[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 57 (Wednesday, May 4, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E868-E869]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      HONORING DOOLITTLE'S RAIDERS

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. ROB SIMMONS

                             of connecticut

                    in the house of representatives

                         Wednesday, May 4, 2005

  Mr. SIMMONS. Mr. Speaker, on Saturday, April 16, 2005, I had the 
privilege of honoring members of the famous Doolittle's Raiders, who 
held their annual reunion this year in Mystic, Connecticut, which I am 
proud to represent in this House.
  On December 7, 1941, at Pearl Harbor, the United States was attacked 
by Japan. On April 18, 1942, the United States struck back directly at 
the enemy. On that day, Lt. Col. James Harold Doolittle and his co-
pilot, Richard Cole, and their comrades-in-arms conducted their heroic 
raid.
  On April 16, I was joined by many others at the Mystic Liberty Pole 
to honor these men and their courage. During the observance Boy Scout 
Troop 76 raised a ceremonial flag and a plaque was dedicated by 
Stonington First Selectman William Brown. It was my honor to present 
the Raiders with a congressional coin and a citation.
  The air raid was the first strike against the Japanese mainland. It 
was a relatively small action, only 16 bombers dropping 32 bombs over 
five cities. But it elevated America's morale because it demonstrated 
that we had the ability to strike back. However, the raid was not 
without cost. None of the 80 combatants landed safely after the raid. 
Eleven crews had to bail out over China, three into the water, one 
crash-landed and another landed in the Soviet Union where the crew was 
held captive.
  An eastern Connecticut newspaper, The Day, wrote about the sacrifices 
made by Doolittle's Raiders. The newspaper said, ``The history books 
recount how eight Doolittle Raiders were taken captive by the Japanese 
and how four were released at the end of the war. But they don't talk 
about the conditions the airmen endured, locked alone in tiny cells, 
their only contact with the outside world the tray of slop that was 
shoved through the door every day. If you want a sense of what it was 
like, lock yourself in your bathroom for two years and nine months, 
retired Lt. Col. Chase J. Nielsen told about 1,000 high school students 
who gathered Friday in Leamy Hall at the Coast Guard Academy. `You eat 
like a pig, and you live like one,' Nielsen said.''
  This is the story of men who demonstrated heroism of inconceivable 
dimension. They took action against an enemy whose military machine was 
spreading across the Pacific. Not only did the Raiders' bold attack 
rally American spirits at home, it struck fear into the Japanese 
Imperial High Command, forcing them to redeploy troops back to the 
homeland. This helped turn the tide of the war and led to our eventual 
victory.
  It was appropriate that we gathered at the Mystic Liberty Pole. It is 
a place of patriotism and public spirit. We honored those patriotic and 
public spirited men because they volunteered so many years ago to put 
their lives on

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the line for the liberty we all enjoy today. If not for their 
sacrifice, our world would be a far different place.
  May God bless them all for what they did, keep them in good health, 
and may God Bless America.

                          ____________________