Last week-end's coolness.

So this past Sunday, I drove out to Baton Rouge and met up with Displaced Louisiana Guy and his way cool family. Then he, I and his young prodigy son went out to see a WW2 hero--the USS Kidd (DD-661). Ity's a museum ship in the Mississippi River now.

Or it would be if the river was higher. Think this'd set up a bit of vibration?

She's ridin' a bit high.

We boarded starboard side near the aft 5"/38cal guns. These guns could hurl a 55lb. shell a bit over ten miles.

And here's the inside of that turret, with a cut-away gun. The docent on deck said that I couldn't shoot the gun and for some reason went on a long tear about not flipping switches, pushing buttons or going into off-limits spaces. Why us? He's not even old enough to remember the last time I was here and I'm sure I don't even look like my picture from back then any more.

Depth charges! Here's a 300lb. Mk6 charge, designed to sink submarines.

And here's how sailors set the depth at which the charge would (hopefully) explode.

Here's a more modern Mk9 depth charge, which was in general use by war's end. The teardrop shape helped it to sink straighter and faster.

And here's the galley where the ship's cooks fed 330 men.

During combat, this space doubled as an emergency aid station, which is why the floor was painted red--to help camouflage the blood that sailors lost so that they wouldn't see it and go into even worse shock.

Gratuitous shot of the Mississippi River.

Looking up at one of the twin 40mm anti-aircraft guns.

Looking back from the bow at the two forward 5" guns.

Time to go below.

Here's the crews' mess, which doubled as bunk space.

Racks go up at eal time, tables go under racks at bed time.

Privacy and personal space are not things found on these old Fletcher-class cans.

The officers had it a little better, but still three of them had to share rooms like this, which were about the size of the typical home bathroom today.

And the bridge, where the sailors drove the boat from.

Looking forward from the bridge.

Another twin 40MM mount

A pair of twin 40MM guns. While electrically-powered, these guns could also be traversed and elevated manually by cranks and me and Displaced Louisiana Kid played at this for a bit. Pro-tip: Wear an old shirt if you do this. The crank mechanism threw lubricant all over my nice white Springfield Armory shirt. Sigh.

Port side, amidships. Looking forward.

Torpedo tubes. Kidd was never modernized after WW2 and still has all of her 1945-era weapons.

Kidd participated in nearly every significant naval action after her 1943 launch date. She was in the thick of things many times, including April 11, 1945, when she was hit by a Jap kamikaze plane on her starboard side. 38 crewmen were killed and 55 more were wounded. That damage sent her back to America for repairs, and by the time she was fit for battle again, the war was over.

The museum has a Curtis P-40 Kittyhawk outside, too. (I touched it.) It's done up as an AVG Flying Tiger but it's actually a P-40N, which came along after the Tigers had been disbanded.

Still, I want this plane. I would fly the shit out of this plane. And I would reinstall her .50 machine guns too.

And inside, they had this great picture of Greg "Pappy" Boyington. Now there was a man. I've visited his grave at Arlington National Cemetery many times. He's buried right next to Lee Marvin and Joe Louis, both of whom also fought for America.

Then it was back to the Displaced Louisiana House for some of the best meat pies I've ever had. DLG sure can cook, lemme tell ya!

Gotta give DLG's son credit too...all during our ship visit, I asked him what things on the ship were, and he either knew or made damned informed guesses. Smart kid indeed. His folks did well.

Great day with great people and great food. It doesn't get much better.

Last words of one of World War Two's most famous Marines

Lacking original content at present, I'll share this interview that I found on-line. It's the last interview done with Greg "Pappy" Boyington of Flying Tigers and Black Sheep Squadron fame.

Pappy Boyington: The Final Interview. Interview by Colin Heaton for Aviation History Magazine

He died on January 8th, 1988. He's buried in Arlington National Cemetery. This last interview was done just before his death and it makes for a pretty good read.

Arlington National Cemetery notables

Over 300,000 veterans are resting in Arlington National Cemetery. Each one has a name. Most you won't recognize, but some you almost certainly will.

Boyington, Gregory



Donovan, William J.



Doubleday, Abner



Evers, Medgar W.



Hayes, Ira H.



Louis, Joseph B.



Marvin, Lee



Miller, A. Glenn



Murphy, Audie L.



O'Neill, William O.



Powers, Francis G.



Puller, Lewis Jr.




Known only to God. There are a lot of these in Arlington and other national cemeteries.


Enjoy your barbecues this week-end, but be sure to take some time to reflect on the Americans who sacrificed so much for this country and the freedom of the world.

A lucky find

Offsetting my dumb camping move was a lucky purchase that I made a few weeks ago from an on-line seller of out-of-print used books. I found a copy of "Tonya", a fiction book written in 1960 by World War Two Marine Corps fighter ace Col. Greg "Pappy" Boyington. I got the book for twelve dollars, and packed it for this trip that I knew Lagniappe and I would be taking.

