The Independent-News, Volume 121, Number 7, Walkerton, St. Joseph County, 29 June 1995 — Page 4
4
- THE INDEPENDENT-NEWS - JUNE 29, 1995
| EDITORIAL j
A SPECIAL 4TH OF JULY As we get ready to celebrate our truly American holiday, the 4th of July, marking another anniversary of our nation’s independence, this 219th anniversary should be a little special for us. This is the 50th anniversary of the period of time between victory in Europe and victory in Japan to end World War 11. Even though the original meaning of Independence Day comes from a much earlier period, one should not forget that the independence was not only achieved through war and our desires to be a free and self-governed country, it has over the past couple of hundred years also been defended. Our men and boys have gone to war time after time to preserve what our forefathers gave to us. And none was more meaningful than the victory of World War II which occured in two different parts of the world. We are right in the midst of relating stories to you from area veterans who are recalling their memories, thoughts, fears, etc. of the early 1940’s from home to theaters all over the world. Many of these veterans are a little hesitant to talk about it, but if you notice, despite the fact they might not be able to tell you much about what happened yesterday, a week or month ago, the details of the great war are vividly installed in their minds forever. And well they should be. It is hard to realize what thoughts, hopes and fears went through their minds, many very young, even leaving high school to join in the fray. Others left families behind, some children to be born they didn’t get to see for some time, left their jobs, enjoyments, friends and way of life that they felt was worth the risk to protect. As we celebrate this 4th of July, remember, it is not just one occurance 220 years ago that led to this, it has been many over the years. The theme of North Liberty’s annual 4th of July Parade centers around this and they will have a short explanation of this during their parade from the reviewing stand by Rev. Gaylord Saltzbager, who also was seriously involved in World War 11. He submitted an account of some of his thoughts of this war which we have included in this issue as a “Voice” article since we received it Tuesday, but felt the timing was such we should run it in addition to the already prepared accounts of three other local veterans. If by reading these various accounts, which are history as it was being made in however small way it may seem, those of us who couldn’t serve, didn’t serve or mainly were not even around, these stories should bring to you a more vivid thought of what our independence should mean to us. History was made by everyone . . . and we have many of them to thank for our freedoms and life style for well over 200 years. That is what the 4th of July is all about!
VOICE OF THE PEOPLE |
“Leet We Forget” This is a year for history-chang-ing and life-changing anniversaries. July and August of this year are particularly significant for ail of us. Just fifty-two days from this publication date we shall observe the 50th anniversary of the surreneer of Japan and the End of World War 11. In July of 1942 I was inducted in the Army Air Corps. Later I requested transfer to the regular army and trained at Camp Livingston, Louisiana. I was assigned to the 41st Infantry Division of the Bth Army as a Staff-Sergeant and Platoon Leader. The 41st Infantry Division, under the command of General Robert Lawrence Eichelberger, served in the New Guinea, Luzon, Southern Philippine campaigns, and in August of 1945 was localted in Zamboanga, Mindanao of the Philippine Islands. This is the time slot I would like to concentrate on now. On August 6, 1945, pilot Paul Tibbets in the Enola Gay dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan. On August 9, 1945, Charles Sweeny, piloting a B-29 called “Bock’s Car”, toward the city of Kokura, was forced by bad weather toward his second target, Nagasaki. There, “Fat Man”, a plutonium-cored bomb, exploded 1,500 feet above the city. Five days later Japan surrendered and the war was over. At this exact time 1 was on temporary assignment in Alabang, a suburb of Manila, to receive the Bronze Star medal, along with the Liberation Medal from the Philip-
pine government. While there I also served as Liaison non-com between the Australian and American commands. Immediately after the surrender of Japan I returned to my division on Zamboanga which was a massive staging area for the proposed invasion of Japan. This longdreaded invasion took place on October 6, 1945, less than 60 days after the second bombing. It was an uneasy landing as there had been only a cadre of U.S. staff ahead of us. In an unpredictable situation, we went down the sides of our ships and waded ashore, laden with full battle gear and rifles “at ready”. I shall not get into the controversial events that foreshadowed all this, as far too much has already been written. I can simply attest to what would have confronted us in an actual invasion. Day after day, week after week, we heard our ordinance personnel detonating and disarming Japanese bombs and ammunition from among the myriad of bunkers and caves that honeycombed the sheet cliffs and mountains that rose from the beaches around Hiro, a suburb of Hiroshima. It was a very sobering experience, even though we had no foreknowledge that the proposed invasion titled, “Operation Downfall” was estimated to incure 75 percent casualties. One can appreciate why this is such a momentous anniversary for me and others who were in my situation. I refuse to get into any discussions concerning the dropping of the two bombs as it is a no-
win argument. I know that I am alive, and if one were to ask me why I was spared, I would only answer, “I really don’t know, but, I thank God!” Dr. Gaylord Saltzgaber (Editor’s note: Dr. Saltzgaber will deliver a brief explanation of the theme of this year's North Liberty 4th of July Parade, on the observance of the 50th anniversary of V-J Day and the end of World War IL He will capsulate all that in a three or four minute delivery from the reviewing stand.)
