unit and spearhead the attack which resulted in 600 enemy killed and 500 wounded. By his exceptional and valorous leadership throughout, Maj. Myers contributed directly to the success of his unit in restoring the perimeter. His resolute spirit of self-sacrifice and unfaltering devotion to duty enhance and sustain the highest traditions of the U.S. Naval Service .
*PAGE, JOHN U. D.
Rank and organization: Lieutenant Colonel, U.S. Army, X Corps Artillery, while attached to the 52d Transportation Truck Battalion. Place and date: Near Chosin Reservoir, Korea, 29 November to 10 December 1950. Entered service at: St. Paul, Minn. Born: 8 February 1904, Malahi Island, Luzon, Philippine Islands. G.O. No.: 21, 25 April 1957. Citation: Lt. Col. Page, a member of X Corps Artillery, distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action above and beyond the call of duty in a series of exploits. On 29 November, Lt. Col. Page left X Corps Headquarters at Hamhung with the mission of establishing traffic control on the main supply route to 1st Marine Division positions and those of some Army elements on the Chosin Reservoir plateau. Having completed his mission Lt. Col. Page was free to return to the safety of Hamhung but chose to remain on the plateau to aid an isolated signal station, thus being cut off with elements of the marine division. After rescuing his jeep driver by breaking up an ambush near a destroyed bridge Lt. Col. Page reached the lines of a surrounded marine garrison at Koto-ri. He then voluntarily developed and trained a reserve force of assorted army troops trapped with the marines. By exemplary leadership and tireless devotion he made an effective tactical unit available. In order that casualties might be evacuated, an airstrip was improvised on frozen ground partly outside of the Koto-ri defense perimeter which was continually under enemy attack. During 2 such attacks, Lt. Col. Page exposed himself on the airstrip to direct fire on the enemy, and twice mounted the rear deck of a tank, manning the machine gun on the turret to drive the enemy back into a no man's land. On 3 December while being flown low over enemy lines in a light observation plane, Lt. Col. Page dropped handgrenades on Chinese positions and sprayed foxholes with automatic fire from his carbine. After 10 days of constant fighting the marine and army units in the vicinity of the Chosin Reservoir had succeeded in gathering at the edge of the plateau and Lt. Col. Page was flown to Hamhung to arrange for artillery support of the beleaguered troops attempting to break out. Again Lt. Col. Page refused an opportunity to remain in safety and returned to give every assistance to his comrades. As the column slowly moved south Lt. Col. Page joined the rear guard. When it neared the entrance to a narrow pass it came under frequent attacks on both flanks. Mounting an abandoned tank Lt. Col. Page manned the machine gun, braved heavy return fire, and covered the passing vehicles until the danger diminished. Later when another attack threatened his section of the convoy, then in the middle of the pass, Lt. Col. Page took a machine gun to the hillside and delivered effective counterfire, remaining exposed while men and vehicles passed through the ambuscade. On the night of 10 December the convoy reached the bottom of the pass but was halted by a strong enemy force at the front and on both flanks. Deadly small-arms fire poured into the column. Realizing the danger to the column as it lay motionless, Lt. Col. Page fought his way to the head of the column and plunged forward into the heart of the hostile position. His intrepid action so surprised the enemy that their ranks became disordered and suffered heavy casualties. Heedless of his safety, as he had been throughout the preceding 10 days, Lt. Col. Page remained forward, fiercely engaging the enemy single-handed until mortally wounded. By his valiant and aggressive spirit Lt. Col. Page enabled friendly forces to stand off the enemy. His outstanding courage, unswerving devotion to duty, and supreme self-sacrifice reflect great credit upon Lt. Col. Page and are in the highest tradition of the military service.
SITTER, CARL L.
Rank and organization: Captain, U.S. Marine Corps, Company G, 3d Battalion, 1st Marines, 1st Marine Division (Rein.). Place and date: Hagaru-ri, Korea, 29 and 30 November 1950. Entered service at: Pueblo, Colo. Born: 2 December 1921, Syracuse, Mo. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty as commanding officer of Company G, in action against enemy aggressor forces. Ordered to break through enemy-infested territory to reinforce his battalion the morning of 29 November, Capt. Sitter continuously exposed himself to enemy fire as he led his company forward and, despite 25 percent casualties suffered m the furious action, succeeded in driving through to his objective. Assuming the responsibility of attempting to seize and occupy a strategic area occupied by a hostile force of regiment strength deeply entrenched on a snow-covered hill commanding the entire valley southeast of the town, as well as the line of march of friendly troops withdrawing to the south, he reorganized his depleted units the following morning and boldly led them up the steep, frozen hillside under blistering fire, encouraging and redeploying his troops as casualties occurred and directing forward platoons as they continued the drive to the top of the ridge. During the night when a vastly outnumbering enemy launched a sudden, vicious counterattack, setting the hill ablaze with mortar, machine gun, and automatic-weapons fire and taking a heavy toll in troops, Capt. Sitter visited each foxhole and gun position, coolly deploying and integrating reinforcing units consisting of service personnel unfamiliar with infantry tactics into a coordinated combat team and instilling in every man the will and determination to hold his position at all costs. With the enemy penetrating his lines in repeated counterattacks which often required hand-to-hand combat, and, on one occasion infiltrating to the command post with handgrenades, he fought gallantly with his men in repulsing and killing the fanatic attackers in each encounter. Painfully wounded in the face, arms, and chest by bursting grenades, he staunchly refused to be evacuated and continued to fight on until a successful defense of the area was assured with a loss to the enemy of more than 50 percent dead, wounded, and captured. His valiant leadership, superb tactics, and great personal valor throughout 36 hours of bitter combat reflect the highest credit upon Capt. Sitter and the U.S. Naval Service.