Well when I picked up the book to read it, I opened the cover and found much to my surprise that it was inscribed and autographed by Boyington himself! Big score. I'm betting that if the seller had known what he had, I'd have not gotten it so cheaply.

I'm about half way through it right now, and while it's obviously never going to win any literary prizes, it's interesting to see how the plot and the characters in Boyington's "fictional" story mirror his real-life experiences with the Flying Tigers just before the beginning of the war. As one who has researched Boyington a bit--and read his autobiography and other books about the Flying Tigers, it's not hard to figure out who he's talking about as he weaves the story around the "fictional" characters, one resembling himself included. Granted, Boyington's tales of his time with the Flying Tigers--both auotbiographical and fictional--bear scant resemblance to any other historical works on the Tigers, but it's fun reading nonetheless.

Best twelve bucks I've spent in a while, even without the really clear signature of Colonel Boyington.

Now if only the seller hadn't put his store's sticky label on the back cover of the book in such a way that it won't come off without damaging the cover. Thanks, asshole!

And speaking of flying...and liberal unpatriotism...

According to this story, a bunch of namby-pamby spoiled rich liberal kids don't think that a true American hero deserves to be honored at a Washington State college.

Students reject honor to WWII hero.
Member of Marines not 'sort of person UW wanted to produce'

The University of Washington's student senate rejected a memorial for alumnus Gregory "Pappy" Boyington of "Black Sheep Squadron" fame amid concerns a military hero who shot down enemy planes was not the right kind of person to represent the school.

Student senator Jill Edwards, according to minutes of the student government's meeting last week, said she "didn't believe a member of the Marine Corps was an example of the sort of person UW wanted to produce."

Ashley Miller, another senator, argued "many monuments at UW already commemorate rich white men."

Senate member Karl Smith amended the resolution to eliminate a clause that said Boyington "was credited with destroying 26 enemy aircraft, tying the record for most aircraft destroyed by a pilot in American Uniform," for which he was awarded the Navy Cross.

Smith, according to the minutes, said "the resolution should commend Colonel Boyington's service, not his killing of others."

The senate's decision was reported first by Seattle radio talk-host Kirby Wilbur of KVI, whose listeners were "absolutely incensed," according to producer Matt Haver.

Brent Ludeman, president of the university's College Republicans, told WND in an e-mail the decision "reflects poorly on the university."

"Pappy Boyington went beyond the call of duty to serve and protect this country – he simply deserves better," Ludeman said. "Just last year, the university erected a memorial to diversity. Why can't we do the same for Pappy Boyington and others who have defended our country?"

The resolution points out Boyington, a student at the UW from 1930-34, served as a combat pilot in the 1st Squadron, American Volunteer Group – the "Flying Tigers of China" – and later as a Marine Corps combat pilot in charge of Marine Fighting Squadron 214, "The Black Sheep Squadron."

Along with the Navy Cross, Boyington was awarded the Medal of Honor by President Franklin D. Roosevelt for his heroism. He was shot down and spent 20 months in a Japanese prisoner-of-war camp.

The resolution says, "Be it resolved … [t]hat we consider Col. Gregory Boyington, United States Marine Corps, to be a prime example of the excellence that this university represents and strives to impart upon its students, and, That we desire for a memorial for Col. Boyington be commenced by the University of Washington by 11 January 2008, the twentieth anniversary of his death, which will be publicly displayed, so that all who come here in future years will know that the University of Washington produced one of this country's bravest men, and that we as a community hold this fact in the highest esteem."

Commenting on the decision, a blogger who says he met Boyington on numerous occasions at a museum and air show over the years noted the famous flyer "was no rich boy," having grown up in a struggling family in which he was forced to work hard to make it through school. The blogger, who hosts the website Paradosis, also pointed out Boyington was part Sioux.

Boyington was open about his marital problems and alcohol abuse, saying notably, "Just name a hero and I'll prove he's a bum."

The blogger wondered, "have our Washington youth revised history so much as this? To compare Boyington – or for that matter any of our WW2 vets – to murderers? What are these kids being taught today? They don't deserve those 20 months Pappy spent being tortured and beaten in a Japanese prison camp ... they don't deserve any of what our grandfathers and grandmothers sacrificed to free Europe and the Pacific."

Boyington wrote a book in 1958 that reached the best-seller list, "Baa Baa, Black Sheep." In 1976, he sold rights to Universal, which aired a TV series for two seasons of the same name.

Boyington, who died Jan. 11, 1988, is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.














Col. Greg Boyington, USMC
Commander VMF-214, POW.
Congressional Medal of Honor