To Your Good Health by Paul G. Donohue, M.D.
DEAR DOCTOR DONOHUE: I am an overweight woman — I weigh 220 — who has suffered from severe lower backaches for years. After X-rays, I was told I have a slipped disc. My doctor says all I can do is lose weight and take pain pills. I gather from the tone of some of your columns that this might not be all I can do. What else is available? ■ SIHH K - % 4RBBHRBB jSI DEAR READER: Your doctor is taking a most conservative view of things. He’s not encouraging faith in the healing powers of modern medicine. Weight loss is important, no doubt of that, and pain pills have their place in a pinch. But there your doctor and I part company. Somehow, one or more of the cushioning pads between your spine sections has been squeezed out of position and is impinging on adjacent nerves. An answer can lie in strengthening the back muscles that normally keep the spine aligned. They often grow lax with age and lack of use. I’m talking exercise You might need professional advice in developing an effective exercise program that will restrengthen those muscles without causing counterproductive strain on them. You might check with a physical therapist. You can also relieve a surprising amount of the pain just with application of heat. That relaxes muscles that probably are going into spasm — one of the chief causes of backache, in fact. There also are medicines to help accomplish such muscle relaxation. If your doctor is disinterested, try another — perhaps a rheumatologist or an orthopedist. Meanwhile, get busy on a dietcentered weight-loss program. Look through the reducing material I am sending along. It offers some simple and safe methods. Others readers can order a copy by writing: Dr. Donohue — No. 27-WS, Box 5539, Riverton, NJ. 08077-5539. Enclose $3 and a self-addressed, stamped (55 cents) No. 10 envelope.
Health & Nutrition by Judith Sheldon
Notwithstanding the somewhat benign publicity surrounding the tattoos that the three first-name-only ladies — Cher, Madonna, and Roseanne — have had done to their bodies, the fact is, tattooing is a potentially dangerous procedure that can lead to serious infections, including, perhaps, AIDS Dr. Whitney Tope, writing in the May, 1995 issue of the “Journal of the American Academy of Dermatologists,” cites for example, that hepatitis B virus, among other infections, can be spread with tattoo needles. Besides the usually “decorative” tattoos that may be pul onto the body both by men and women, some women are choosing to have socalled “cosmetic” tattoos done. These include tattooing permanent “eyebrows," or under-lhe-eye liners,
| MEMORIES . . . FROM OUR FILES
1985 “WIN” COUPON BOOKS TO GO ON SALE JULY 1 — The Walkerton Chamber of Commerce and many area merchants of the Walkerton and Koontz Lake area are combining their efforts in presenting a Coupon Book. There are 118 coupons in the books which is selling for $6.00 each. Featured on the cover of the Win Coupon Book is a chance to win either a 1986 Chevrolet Cavalier or a 1986 Ford Escort, compliments of Mahoney Chevrolet-Olds and Walkerton Ford-Mercury. Also in the book you will find 15 other drawings for special prizes as well as gift certificates and other valuable items. But most important is the valuable coupons for you to use in the different participating merchants businesses which in cash value comes to $775.00 plus many are offering discounts on the products, etc. The drawing for the car and many other special prizes will be held during Walkerton’s 2nd annual Fall Festival on Saturday, October 19. In the first time venture there are 75 participating places of business with a value of over $1,200 in each coupon book. AN ADVERTISEMENT — Hear Yel Hear Ye! Member of the John Glenn School System, answer the Hue and Cry! This 4th of July please show your support for the Southwest Greene “Parents Os Liberty.” We want our children to go to their community schools. We are “Liberty” people — please help us. Call you board — call South Bend. Remember the 4th and Freedom! Join us in the North Liberty Parade and fly the flag high! “Citizens for Southwest Greene Parents of Liberty.” or outlines for the lips. Although there have been laws passed by some 17 states regulating the procedure (seven states outlaw it