*PRUDEN, ROBERT J.
Rank and organization: Staff Sergeant, U.S. Army, 75th Infantry, Americal Division. Place and date: Quang Ngai Province, Republic of Vietnam, 29 November 1969. Entered service at: Minneapolis, Minn. Born: 9 September 1949, St. Paul, Minn. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. S/Sgt. Pruden, Company G, distinguished himself while serving as a reconnaissance team leader during an ambush mission. The 6-man team was inserted by helicopter into enemy controlled territory to establish an ambush position and to obtain information concerning enemy movements. As the team moved into the preplanned area, S/Sgt. Pruden deployed his men into 2 groups on the opposite sides of a well-used trail. As the groups were establishing their defensive positions, 1 member of the team was trapped in the open by the heavy fire from an enemy squad. Realizing that the ambush position had been compromised, S/Sgt. Pruden directed his team to open fire on the enemy force. Immediately, the team came under heavy fire from a second enemy element. S/Sgt. Pruden, with full knowledge of the extreme danger involved, left his concealed position and, firing as he ran, advanced toward the enemy to draw the hostile fire. He was seriously wounded twice but continued his attack until he fell for a third time, in front of the enemy positions. S/Sgt. Pruden's actions resulted in several enemy casualties and withdrawal of the remaining enemy force. Although grievously wounded, he directed his men into defensive positions and called for evacuation helicopters, which safely withdrew the members of the team. S/Sgt. Pruden's outstanding courage, selfless concern for the welfare of his men, and intrepidity in action at the cost of his life were in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the U.S. Army.
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AMERICAN AEROSPACE EVENTS for November 29, FIRSTS, LASTS, AND SIGNIFICANT ACCOMPLISHMENTS. THANKS TO HAROLD "PHIL" MYERS CHIEF HISTORIAN AIR FORCE INTELLIGENCE, SURVEILLANCE, AND RECONNAISSANCE AGENCY
29 November
1922: Navy Lts Ben H. Wyatt and George T. Owen piloted DH-4Bs on a transcontinental roundtrip from San Diego. On 14 October, the planes started, flying through Tucson, New Orleans, and Pensacola to Washington DC and back through Dayton, Omaha, Salt Lake City, and San Francisco. The two men completed the 7,000-mile trip in about 90 hours of flight; mechanical difficulties, bad gasoline, weather, and a lack of navigating equipment accounted for most lost time.
1942: Forty-Four C-47s of the 62 TCG and 64 TCG from Twelfth Air Force dropped 530 British paratroopers near Tunis in an attempt to capture Oudna Airbase. The attempt failed due to German counterattacks. (4)
1943: Twelfth Air Force sent 25 B-25s to bomb military installations and rail facilities in the first American raid on Sarajevo, Yugoslavia. (24)
1949: Jacqueline Cochran set an international speed record of 436.995 mph for 310.685 miles without a payload in an F-51 at the Desert Center, Mount Wilson Course, Calif. Piasecki Helicopter Company displayed the Navy HRP-2 tandem-rotored helicopter. It carried 16 passengers. (24)
1951: The USAF announced the production of the first all-jet heavy bomber, the Boeing XB-52. (12)
1957: Gen Thomas D. White disclosed the development of an anti-missile missile called the Wizard, the assignment of ICBM and IRBM programs to SAC, and a transfer of the lst Missile Division to SAC. At the same time, he said the San Bernardino Air Force Depot would assume support for long-range ballistic missile programs. (6)
1958: The USAF cancelled the Rascal air-to-surface missile designed for the B-47, but kept the Hound Dog and GAM-72A Quail programs. (6)
1961: Enos, a chimp trained at Holloman AFB, became the first US spaceman when he launched from Cape Canaveral in a Project Mercury capsule into orbit twice around earth. (5) (16)
1962: The first Thor IRBM came off alert in the UK for the missile's phaseout program. (6)
1975: FIRST RED FLAG. The first annual exercise occurred at Nellis AFB to provide realistic training for combat aircrews. (21)
1989: The Air Force released a list of bases that would receive the Peacekeeper Rail Garrison System: Barksdale AFB, Grand Forks AFB, Fairchild AFB, Dyess AFB, Little Rock AFB, Wurtsmith AFB, and Francis E. Warren AFB. (8: Feb 90) The YA-7F made its first flight from the LTV facility in Dallas, Tex. It would transfer later to Edwards AFB for further testing. (8: Feb 90)
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