altogether), there are some medical authorities who would like to see even more stringent regulations in every state where tattooing is still permitted. Professional societies for tattoo artists, perhaps recognizing that the procedure could be prohibited altogether by law, have made some recommendations that can help prevent the spread of disease from the tattooing process They suggest using medical grade protective gloves and instrument sterilization under OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) guidelines. (These recommendations are made under what doctors call “universal precautions” against blood infections.) Dr Tope suggests tattooing be limited only to mentally competent adults who have no medical history of active infection or skin disease; and that tattooing of minors be done only with parental consent in writing. Dr. Tope also suggests tattoo artists and cosmetic tattew providers be licensed, but only after passing a period of apprenticeship and a written test. ©1995 by King Features Synd “I won a popularity contest at school...and now everybody hates me!”
1970 POPULATION COUNT RE LEASED BY '7O CENSUS — Th, preliminary population figures so the places listed below were an nounced today by District Manage: William L. Stewart who supervise, the taking of the 1970 to publis! official population figures for al ages in the United States, states counties, towns and villages. The District Manager expresse his own and the Census Bureau' thanks to the residents of the area to officials, the newspapers and th broadcasting stations for the c< operation in taking the Census ’7( here. Place 1970 1960 South Bend 122,797 132,445 Mishawaka 36,012 33,361 St. Joe County 243,243 238,014 Elkhart 42,619 40,274 Goshen 14,619 13,718 Elkhart County 124,680 106,29( LaPorte 21,932 21,15' Michigan City 38,950 26,653 LaPorte County 104,344 95,111 Portage 18,943 11,822 Valparaiso 19,550 15,227 Porter County 85,507 60,279 Plymouth 7,515 7,558 Marshall County 34,609 32,443 1945 REDEPLOYMENT PROGRAM — One of the toughest jobs ever faced by an Army Ordinance is now under way— receiving, inspecting repairing, packaging and docu menting well over three millior major items of ordnance equipment and approximately 700,000 tons of ammunition. These battle sup plies must be shipped from Europe to other theatres. The task, known as the rede ployment program, involves the prepration for shipment of about 55,000 combat vehicles, 325,000 general and special purpose vehicles, 11,000 artillery pieces. 2,800,000 small arms, automatic weapons and mortars, 400,000 items of antiaircraft fire control equipment and thousands of tons of ammunition. According to Major Thos. H Bradley, commanding officer at the Kingsbury Ordnance Plant, there are two chief procedures by which equipment will be shipped to other theatres. The first applies to troops who will be shipped from Europe complete with equipment direct to active theatres. The second procedure for units returning to this country calls for the surrender of their equipment. At about a dozen collecting points where it will either be packaged and sent direct to other theatres if applicable, or if repairable, put into combat condition and finally packaged for overseas shipment, or salvaged if it is beyond repair. Redeployment processing of weapons and vehicles requires 20 ordnance shops for the repairing and packaging of combat vehicles, artillery, small arms and the like, and for the repair disassembly and crating of general purpose vehicles. In addition, there are nine depot and vehicle parks and nine ammunition depots. Repair Os Home* An additional 23,000,000 board feet of lumber has been allotted to the War Food Administration for distribution to farmers for emergency maintenance and repair of farm dwellings in the third quarter of 1945, WPB announced. Farmers make application for the lumber to the County Agricultural Conservation Committees, and approved applications are rated AA-3 by Delegation of Authority from WPB to WFA. Emergency cases for which applications will be approved are limited to repair of damage caused by fire, flood or similar disaster, or repair of dwellings that would be uninhabitable or a definite hazard to the health of the occupants if not repaired immediately, WPB said.